Assignment # 1

Subject
Engineering Dynamics Lab (ME-123L)
Topic
Lab Report
Submitted To
Mr. Umair Ashraf Khokhar
Submitted By
Zain Tariq
2020-ME-14

DEPARTMENT OF MECHANICAL ENGINEERING

UNIVERSITY OF ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY, LAHORE
 Experiment No. 05.
To determine the Radius of Gyration of a Disc on an Inclined Plane

Objectives:
 To study about the radius of gyration of objects.
 To determine radius of gyration on disc rolling on an inclined plane.

Apparatus:
 Inclined Plane
 Vernier caliper
 Meter rod
 Stop Watch

Procedure:
a) Set the apparatus for measurement of radius of gyration.
b) Check the level of the inclined plane. If necessary, adjust the level with the help of leveling
screws.
c) Measure the heights of both the ends of the inclined plane as h1 and h2 using a meter rod.
d) Measure the length of the inclined plane L using meter rod.
e) Now using a digital Vernier caliper, find radius of the disc R and radius of its spindle r.
f) The actual distance travelled by the disc will be;
S = L − 2R
g) Now roll the disc from the top of the inclined plane.
h) Start the stopwatch at the same time and note the time t for the disc to reach the bottom of the
inclined plane.
i) Take three readings of time and find mean value t avg.
j) Now calculate angular velocity using the formula;
ω = 2S/Rt
k) Now calculate the radius of gyration of the disc with the help of the formula as follow;
Ke = [2g (h1 − h2)] 1/2/ω
l) Repeat the experiment two more times with changed heights of the inclined plane.
m) Calculate the value of radius of gyration theoretically using the formula;
Kt = 0.707R
n) Compare the experimental and theoretical values of the radius of gyration and find percentage
deviation.
Observations:
Disc Radius = R = 7.25cm
Spindle Radius = r = 0.625cm
Inclined Length = L = 168.5cm
Distance travelled by the disc = S = L - 2R = 154cm

Radius of
Initial Final Time taken by Disc (s) Angular
No of Gyration (cm)
Height h1 Height h2 Velocity w
Obs.
(cm) (cm) t1 t2 t3 tavg (rad/s) Kexp Kt

1. 17.2 10 22.4 22.7 22.5 22.5 21.8 5.45 5.13

2. 23.8 10 16.1 16.6 16.3 16.3 30.1 5.46 5.13
3. 21.6 10 17.7 18 17.9 17.9 27.4 5.50 5.13
4. 19.6 10 19.9 19.9 20 19.9 24.6 5.58 5.13

Mean Kexp = 5.5 cm

𝐸𝑥𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑖𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑎𝑙−𝑇ℎ𝑒𝑜𝑟𝑒𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑙
Percentage Error = = 6.7%
𝐸𝑥𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑖𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑎𝑙
 Graph:
5.7

5.6

5.5

5.4

5.3

5.2

5.1

4.9
1 2 3 4

Experimental Theoretical

Introduction:
This experiment will enable us to understand the rotational motion and its applications and
properties. It will also make us able to understand about the moment of inertia of rotating objects.
In the end, it will enable us to calculated the radius of gyration of a disc rolling down an inclined
plane.

Theory:
Disc:
“A flat, thin circular object is known as Disc.”
 Figure: Disc

Radius of gyration:
“Radius of gyration of a body about an axis of rotation is defined as the radial distance of a point
from the axis of rotation at which, if whole mass of the body is assumed to be concentrated, its
moment of inertia about the given axis would be the same as with its actual distribution of mass.
It is denoted by "k".”
“Mathematically the radius of gyration is the root mean square distance of the object's parts from
either its center of mass or a given axis, depending on the relevant application. It is actually the
perpendicular distance from point mass to the axis of rotation.”

Figure: Radius of Gyration

Moment of Inertia:
“The Moment of Inertia, otherwise known as the angular mass or rotational inertia, of a rigid
body is a tensor that determines the torque needed for a desired angular acceleration about a
rotational axis; similar to how mass determine the force needed for a desired acceleration.”
It depends on the body's mass distribution and the axis chosen, with larger moments requiring
more torque to change the body's rotation. It is an extensive (additive) property: for a point mass
the moment of inertia is just the mass times the square of perpendicular distance to the rotation
axis. The moment of inertia of a rigid composite system is the sum of the moments of inertia of its
component subsystems.
When a body is rotating, or free to rotate, around an axis, a torque must be applied to change
its angular momentum. The amount of torque needed to cause any given angular acceleration (the
rate of change in angular velocity) is proportional to the moment of inertia of the body. Moment
of inertia may be expressed in units of kilogram meter squared (kg·m2) in SI units and pound-
foot-second squared (lb·ft·s2) in imperial or US units.

