Rotational Motion

Rigid body:

A body with a perfectly definite and unchanging shape is called rigid body. Rigid bodies can
undergo both translational and rotational motion. Motion of a rigid body can always be represented
as a combination of translational motion of some point in the body and rotational motion about an
axis through that point.

Angular displacement:

If a rigid body of arbitrary shape rotating about a fixed axis and if 

represents any arbitrary angle subtended by an arc of length x on the
circumference of a circle of radius R, then  (in radians) is the angular
displacement of that body and is defined as

x

R

( ) ( )

Average and instantaneous angular velocity:

The average velocity of the body is defined as the ratio of the

angular displacement to the elapsed time. If 12is the angular
displacement between time interval t1 and t2, then the average
velocity is
 2  1 
 
t2  t1 t

The instantaneous velocity  is defined as the limit approached

by this ratio as t approaches zero, that is
 d
  lim 
t  0  t dt

Average and instantaneous angular acceleration:

If the angular velocity of a body changes, it is said to have an angular acceleration. If 1 and 2 are
the instantaneous angular velocities at times t1 and t2, then the average angular acceleration is
defined as
2  1 
 
t2  t1 t
The instantaneous acceleration  is defined as the limit of this ratio when tapproaches zero.
 d
  lim 
t 0 t dt

Dr. Bablu Chandra Das

Assistant Professor Page 1 of 8
Rotation with constant acceleration:

In the case of rotation with constant acceleration, expressions for the angular velocity and angular
coordinate can readily be derived by integration. We have
d
   constant
dt
 d  dt

If 0 is the angular velocity when t = 0 and  is the angular velocity when t = t, then by integration,
we have
 t

 d    dt
0 0

  0  t ……………. (1)

d
Now, since   , we get form (1)
dt
d  0 dt  t

If 0 is the angular displacement when t = 0 and  is the angular displacement when t = t, then by
integration, we get
 t t

 d    dt    tdt
0
0
0 0

1
   0  0t  t 2 …………… (2)
2

Now, we can write the angular acceleration as

d d d d
  
dt d dt d
 d  d

Then by integration, we have

 
  d   d
0 0

  0  2   0  …………. (3)
2 2

Equations (1) – (3) are the equations of motion with constant angular acceleration.

Relation between angular and linear velocity and acceleration:

Consider a body is moving in a circular path of radius r and at a certain time the body is at
point P. If the arc x is small then the angular displacement is related with r and as
x  r
 x  r P
x  x
 r 
t t
r
 v  r …………. (4)

This is the relation between linear and angular velocity.

Dr. Bablu Chandra Das

Assistant Professor Page 2 of 8
Again, from (4) we can write
 v  r
v 
 r
t t
( )

where a is the tangential component of the linear acceleration of a point

at a distance r from the axis.
Equation (5) is the relation between the linear acceleration and tangential
component of acceleration.

The radial component of acceleration of the point can also be expressed

in terms of the angular velocity

( )

Centripetal acceleration:

The word ‘centripetal’ means ‘seeking for a center’. In uniform circular motion there is no tangential
component of acceleration and acceleration is purely radial resulting only from the continuous
change of the direction of the velocity. In this case the direction of the acceleration is towards the
center and is known as centripetal acceleration which is given by
( )

Kinetic energy of rotation:

We know the kinetic energy in linear motion is defined as

1 2
k mv …………… (6)
2
In rotational motion v  r
1 1 1
 
 k  mv 2  m 2 r 2  mr 2  2
2 2 2
For a system of particles
k
1
2
 mr 
2 2

1 2
k  I ………… (7)
2
This is the expression for kinetic energy in rotational motion.

Moment of inertia:

From the definition of kinetic energy in angular motion, we get

I   mr 2

The term I is known as moment of inertia. Comparing (2) with (1) it is seen that I plays a role of
mass in rotational motion.
Dr. Bablu Chandra Das
Assistant Professor Page 3 of 8
For different size and shape of the body I can have different expressions; e.g.

i) A slender rod; axis through center

1
I Ml 2
12

ii) Rectangular plate; axis through center

I
1
12

M a 2  b2 
iii) Hollow cylinder
I
1
2

M R1  R2
2 2

iv) Solid cylinder
1
I MR 2
2
v) Thin walled cylinder
I  MR 2
vi) Solid sphere
2
I MR 2
5

Angular momentum:

The angular momentum of a moving body about an axis is defined as the product of its linear
momentum and the perpendicular distance from the axis to its linear motion. It is denoted by L.

Dr. Bablu Chandra Das

Assistant Professor Page 4 of 8
Torque:

Torque, moment, or moment of force is rotational force. Just as a

linear force is a push or a pull, a torque can be thought of as a twist
to an object. It is given by the cross product of the position vector
(distance vector) and the force vector.

The symbol for torque is typically tau ( ), the lowercase Greek

letter. When it is called moment of force, it is commonly denoted by
M.

The magnitude of torque of a rigid body depends on three

quantities: the force applied, the lever arm vector connecting the
origin to the point of force application, and the angle between the
force and lever arm vectors.

