The Importance Of Circular Motion

Aim/Objective:

To determine how the net force of an object varies with its frequency of revolution if it is moving in a circular path at a constant speed. (Seddon, 2016)

Background:

Uniform circular motion is defined as an object travelling in a circle at a constant speed (Walding, Rapkins and Rossiter, 2004). As the motion is circular, the direction of motion is constantly changing, resulting in a constantly changing velocity. Because the velocity is changing direction, the object is, therefore, undergoing centripetal acceleration and can be calculated by dividing the square of the velocity by the radius of the circle, as shown in the equation: (Walding, Rapkins and Rossiter, 2004). The centripetal force is an alternative name for the net force when there is a constant speed (otherwise the net force would be at an angle to the direction of motion) thus equations for the centripetal force and the net force are interchangeable, such as Newton’s Second Law, . This can, therefore, be expressed as (Walding, Rapkins and Rossiter, 2004). Speed is given as , where t is the period of time taken for one revolution of the circle (Walding, Rapkins and Rossiter, 2004). The distance s is given by the circumference of the circle, 2 휋r, thus velocity is given by . Substituting into and refining the resulting equation gives the equation . Frequency (measured in Hz) is given as: f = 1/t. Therefore, can be rewritten as , meaning F ∝ 푓2.

Because the rubber stopper has mass, the