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Figure 6.2 shows a mass m on an inclined slope. At a certain angle [theta] the mass
begins to slide down the slope. Calculate the coefficient of static friction.
Since the object is at rest, the net force on the object equals zero:
In terms of the components of the net force along the x-axis and the y-axis:
The coefficient of static friction can be easily obtained from these two equations:
Note The friction force between car tires and the road is reduced when the car travels
uphill or downhill. It is harder to drive uphill or downhill when the roads are slick than it
is to drive on leveled surface.
between the rope and the horizontal axis is [phi] (see Figure 6.3). What is the tension in
the rope ?
Since the sled is moving with a constant velocity, the net force on the sled must be zero.
Decomposing the net force into its components along the x-axis and the y-axis, we obtain
the following equations of force:
The normal force N is always perpendicular to the surface. In the previous two sample
problems, the normal force N was proportional to the weight of the object. However, this
is not always true. For example, suppose I am pressing an eraser against the blackboard. I
ask myself, what is the minimum force that I need to apply in order to prevent the eraser
from slipping ? This situation is shown schematically in Figure 6.4. Since the eraser is at
rest, the net force acting on it must be zero (and therefore, the components of the net
force in both the x and the y-direction must be equal to zero):
The second equation tells us that the static friction force fs must be equal to W. This
implies the following for the normal force N:
However, the normal force N is equal to the applied force F. In order to prevent the eraser
from slipping, the force F will need to exceed a minimum threshold:
This relation shows that if the mass of the eraser is increased, the applied force needed to
prevent the eraser from slipping will increase (the minimum force is proportional to the
mass). This example also illustrates a situation in which the normal force is not related to
the mass of the object.
Since the net force acting on block B must be zero we conclude that
T = WB
The forces acting on block A and block C are indicated in Figure 6.7. The net force acting
in the y-direction is zero and thus
N = WA + WC
Since the system remains at rest, the net force acting on block A and C along the xdirection must also be zero. This means that the static friction force fs must be equal to
the tension T. Experiments show that fs has a maximum value which is determined by the
normal force N and the static friction coefficient us
fs <= us N = us (WA + WC)
The minimum weight of block C that will prevent the system from slipping can be found
by requiring that
us (WA + WC) >= fs = T = WB
and thus
Eliminating the tension T from these last two equations we obtain for the acceleration a
In the coordinate system chosen, there is no acceleration along the y-axis. The normal
force N1 must therefore be equal to m1 g cos([theta]). This fixes the kinetic friction force
f1k = u1k N1 = u1k m1 g cos([theta])
Mass m1 will accelerate down hill with an acceleration a. The acceleration a is related to
the x-component of the net force acting on mass m1
The forces acting on mass m2 are schematically shown in Figure 6.10. The friction force
f2k acting on mass m2 can be determined easily (see calculation of f1k):
f2k = u2k N2 = u2k m2 g cos([theta])
The x-component of the net force acting on mass m2 is given by
Substituting the values of the parameters given we find that a = 3.62 m/s2. The tension T
in the rod can now be determined easily
which is equal to 1.06 N. If mass m1 and mass m2 are reversed, we will still obtain the
same acceleration, but the tension in the rod will be negative (which means that the rod is
being compressed).
where A is the effective cross-sectional area of the body, [rho] is the density of air and v
is the speed of the object. C is a dimensionless drag coefficient that depends on the shape
of the object and whose value generally lies in the range between 0.5 and 1.0. The
direction of the drag force is opposite to the direction of the velocity.
Because of the drag force, a falling body will eventually fall with a constant velocity, the
so called terminal velocity vt. When the object is moving with its terminal velocity vt the
net force on it must be zero (no change in velocity means no acceleration). This occurs
when D = mg, and the terminal velocity vt has to satisfy the following relation:
and vt is calculated to be
The equation for vt shows that the terminal velocity of an object increases with a
decreasing effective area.
The terminal velocity of an object is the final velocity it obtains during free fall. The
object will obtain this velocity independent of whether its initial velocity is larger or
smaller than the terminal velocity (see Figure 6.11).
where v is the velocity of the particle, and r is the radius of the circle. The acceleration a
is called the centripetal acceleration. To account for the centripetal acceleration, a
centripetal force must be acting on this object. This force must be directed towards the
center of the circle, and can be calculated from Newton's second law:
An example of uniform circular motion is the motion of the moon around the earth.
