108 Rotational Motion

7.1 Introduction.
Translation is motion along a straight line but rotation is the motion of wheels, gears, motors, planets, the hands of a
clock, the rotor of jet engines and the blades of helicopters. First
figure shows a skater gliding across the ice in a straight line with
constant speed. Her motion is called translation but second figure
shows her spinning at a constant rate about a vertical axis. Here
motion is called rotation.
Up to now we have studied translatory motion of a point mass.
In this chapter we will study the rotatory motion of rigid body about
a fixed axis.
(1) Rigid body : A rigid body is a body that can rotate with all the parts locked together and without any change in
its shape.
(2) System : A collection of any number of particles interacting with one another and are under consideration during
analysis of a situation are said to form a system.
(3) Internal forces : All the forces exerted by various particles of the system on one another are called internal
forces. These forces are alone enable the particles to form a well defined system. Internal forces between two particles are
mutual (equal and opposite).
(4) External forces : To move or stop an object of finite size, we have to apply a force on the object from outside.
This force exerted on a given system is called an external force.
7.2 Centre of Mass.
Centre of mass of a system (body) is a point that moves as though all the mass were concentrated there and all
external forces were applied there.
(1) Position vector of centre of mass for n particle system : If a system consists of n particles of masses
   
m1 , m 2 , m 3 ...... m n , whose positions vectors are r1 , r2 , r3 ........ rn respectively then
y
position vector of centre of mass m1 C.M.
   
 m2
m r  m 2 r2  m 3 r3  .......... .. m n rn r1
r  1 1 r r2
m 1  m 2  m 3  .......... .. m n m3

Hence the centre of mass of n particles is a weighted average of the position vectors r3
x
of n particles making up the system.
 Rotational Motion 109

 

m r  m 2 r2
(2) Position vector of centre of mass for two particle system : r  1 1
m1  m 2
and the centre of mass lies between the particles on the line joining them.
 
r r 
If two masses are equal i.e. m1  m 2 , then position vector of centre of mass r  1 2
2
(3) Important points about centre of mass
(i) The position of centre of mass is independent of the co-ordinate system chosen.
(ii) The position of centre of mass depends upon the shape of the body and distribution of mass.
Example : The centre of mass of a circular disc is within the material of the body while that of a circular ring is
outside the material of the body.
(iii) In symmetrical bodies in which the distribution of mass is homogenous, the centre of mass coincides with the
geometrical centre or centre of symmetry of the body.
(iv) Position of centre of mass for different bodies

S. No. Body Position of centre of mass

(a) Uniform hollow sphere Centre of sphere
(b) Uniform solid sphere Centre of sphere
(c) Uniform circular ring Centre of ring
(d) Uniform circular disc Centre of disc
(e) Uniform rod Centre of rod
(f) A plane lamina (Square, Rectangle, Parallelogram) Point of inter section of diagonals
(g) Triangular plane lamina Point of inter section of medians
(h) Rectangular or cubical block Points of inter section of diagonals
(i) Hollow cylinder Middle point of the axis of cylinder
(j) Solid cylinder Middle point of the axis of cylinder
(k) Cone or pyramid 3h
On the axis of the cone at point distance from the
4
vertex where h is the height of cone

(v) The centre of mass changes its position only under the translatory motion. There is no effect of rotatory motion
on centre of mass of the body.
(vi) If the origin is at the centre of mass, then the sum of the moments of the masses of the system about the centre

of mass is zero i.e.  m i ri  0 .

(vii) If a system of particles of masses m 1 , m 2 , m 3 ,...... move with velocities v 1 , v 2 , v 3 ,......

110 Rotational Motion

 m ivi
then the velocity of centre of mass v cm  .
mi

(viii) If a system of particles of masses m1 , m 2 , m 3 ,...... move with accelerations a1 , a 2 , a 3 ,......

 m i ai
then the acceleration of centre of mass A cm 
mi

(ix) If r is a position vector of centre of mass of a system
   
  
dr d  m 1 r1  m 2 r2  m 3 r 3  ...... 
then velocity of centre of mass v cm    m  m  m  ...... 
dt dt  1 2 3 
 
   
 
 d v cm d 2 r d 2  m1 r1  m 2 r2  ....... 
(x) Acceleration of centre of mass A cm    2  
dt dt 2 dt  m1  m 2  m 3  ....... 
 

  d2 r
(xi) Force on a rigid body F  M A cm  M
dt 2
(xii) For an isolated system external force on the body is zero
 d   
FM  v cm   0 v cm  constant .
dt  
i.e., centre of mass of an isolated system moves with uniform velocity along a straight-line path.