Figure: Moment of Inertia

Rigid body:
If a mechanical system is constrained to move parallel to a fixed plane, then the rotation of a body
in the system occurs around an axis k̂ perpendicular to this plane. In this case, the moment of
inertia of the mass in this system is a scalar known as the polar moment of inertia. The definition
of the polar moment of inertia can be obtained by considering momentum, kinetic energy and
Newton's laws for the planar movement of a rigid system of particles.

Moment of Inertia for different mechanical things:

Rod:
Rod of length L and mass m, rotating about its center.
𝟏
𝑰= 𝒎𝑳𝟐
𝟏𝟐
This expression assumes that the rod is an infinitely thin (but rigid) wire. This is a special case of
the thin rectangular plate with axis of rotation at the center of the plate, with w = L and h = 0.

Figure: Rod

Thin circular hoop:

Thin circular hoop of radius r and mass m.
𝑰 = 𝒎𝒓𝟐
This is a special case of a torus for a = 0 (see below), as well as of a thick-walled cylindrical tube
with open ends, with r1 = r2 and h = 0.

Figure: Thin Circular Hoop

Disc
Thin, solid disk of radius r and mass m.
𝟏
𝑰= 𝒎𝒓𝟐
𝟐

This is a special case of the solid cylinder, with h = 0.

Figure: Disc

Cylinder:
Thin cylindrical shell with open ends, of radius r and mass m.
𝟏
𝑰= 𝒎𝒓𝟐
𝟐
This expression assumes that the shell thickness is negligible. It is a special case of the thick-
walled cylindrical tube for r1 = r2.

Figure: Cylinder

Tetrahedron:
Regular tetrahedron of side s and mass m
 𝟏
𝑰= 𝒎𝒔𝟐
𝟐𝟎

Figure: Tetrahedron

Octagon:
Regular octahedron of side s and mass m.

Figure: Octagon

Hollow sphere:
Hollow sphere of radius r and mass m.
𝑰 = 𝒎𝒓𝟐
A hollow sphere can be taken to be made up of two stacks of infinitesimally thin, circular hoops,
where the radius differs from 0 to r (or a single stack, where the radius differs from -r to r).

Figure: Hollow Sphere

 Solid sphere:
Solid sphere (ball) of radius r and mass m.
𝟐
𝑰= 𝒎𝒓𝟐
𝟓
A sphere can be taken to be made up of two stacks of infinitesimally thin, solid discs, where the
radius differs from 0 to r (or a single stack, where the radius differs from -r to r).

Figure: Solid Sphere

Cone
Right circular cone with radius r, height h and mass m
𝟑
𝑰= 𝒎𝒓𝟐
𝟏𝟎

Figure: Cone

Applications:
 It is actually the perpendicular distance from point mass to the axis of rotation. One can
represent a trajectory of a moving point as a body. Then radius of gyration can be used to
characterize the typical distance travelled by this point.
 The radius of gyration is used to compare how various structural shapes will behave under
compression along an axis. It is used to predict buckling in a compression member or beam.
  To find rotational dynamic quantities of any irregular shaped body. Radius of gyration can be
used as center of mass in simple words about the point where whole mass is assumed to be
concentrated. So, we can use it to find rotational kinetic energy.
 Practically used in airplanes and other automobiles which need a balance but have irregular
shape. So, they use radius of gyration for its calculations.

Possible Errors:
 The observations and results show that there is some error or deviation of the experimental
values from the theoretical ones.
 This may be due to imbalance of inclined plane, improper rolling of the disc, slip factor of the
disc or some human negligence.
 It may be due to friction and inappropriate use of stopwatch.

Solutions:
 By proper lubrication and precise use of stopwatch, we can reduce the chances of errors.
 Further, the deviation decreases with increase in the height of the inclined plane.
 This can probably be because of better and easy rolling down of the disc from a higher position
as compared to a lower one.

References:
Hanaor, D.; Gan, Y.; Einav, I. (2016). "Static friction at fractal interfaces" (PDF). Tribology
International. 93: 229–238
http://salesbox.com/disc-model-sales-process/
Beer, Ferdinand P.; Johnston, E. Russel, Jr. (1996). Vector Mechanics for Engineers (Sixth ed.).
McGraw-Hill.
https://www.quora.com/What-is-the-radius-of-gyration-and-its-physical-significance-in-detail
Ruina, Andy; Pratap, Rudra (2002). Introduction to Statics and Dynamics (PDF). Oxford
University Press
https://www.scienceabc.com/nature/universe/how-to-calculate-the-moment-of-inertia-of-a-
rod.html
Chatterjee, Sudipta (2008). Tribological Properties of Pseudo-elastic Nickel-titanium (Thesis).
University of California.
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