Suppose the period of this motion is T. What does this tell us about the distance r between
the earth and the moon ? During one period, the moon covers a total distance equal to
2[pi]r. The velocity of the moon, vm, can be calculated:
Here we assumed that mm is the mass of the moon. The centripetal force is supplied by
the gravitational attraction between the earth and the moon. In Chapter 15 we will see
that the strength of the gravitational interaction can be calculated as follows:
where G is the gravitational constant and me is the mass of the earth. For a constant
circular motion, the gravitational force must provide the required centripetal force:
The distance between the earth and the moon can therefore be calculated:
The constant of gravity is known to be G = 6.67 x 10-11 m3/(s kg) and the mass of the
earth is known to be me = 5.98 x 1024 kg. The measured period of the moon is 27.3 days
(2.3 x 106 s). The distance between the moon and the earth can therefore be calculated:
r = 3.82 x 108 m
which agrees nicely with the distance obtained using other techniques (for example the
measurement of the time it takes for light to travel from the earth to the moon and back).
When the car rounds the curve it carries out uniform circular motion. The corresponding
centripetal acceleration of this motion is given by
In order for the car to carry out this circular motion there must exist a radial force with a
strength equal to
This force can only be supplied by the static friction force and therefore we require that
The static friction force fs has a maximum value equal to us N and this limits the velocity
and the radius of curvature of the curve that the car can take:
We conclude that the car will be able to make a turn with radius R and velocity v if the
coefficient of static friction between the tires and the road is
This component of the normal force can produce the radial acceleration required to allow
the car to round the curve, even in the absence of friction. If the car has to round a curve
with radius R and with velocity v, we require that
or
This last equation shows that the banking angle of a highway curve is designed for a
specific velocity and radius of curvature.
Sample Problem 6-9
A conical pendulum whirls around in a horizontal circle at constant speed v at the end of
a cord whose length is L. The cord makes an angle [theta] with the vertical. What is the
period of the pendulum ?
The pendulum is shown schematically in figure 6.14. Since the pendulum is carrying out
a uniform circular motion, the acceleration of the pendulum has to point toward the
center of the circle (direction along the position vector r) and the magnitude of the
acceleration equals v2/r, where v is the velocity of the pendulum and r is the radius of the
circle. The net force in the horizontal plane should therefore be always directed towards
the center of the circle and have strength determined by Newton's second law.
The coordinate system chosen is such that the origin coincides with the center of the
circle describing the motion of the pendulum. Since the horizontal component of the
force is always directed towards the center we will be using an r-axis (rather than an xaxis). The y-axis coincides with the vertical direction (see Figure 6.14). Since the ycoordinate of the bob is constant, the acceleration in y-direction must be zero. The net
force in this direction must therefore be zero:
From the radius R of the trajectory and the centripetal acceleration a, the velocity of the
object can be calculated:
The period T can be calculated from the known velocity v and radius R:
In this situation, the centripetal force is provided by the static friction force. If no slipping
occurs, the maximum static friction force must exceed the required centripetal force:
The minimum coefficient of static friction can be obtained from this equation:
If the velocity of the car is 72 km/hr (20 m/s) and the radius of curvature R = 190 m, the
minimum value of the coefficient of static friction is 0.21. Note that the mass of the car
does not enter in the calculation, and the friction coefficient is therefore the same for all
objects moving with the same velocity. The minimum coefficient of static friction scales
with the square of the velocity; a reduction of the velocity by a factor if two, will reduce
the minimum friction coefficient by a factor of four.
Problem 58E
A stunt man drives a car over the top of a hill, the cross section of which can be
approximated by a circle of radius 250 m. What is the greatest speed at which he can
drive without the car leaving the road at the top of the hill ?
The car will not leave the road at the top of the hill if the net radial force acting on it can
supply the required centripetal acceleration. The only radial forces acting on the car are
the gravitational force and the normal force (see Figure 6.16). The net radial force Fr
acting on the car is equal to
Suppose the car is driving with a velocity less than 178 km/h. The normal force N can
now be calculated and will be a function of the velocity v. If the car carries out a uniform
circular motion than we know that a net radial force must be acting on it and that its
magnitude is equal to mv2/R. The net radial force acting on the car is equal to W - N. We
conclude that
or
Problem 60P
A small object is placed 10 cm from the center of a phonograph turntable. It is observed
to remain on the table when it rotates at 33 1/3 revolutions per minute but slides off when
it rotates at 45 revolutions per minute. Between what limits must the coefficient of static
friction between the object and the surface of the turntable lie ?
The object is located a distance R away from the rotation axis. During one revolution the
object covers a distance 2[pi]R. If one revolution is completed during a time T, the linear
velocity of the object can be obtained using the following equation:
In order for the object to carry out such a uniform circular motion it must provide a radial
force with magnitude equal to
The only radial force acting on the object is the static friction force. The friction force fs
has a maximum value given by
If the object remains on the table, the static friction coefficient needs to satisfy the
following relation:
In this problem the distance to the rotation axis is 0.1 m. The block remains on the table
when the table rotates at 33 1/3 rev/min. This corresponds to 1 revolution per 1.80 s, and
a linear velocity of 0.35 m/s. This implies that the coefficient of static friction must be at
least 0.12. When the table rotates at 45 rev/min the block leaves the table. This implies
the coefficient of static friction is less than 0.22