Sample problems based on centre of mass

Problem 1. The distance between the carbon atom and the oxygen atom in a carbon monoxide molecule is 1.1 Å. Given, mass
of carbon atom is 12 a.m.u. and mass of oxygen atom is 16 a.m.u., calculate the position of the center of mass of the
carbon monoxide molecule [Kerala (Engg.) 2001]

(a) 6.3 Å from the carbon atom (b) 1 Å from the oxygen atom
(c) 0.63 Å from the carbon atom (d) 0.12 Å from the oxygen atom
Solution : (c) Let carbon atom is at the origin and the oxygen atom is placed at x-axis
 
m1  12 , m 2  16 , r 1  0ˆi  0 ˆj and r 2  1 .1ˆi  0 ˆj y

 
 m r  m 2 r2 16  1 .1 C O x
r  1 1  î m1
m1  m 2 28 m2


r  0 .63 ˆi i.e. 0.63 Å from carbon atom.
  
Problem 2. The velocities of three particles of masses 20g, 30g and 50 g are 10 i , 10 j, and 10 k respectively. The velocity of the
centre of mass of the three particles is [EAMCET 2001]
           
(a) 2 i  3 j  5 k (b) 10 (i  j  k ) (c) 20 i  30 j  5 k (d) 2 i  30 j  50 k
 Rotational Motion 111

m 1v1  m 2 v 2  m 3 v 3 20  10ˆi  30  10 ˆj  50  10 kˆ
Solution : (a) Velocity of centre of mass v cm    2ˆi  3 ˆj  5 kˆ .
m1  m 2  m 3 100
Problem 3. Masses 8, 2, 4, 2 kg are placed at the corners A, B, C, D respectively of a square ABCD of diagonal 80 cm .
The distance of centre of mass from A will be [MP PMT 1999]

(a) 20 cm (b) 30 cm (c) 40 cm (d) 60 cm

Solution : (b) Let corner A of square ABCD is at the origin and the mass 8 kg is placed at this corner (given in problem) Diagonal
of square d  a 2  80 cm  a  40 2 cm
m 1  8 kg , m 2  2kg , m 3  4 kg , m 4  2kg y

D C
Let r 1 , r 2 , r 3 , r 4 are the position vectors of respective masses (0, a) (a, a)
2kg 4kg
r 1  0ˆi  0 ˆj , r2  aˆi  0 ˆj , r3  aˆi  aˆj , r4  0ˆi  aˆj C.M.
From the formula of centre of mass (0, 0) 8kg 2kg (a, 0)
x
A B
m r  m 2 r2  m 3 r3  m 4 r4 402
r  1 1  15 2 i  15 2 ˆj
m1  m 2  m 3  m 4

 co-ordinates of centre of mass  (15 2 , 15 2 ) and co-ordination of the corner  (0, 0 )

From the formula of distance between two points (x 1, y1 ) and (x 2 , y 2 )

distance  (x 2  x 1 )2  (y 2  y1 )2 = (15 2  0 ) 2  (15 2  0 ) 2 = 900 = 30 cm

Problem 4. The coordinates of the positions of particles of mass 7 , 4 and 10 gm are (1, 5,  3), (2, 5,7) and (3, 3,  1) cm
respectively. The position of the centre of mass of the system would be
 15 85 1   15 85 1   15 85 1   15 85 7 
(a)   , ,  cm (b)  , ,  cm (c)  , ,  cm (d)  , ,  cm
 7 17 7   7 17 7   7 21 7   7 21 3 

Solution: (c) m1  7 gm , m 2  4 gm , m 3  10 gm and r1  (ˆi  5 ˆj  3 kˆ ), r2  (2i  5 j  7 k ), r3  (3ˆi  3 ˆj  kˆ )

7(ˆi  5 ˆj  3 kˆ )  4 (2ˆi  5 ˆj  7 kˆ )  10 (3ˆi  3 ˆj  kˆ ) (45 ˆi  85 ˆj  3 kˆ )

Position vector of center mass r  
7  4  10 21
15 ˆ 85 ˆ 1 ˆ  15 85  1 
 r  i j  k . So coordinates of centre of mass  , , .
7 21 7  7 21 7 
7.3 Angular Displacement.
It is the angle described by the position vector r about the axis of rotation.
Q
Linear displaceme nt (s) S
Angular displacement ( ) 
Radius (r)

(1) Unit : radian P
r
(2) Dimension : [M 0 L0 T 0 ]
  
(3) Vector form S    r
i.e., angular displacement is a vector quantity whose direction is given by right hand rule. It is also known as axial
vector. For anti-clockwise sense of rotation direction of  is perpendicular to the plane, outward and along the axis of
rotation and vice-versa.
112 Rotational Motion

(4) 2 radian  360   1 revolution .

(5) If a body rotates about a fixed axis then all the particles will have same angular displacement (although linear
displacement will differ from particle to particle in accordance with the distance of particles from the axis of rotation).
7.4 Angular Velocity.
The angular displacement per unit time is defined as angular velocity.

