ANU ENGN3331/6331 SYSTEM DYNAMICS

LECTURE 10: VARIATIONAL DYNAMICS I

Dr Igor G. Vladimirov
MAIN THEME

Work-energy approach, Euler-Lagrange equations of motion and related concepts

[Theo Jansen’s “Strandbeest” kinetic sculptures provide a beautiful illustration of how the work of the forces of
nature is converted into the energy of motion: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LewVEF2B_pM]

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SPECIFIC POINTS

• Work and kinetic energy

• Conservative forces and potential energy

• Generalised coordinates, generalised velocities and generalised forces

• Conservative, nonconservative and constraint forces

• The Lagrangian and generalised momenta

• Euler-Lagrange equations

• Hamiltonian formulation of Lagrangian dynamics

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FORCE-MOMENTUM AND WORK-ENERGY APPROACHES

The Newtonian (force-momentum) approach operates with vector quantities and applies to mechanical sys-
tems.

The Lagrangian/Hamiltonian variational approach employs mainly scalar quantities, such as work and energy,
and is applicable not only to mechanical but also other types of systems (including electrical and electrome-
chanical systems).

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THREE TYPES OF RELATIONS IN NEWTONIAN DYNAMICS AND VARIATIONAL DYNAMICS

1. GEOMETRIC RELATIONS

– ND (Newtonian Dynamics): Kinematic analysis

– VD (Variational Dynamics): Generalised coordinates and admissible variations to represent the geometric
constraints

2. DYNAMIC RELATIONS

– ND: Force-Momentum principle

– VD: Variational Work principle

3. CONSTITUTIVE RELATIONS

– ND: Each element is characterized by its force equation

– VD: Each conservative element is characterized by its energy/co-energy equation (and there also are
non-conservative elements)

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COMPARISON OF CONSTITUTIVE RELATIONS

Although the constitutive relations in the Newtonian Dynamics are different from those in the Variational Dy-
namics, they are closely related.

For example, external forces are considered as the source of work which supplies (or extracts) energy.

The velocity-momentum relations pertain to motion, which is quantified by the kinetic energy.

While the gravity and spring forces provide potential energy storage, damping and friction forces are reasons
of energy dissipation (into heat).

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WORK DONE BY A FORCE

Consider a particle with the position vector

~R = X~I +Y J~ + Z K
~
(in a frame OXY Z with axis vectors ~I, J,
~ K)
~ moving along a path (shown as a red curve) from an initial position
~R0 to a terminal position ~R1:

The work done by a force

~F = Fx~I + FyJ~ + FzK
~
acting on the particle (as it moves along the path) is defined as the scalar quantity
Z ~R Z ~R
1 1
W= ~F · d ~R = (FxdX + FydY + FzdZ) (1)
~R0 ~R0

(note the use of the dot-product). If several forces ~F1, . . . , ~FN act on the particle, the total work is the sum of the
individual works W1, . . . ,WN done by the forces and is equal to the work of the net force ~F = ∑N ~
i=1 Fi :
N Z ~R1 Z ~R N
1
Z ~R
1
W= ∑ ~Fi · d ~R = ∑ ~Fi · d ~R = ~F · d ~R.
~ ~R0 ~R0
i=1 | R0 {z } i=1
Wi
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AN EXAMPLE OF CALCULATING THE WORK OF SEVERAL FORCES

Suppose a body undergoes a one-dimensional horizontal translation, with its x-coordinate changing from x0 to
x1:

Let the body be acted upon by four constant forces ~F1, . . . , ~F4. The net force acting on the body is
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~F = ∑ ~Fi = (F cos θ − F3)~I + (−F1 sin θ − F2) J~ + |{z} ~
F4 K.
| 1 {z } | {z }
i=1 Fx Fy Fz