⃗ ⃗ ⃗

where

is the torque vector and is the magnitude of the torque

is the position vector (a vector from the origin of the coordinate
system defined to the point where the force is applied)
is the force vector,
× denotes the cross product, which is defined as magnitudes of the respective vectors times sin θ.
θ is the angle between the force vector and the lever arm vector.

In diagrams that involve ⃗ ⃗ and ⃗ it’s common to have one of the vectors oriented perpendicular to
the page. (Indeed, by the very nature of the cross product, ⃗ ⃗ ⃗ must be perpendicular to the
plane of the vectors ⃗ and ⃗ ) We use a dot ( ) to represent a vector that points out of the page and a
cross ( ) to represent a vector that

Work in rotational motion:

A force applied to a rotational body does work on the body; this work may be expressed in terms of
the torque of the force and angular displacement.

Suppose a force F acts at the rim of a pivoted wheel of radius R while the wheel rotates through a
small angle . If this angle is small enough, the force may be regarded as constant during the
corresponding small time interval. By definition, the work of the force F is

But,

Here is the torque, , due to force F.

Dr. Bablu Chandra Das
Assistant Professor Page 5 of 8
Power in rotational motion:

Power is the work done by system per unit time.

Angular velocity,

Torque and angular acceleration:

The relation of torque to angular acceleration is obtained most simply from the work-energy
theorem. The rate at which the torque does work on the body must equal the rate of change of the
body’s kinetic energy. Thus

( ) ( )

( )

Comparison of linear and angular motion:

Concept Translational motion Rotational motion Relationship

Displacement x  x = r
Velocity dx d v = r
v 
dt dt
Acceleration dv d v2
a  a  r , a 
dt dt r

Motion with v  v0  at   0  t
constant
1 2 1
acceleration x  x0  v0t  at    0  0t  t 2
2 2
v 2  v0  2a x  x0 
2
 2  0 2  2    0 

Mass, moment m I I = mr2

of inertia
Kinetic energy 1 2 1 2
K mv K I
2 2
Momentum P = mv L = I L = mvr

Dr. Bablu Chandra Das

Assistant Professor Page 6 of 8
Rotational Motion (P 204-205)

1. A 5kg wheel of 0.6 m in diameter starts from rest and accelerates with constant angular
acceleration to an angular velocity 100 rad/s in 20 s. Find the angular acceleration and the angle
turned through. Also find the total work done. [Ans: 5 rad/s2, 1000 rad]

2. The angular velocity of a flywheel decreases uniformly from 1000 rev/min to 400 rev/min in
5s. Find the angular acceleration and the number of revolution made by the wheel in the 5 s
interval. How many more seconds are required for the wheel to come to rest? [Ans: -12.57
rad/s2, 58.3 rev, 3.33 s]

3. A flywheel requires 3 s to rotate through 234 radians. Its angular velocity at the end of this
time is 108 rad/s. Find its constant angular acceleration. [Ans: 20 rad/s2]

4. A wheel of 1m in diameter is rotating about a fixed axis with an initial angular velocity of 2
rev/s and angular acceleration is 3 rev/s2.
(i) Compute the angular velocity after 6 sec. [Ans: 125.66 rad/s or 20 rev/s]
(ii) Through what angle has the wheel turned in this time interval? [Ans: 414.7 rad or 66
rev]
(iii) What is the tangential velocity of a point on the rim of the wheel at t = 6 s? [Ans:
62.8 m/s]
(iv) What is the resultant acceleration of a point on the rim of the wheel at
t = 6 s? [Ans: 7896 m/s2]

5. A flywheel of radius 30 cm starts from rest and accelerates with constant angular acceleration
of 0.50 rad/s2. Compute the tangential acceleration, radial acceleration, and the resultant
acceleration of a point on its rim

(i) at the start, [Ans: 15 cm/s2, 0, 15 cm/s2]

(ii) after it has turned through 120º. [Ans: 15 cm/s2, 62.8 cm/s2, 64.6 cm/s2]
(iii) after it has turned through 240º. [Ans: 15 cm/s2, 126 cm/s2, 127 cm/s2]

6. An automobile engine is idling at 500 rev/min. When the accelerator is depressed, the angular
velocity increases to 3000 rev/min in 5 s. Assume a constant angular acceleration. The flywheel
of the engine is 0.5 m in diameter.

(i) What are the initial and final angular velocities expressed in radians per second?
[Ans: 52.5 rad/s, 314 rad/s]
(ii) What was the angular acceleration expressed in radians per second squared? [Ans:
52.4 rad/s2]
(iii) How many revolutions did the engine make during the acceleration period? [Ans:
145 rev]
(iv) What were the tangential and radial acceleration during the acceleration period?
[Ans: 13.1 m/s2, 24674.13 m/s2]

Dr. Bablu Chandra Das

Assistant Professor Page 7 of 8
https://www.physics.uoguelph.ca/simple-harmonic-motion-and-circular-motion

https://gfycat.com/criminalallbluegill-centripetal-accleration-circular-motion

https://www.pinterest.com/pin/536772849323762274/

http://www.dynamicscience.com.au/tester/solutions1/hydraulicus/torquework.html

https://askeyapphysics.com/2014/03/26/torque-angular-momentum-force-momentum-the-pointer/

Dr. Bablu Chandra Das

Assistant Professor Page 8 of 8