If a particle moves from P to Q in time t ,   where  is the angular displacement.
t
 d 
(1) Instantaneous angular velocity   lim  Q
t  0 t dt
total angular displaceme nt  2   1
(2) Average angular velocity  av   
total time t 2  t1 P

(3) Unit : Radian/sec

(4) Dimension : [M 0 L0 T 1 ] which is same as that of frequency.

    
(5) Vector form v    r [where v = linear velocity, r = radius vector]

 is a axial vector, whose direction is normal to the rotational plane and its direction is given by right hand screw
rule.
2
(6)    2n [where T = time period, n = frequency]
T
(7) The magnitude of an angular velocity is called the angular speed which is also represented by  .
7.5 Angular Acceleration.
The rate of change of angular velocity is defined as angular acceleration.
If particle has angular velocity  1 at time t1 and angular velocity  2 at time t 2 then,
 
 2 1
Angular acceleration  
t 2  t1
 
  d  d 2 
(1) Instantaneous angular acceleration   lim   .
t  0 t dt dt 2
(2) Unit : rad/sec 2

(3) Dimension : [M 0 L0 T 2 ] .
(4) If   0 , circular or rotational motion is said to be uniform.
 2  1
(5) Average angular acceleration  av  .
t 2  t1
  
(6) Relation between angular acceleration and linear acceleration a    r .
 Rotational Motion 113

(7) It is an axial vector whose direction is along the change in direction of angular velocity i.e. normal to the
rotational plane, outward or inward along the axis of rotation (depends upon the sense of rotation).
7.6 Equations of Linear Motion and Rotational Motion.

Linear Motion Rotational Motion

(1) If linear acceleration is 0, u = constant and s = u t. If angular acceleration is 0,  = constant and   t
(2) If linear acceleration a = constant, If angular acceleration  = constant then
(u  v) ( 1   2 )
(i) s t (i)   t
2 2
v u  2  1
(ii) a  (ii)  
t t
(iii) v  u  at (iii)  2   1  t

1 2 1 2
(iv) s  ut  at (iv)    1 t  t
2 2

(v) v 2  u 2  2as (v)  22   12  2

1 
(vi) s nth  u  a(2n  1) (vi)  nth   1  (2 n  1)
2 2
(3) If acceleration is not constant, the above equation will not If acceleration is not constant, the above equation will not
be applicable. In this case be applicable. In this case
dx d
(i) v  (i)  
dt dt

dv d 2 x d  d 2
(ii) a   2 (ii)    2
dt dt dt dt
(iii) vdv  a ds (iii) d    d

Sample problems based on angular displacement, velocity and acceleration

Problem 5. The angular velocity of seconds hand of a watch will be [CPMT 2003]

 
(a) rad / sec (b) rad / sec (c) 60  rad / sec (d) 30  rad / sec
60 30
 2 
Solution : (b) We know that second's hand completes its revolution (2) in 60 sec      rad /sec
t 60 30
Problem 6. The wheel of a car is rotating at the rate of 1200 revolutions per minute. On pressing the accelerator for 10 sec it
starts rotating at 4500 revolutions per minute. The angular acceleration of the wheel is [MP PET 2001]
(a) 30 radians/sec2 (b) 1880 degrees/sec2 (c) 40 radians/sec2 (d) 1980 degrees/sec2
Solution: (d) Angular acceleration () = rate of change of angular speed
 4500  1200  3300
2   2
2 (n2  n1 )  60  60  360 degree  1980 degree / sec 2 .
  
t 10 10 2 sec 2
114 Rotational Motion

Problem 7. Angular displacement ( ) of a flywheel varies with time as   at  bt 2  ct 3 then angular acceleration is given by
[BHU 2000]
2
(a) a  2bt  3 ct (b) 2b  6 t (c) a  2 b  6 t (d) 2b  6 ct
2 2
d d
Solution: (d) Angular acceleration    2 (at  bt 2  ct 3 )  2b  6 ct
dt 2 dt
Problem 8. A wheel completes 2000 rotations in covering a distance of 9.5 km . The diameter of the wheel is [RPMT 1999]

(a) 1 . 5 m (b) 1 . 5 cm (c) 7 . 5 m (d) 7 . 5 cm

Solution: (a) Distance covered by wheel in 1 rotation = 2r  D (Where D= 2r = diameter of wheel)

 Distance covered in 2000 rotation = 2000 D = 9 . 5  10 3 m (given)

 D  1 . 5 meter

Problem 9. A wheel is at rest. Its angular velocity increases uniformly and becomes 60 rad/sec after 5 sec. The total angular
displacement is
(a) 600 rad (b) 75 rad (c) 300 rad (d) 150 rad