The total work of the forces along the horizontal path shown is
Z x Z 0 Z 0
1
W= FxdX + FydY + FzdZ = (F1 cos θ − F3)(x1 − x0)
x0 0 0
because the y and z-coordinates of the body do not change, and only the horizontal component of the net force
~F contributes to the work.
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WORK OF THE NET FORCE AND KINETIC ENERGY OF A PARTICLE

For a particle of mass m with velocity ~v and linear momentum

~p = m~v, (2)
Newton’s second law (the force-momentum principle) says that

~p˙ = ~F,
where ~F is the net force acting on the particle. This allows the work of the net force along the particle path to
be represented as
Z finish Z finish Z finish Z finish
W= ~F · |{z}
d ~R = ~p˙ ·~vdt = ˙ =
~v · |{z}
~pdt ~v · d~p, (3)
start start start start
|{z}
~p˙ ˙
~Rdt d~p
where
˙
d~p = ~pdt
1 ~p from (2), the work (3) takes the form
is the time differential of the linear momentum. Now, since ~v = m
Z finish
1 finish 1 finish
Z Z
W= ~v · d~p = · d~p} =
~|p {z d(|~p|2) = ∆T, (4)
start m start 2m start
1
2 d(~p·~p)
that is, the change in the kinetic energy
p2
T (~p) = (5)
2m
of the particle. The kinetic energy is expressed here in terms of the magnitude p = |~p| of the momentum.
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LEGENDRE TRANSFORMATION AND KINETIC “CO-ENERGY”

Due to the constitutive relation (2) between the momentum and the velocity, the kinetic energy (5) can be
represented as a function T ∗ of the velocity of the particle:
(mv)2 1 2
T (~p) = = mv = T ∗(~v) (6)
2m 2
(it depends on the speed v = |~v|). These two functions are related by the Legendre transformation
T ∗(~v) = sup(~v ·~p − T (~p)), (7)
~p
where the supremum is achieved (and hence, is a maximum) at ~p and ~v related by (2). Indeed, by using the
square completion,
 |~p|2   m|~v|2 1  mv2  1 
sup(~v ·~p − T (~p)) = sup ~v ·~p − = sup 2
− |~p − m~v| = + sup − |~p − m~v| = T ∗(~v).
2
~p ~p 2m ~p 2 2m 2
|{z} ~p 2m
T∗
While the Legendre transformation may seem to be an artificial (and overcomplicated) way to link T and T ∗, it
plays its role in the case of more complex constitutive relations between the velocity ~v and momentum ~p (such
as in special relativity theory where ~v and ~p are related in a nonlinear fashion). However, the property
T (~p) + T ∗(~v) = ~p ·~v
(where ~p and ~v satisfy the corresponding constitutive relation) remains valid.

In those more complicated cases, T ∗(~v) in (7) is referred to as the kinetic co-energy. Since we are concerned
mainly with classical mechanics (where the kinetic energy depends on the momentum in a quadratic fashion),
we will identify the kinetic energy and the kinetic co-energy in accordance with (6).
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CONSERVATIVE FORCES AND POTENTIAL ENERGY

Although forces are vector quantities, there is an important class of forces which are specified by a scalar-
valued function of position coordinates. Consider a particle in a reference frame OXY Z subjected to a force ~F
which is the negative gradient of a differentiable function V (x, y, z) of the Cartesian coordinates of the particle:
~F = Fx~I + FyJ~ + FzK
~ = −∇V (8)
The components of this force are related to the corresponding partial derivatives of the function V as
∂V ∂V ∂V
Fx = −∇xV = − , Fy = −∇yV = − , Fz = −∇zV = − .
∂x ∂y ∂z
The work (1) of such a force ~F on the particle moving along a path takes the form
Z ~R Z ~R
1 1
W= (Fxdx + Fydy + Fzdz) = − (∇xV dx + ∇yV dy + ∇zV dz)
~R0 ~R0 | {z }
dV
= −∆V = V (x|0, {z
y0, z}0) −V (x|1, {z
y1, z}1) (9)
initial terminal
and is the change (with the opposite sign) in the function V . This difference depends only on the initial and
terminal points of the path (its intermediate structure does not matter). In particular, ∆V = 0 over any closed
path (with ~R0 = ~R1). The forces (8) are called conservative because a combination of (4) and (9) gives
W = ∆T = −∆V,
and hence, ∆T + ∆V = 0, and the total mechanical energy
E = T +V
remains unchanged. Accordingly, V is called potential energy. While the kinetic energy T pertains to the motion
of the particle, V depends only on the position and can be attributed either to the particle or to the force field.
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SPRING AS A CONSERVATIVE (POTENTIAL ENERGY STORAGE) ELEMENT

