Circular Motion HW

Q1.
The diagram shows the carriage of a rollercoaster about to enter a vertical loop of diameter 17.0 m. The
carriage is initially at rest at a height Δh above the bottom of the loop.

During one particular ride, the speed of a car at the bottom of the loop was 22.5 m s−1.
(i) Calculate the acceleration of the passenger at the bottom of the loop as a multiple of g, the
acceleration due to gravity.
(2)
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Acceleration = ...........................................................

(ii) The maximum safe acceleration recommended for passengers is 4g. Most loop-the-loop
rollercoasters do not have a circular loop. Instead, the radius of curvature of the loop varies.

Explain why making the radius of the loop vary in this way enables the acceleration at the bottom of
the loop to be less than 4g.
(2)
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(Total for question = 10 marks)

Consider the chair and rider as a single object. By drawing a free-body force diagram and considering the
forces acting, explain the following observations.

The angle to the vertical of the supporting ropes depends on the speed of rotation, but does not depend
on the mass of the rider.
(5)
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(Total for question = 5 marks)

The London Eye consists of a large vertical circle with 32 equally-spaced passenger cabins attached to
it. The wheel rotates so that each cabin has a constant speed of 0.26 m s−1 and moves around a circle
of radius 61 m.
(a) Calculate the time taken for each cabin to make one complete revolution.
(2)
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Time = ..............................................................
(b) Calculate the centripetal force acting on each cabin.

mass of cabin = 9.7 × 103 kg

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Centripetal force = ..............................................................
(c) (i) The diagram shows just the circle and the cabins. Draw arrows to show the direction of the
centripetal force acting on a person in a cabin when the person is at each of positions A, B and C.

(3)
*(ii) As the person in a cabin moves around the circle, the normal contact force between the person and
the cabin varies.
State the position at which this force will be a maximum and the position at which it will be a minimum.
Explain your answers.
(4)
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(Total for question = 9 marks)
Q4.
In order to make an object move around a circular path at a constant speed a resultant force must act on
it.

(a) Explain why a resultant force is required and state the direction of this force.
(2)
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(b) When vehicles move around a bend on a level road, the resultant force is provided by friction
between the tyres and the road. For a given vehicle and road surface there is a maximum value for this
sideways frictional force.

Explain why roads designed for high-speed travel, such as motorways, do not have any sharp bends.
(2)
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(c) Some cycling tracks are banked. When cornering, a cyclist moves up the track until the sideways
frictional force is zero.

The free-body force diagram for a cyclist and bicycle is shown. The normal contact force exerted by the
track is N and the weight of cyclist and bicycle is mg.

(i) By considering the vertical and horizontal motion, show that

tan θ = gr/v2

where r is the radius of the cyclist's path and v is the cyclist's speed.
(3)
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(ii) Calculate the value of θ for a cyclist travelling at 11.0 m s−1 around a bend of radius 18.7 m.
(2)
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θ = ...........................................................

(Total for Question = 9 marks)