Prelab: Physical Pendulum

Name:
Group members:

Date:
Instructor:

1. Find an expression for the moment of inertia of a solid cylinder about its center.

2. Use the Parallel Axis Theorem to find an expression for the moment of inertia of
the cylinder about its one end.

Prelab: Physical Pendulum

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EXPERIMENT
Physical Pendulum

Objectives
In this experiment, the student is expected to:
apply the parallel axis theorem to properly calculate the moment of inertia of an
object.
verify experimentally the equation for the period of oscillation of a physical pendulum.

Introduction
When a pendulum is massive enough, approximating it as a point particle would no longer
give an accurate period of oscillation. In this case, the pendulum would now have to be
calculated using the formula
s
I
(1)
T = 2
mgd
where I is the moment of intertia, m is the mass and d is the distance from the axis of
rotation to the center of mass.
For a cylinder, if the axis of rotation passes through the center of the circular face,
the moment of interia is given by:
1
(2)
I = mr2
2
where m is the mass and r is the radius of the cylinder. If the axis of rotation passes
through half of the cylinders length, the moment of intertia is given by:
I=

1
1
ml2 + mr2
12
4

(3)

where m is the mass and l is the length of the cylinder.

It is also important to know that when the axis of rotation is moved by a distance x,
the moment of inertia can be calculated using
I = I 0 + mx2 .

(4)

where I 0 is the moment of inertia before the axis was moved. This is known as the parallel
axis theorem.
Physical Pendulum

2nd Sem, A.Y. 2015-2016

Physics 71.1

Materials
The following materials are required for the experiment:
String
Vernier Caliper
Digital weighing scale
Metal Cylinders
Stopwatch
Iron stand and clamp

Procedure
Calculating the moment of intertia of the cylinder
1. Using the vernier caliper measure the length of the cylinder.
2. Use the weighing scale to measure the cylinders mass.
3. Use eq.(3) to calculate the moment of inertia when it is rotated about an axis
passing through half its length. This will be known as Icm .
4. Record your measurements in Table W1.

Moment of Inertia
1. Cut your string into six different lengths (e.g. 5 cm, 10 cm, 15 cm, 20 cm, 25 cm and
30 cm).
2. Calculate the moment of inertia of the cylinder if the axis of rotation was moved
to the end of the string when the string if tied to it.
3. Calculate this for every string length.
4. Record your calculations in Table W2.

Period of Oscillation
1. Attach the string to the cylinder so that it hangs on the iron stand.
2. For a small angle ( < 5 ), allow the cylinder to sway as a pendulum
3. Record the time it takes the pendulum to make 10 oscillations and determine the
period of oscillation.
4. Record the results in Table W3.
5. Repeat this for all string lengths.
4

Materials

2nd Sem, A.Y. 2015-2016

Physics 71.1
Name:
Group members:

Date:
Instructor:

Data Sheet

Table W1: Cylinder Measurements

Radius (m) Length (m) Mass (kg) Icm (kg m2 )

Table W2: Moment of Inertia

Length of String (cm) Moment of Interia (kg m2 )

Length of String (cm)

Table W3: Period of Oscillation

Calculated Period (s) Experimental Period (s)

Do they agree?

Questions
1. Based on your results, are the determined experimental periods consistent with the
equation for the period of the physical pendulum? Explain your answer.

Physical Pendulum

2nd Sem, A.Y. 2015-2016

Physics 71.1

2. Will the period be affected if the shape of the object is changed? Discuss your
answer.

3. Is the period affected by the mass of the cylinder? Discuss your answer.

4. When is it possible to approximate the cylinder used in the experiment as a point

particle? Discuss your answer in detail.

Procedure