Consider an ideal spring of stiffness k. In order to achieve its elongation e from the undeformed state, the force
f = ke (10)
has to be applied to its free end:

As the free end of the spring is moved from elongation e0 to elongation e1, the work of the force is
Z e Z e
1 1 1 e1
W= f de = k ede = ke2 e=e = ∆V,
e0 e0 2 0

which is the increment of the potential energy

1
V (e) = ke2 (11)
2
stored by the deformed spring with elongation e. Now, if a mass m is attached to the free end, the spring exerts
the opposite force −kx on the mass at elongation x, which can be represented as the negative gradient
−kx = −V 0(x)
of the potential energy. Therefore, the spring produces a conservative force acting on the mass, and the total
energy 12 mẋ2 + 12 kx2 of the mass-spring system is preserved.

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POTENTIAL CO-ENERGY FUNCTION

The potential energy (11) stored by the deformed spring can also be expressed in terms of the force (10) as
1 f2
2
V (e) = (ke) = = V ∗( f ). (12)
2k 2k
The function V ∗ coincides with the Legendre transformation

V ∗( f ) = sup( f e −V (e))
e
of the potential energy V and is called potential co-energy.

While (12) holds for ideal springs with the linear constitutive relation (10), it is not valid for nonideal springs with
a nonlinear dependence of the force f on the elongation e. However, for general constitutive relations between
f and e,
V (e) +V ∗( f ) = f e
similarly to what was discussed previously in regard to the kinetic energy T and kinetic co-energy T ∗ functions.

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GRAVITATIONAL AND ELECTRIC FIELDS AS CONSERVATIVE ELEMENTS

The gravitational force field created by the attraction of one mass with respect to another is conservative.

For example, in a small region near the Earth’s surface (the region size should be small compared to the
Earth radius ∼ 6400 km), the gravitational field of the Earth can be considered uniform with a constant free fall
acceleration ~g. For a particle of mass m with a position vector ~R with respect to the surface, its potential energy
in the gravitational field is
V (~R) = −m~g · ~R = mgh,
where h is the height of the mass above the Earth surface. Its negative gradient with respect to the position
vector ~R indeed gives the gravity force m~g acting on the mass:
~F = −∇V = m~g.

The force field due to the attraction of similar or repulsion of opposite electric charges is also conservative. For
example, if a point charge q is placed in a uniform electric field of strength ~E, the force exerted by the field on
the charge is
~F = q~E = −∇V,

where the potential energy of the charge at a position ~R is

V (~R) = −q~E · ~R.

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NON-CONSERVATIVE FORCES

Having remarkable properties, the conservative forces are very special. There are also non-conservative forces.
In particular, such are dissipative forces which always do negative work.

For example, the work of the dashpot force −cẋ acting on a cart as it moves horizontally from position x0 to x1
over a time interval [t0,t1] is
Z x Z t
1 1
W = −c dx = −c
ẋ |{z} ẋ(t)2 dt 6 0.
x0 ẋdt t0 |{z}
>0
It is strictly negative except for the trivial situation when the cart has zero velocity ẋ over the time interval (and
so does not move at all).

This work is negative even if the cart moves so that it returns to the initial position (that is, x0 = x1). Hence, the
dashpot force is non-conservative.

By a similar reasoning, the drag (fluid resistance) and kinetic friction forces also do negative work and are also
non-conservative.
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