 2   1 60  0
Solution: (d) Angular acceleration     12 rad / sec 2
t 5
1 1
Now from   1 t   t 2 = 0  (12 )(5 )2  150 rad.
2 2
Problem 10. A wheel initially at rest, is rotated with a uniform angular acceleration. The wheel rotates through an angle  1 in
2
first one second and through an additional angle  2 in the next one second. The ratio is
1
(a) 4 (b) 2 (c) 3 (d) 1
1  1
Solution: (c) Angular displacement in first one second  1   (1) 2  ......(i) [From   1 t   t 2 ]
2 2 2
Now again we will consider motion from the rest and angular displacement in total two seconds
1
1   2   (2) 2  2 ......(ii)
2
 3 2
Solving (i) and (ii) we get  1  and  2    3.
2 2 1
Problem 11. As a part of a maintenance inspection the compressor of a jet engine is made to spin according to the graph as
shown. The number of revolutions made by the compressor during the test is

3000
(in rev per min)

2500
2000
1500
1000
500
0
1 2 3 4 5

t (in min)

(a) 9000 (b) 16570 (c) 12750 (d) 11250

Solution: (d) Number of revolution = Area between the graph and time axis = Area of trapezium
 Rotational Motion 115

1
=  (2 . 5  5 )  3000 = 11250 revolution.
2
Problem 12. Figure shows a small wheel fixed coaxially on a bigger one of double the radius. The system rotates about the
common axis. The strings supporting A and B do not slip on the wheels. If x and y be the distances travelled by A
and B in the same time interval, then
(a) x  2 y
(b) x  y

(c) y  2 x
A
(d) None of these B
Solution: (c) Linear displacement (S) = Radius (r) × Angular displacement ()
 S  r (if   constant)
Distance travelled by mass A (x ) Radius of pulley concerned with mass A (r) 1
   y  2x .
Distance travelled by mass B (y ) Radius of pulley concerned with mass B (2 r) 2
 
Problem 13. If the position vector of a particle is r  (3ˆi  4 ˆj) meter and its angular velocity is   (ˆj  2kˆ ) rad/sec then its
linear velocity is (in m/s)

(a) (8ˆi  6 ˆj  3kˆ ) (b) (3ˆi  6 ˆj  8 kˆ ) (c)  (3ˆi  6 ˆj  6 kˆ ) (d) (6ˆi  8 ˆj  3 kˆ )

ˆi ˆj kˆ
Solution: (a) ˆ ˆ ˆ ˆ ˆ ˆ
v    r = (3 i  4 j  0 k )  (0 i  j  2k )  3 4 0  8ˆi  6 ˆj  3 kˆ
0 1 2

7.7 Moment of Inertia.

Moment of inertia plays the same role in rotational motion as mass plays in linear motion. It is the property of a body
due to which it opposes any change in its state of rest or of uniform rotation.
(1) Moment of inertia of a particle I  mr 2 ; where r is the perpendicular distance of particle from rotational axis.
(2) Moment of inertia of a body made up of number of particles (discrete distribution)
I  m 1 r12  m 2 r22  m 3 r32  .......
(3) Moment of inertia of a continuous distribution of mass, treating the element of mass dm at position r as particle

dI  dm r 2 i.e., I  r 2 dm 

r1
m1 r
m
r r2
m2 dm
r3
m3

(4) Dimension : [ML 2 T 0 ]

(5) S.I. unit : kgm2.
116 Rotational Motion

(6) Moment of inertia depends on mass, distribution of mass and on the position of axis of rotation.
(7) Moment of inertia does not depend on angular velocity, angular acceleration, torque, angular momentum and
rotational kinetic energy.
(8) It is not a vector as direction (clockwise or anti-clockwise) is not to be specified and also not a scalar as it has
different values in different directions. Actually it is a tensor quantity.
(9) In case of a hollow and solid body of same mass, radius and shape for a given axis, moment of inertia of hollow
body is greater than that for the solid body because it depends upon the mass distribution.
7.8 Radius of Gyration.
Radius of gyration of a body about a given axis is the perpendicular distance of a point from the axis, where if whole
mass of the body were concentrated, the body shall have the same moment of inertia as it has with the actual distribution
of mass.
When square of radius of gyration is multiplied with the mass of the body gives the moment of inertia of the body
about the given axis.

I
I  Mk 2 or k  .
M r2 r1
m
m
r3
Here k is called radius of gyration. m r4
r5 m
m
From the formula of discrete distribution
2 2 2
I  mr1  mr 2  mr 3  .......  mrn2
If m1 = m2 = m3 = ....... = m then
2 2 2
I  m (r1  r2  r3  .......... rn2 ) ........(i)
From the definition of Radius of gyration,
k
I  Mk 2 ........(ii) M

By equating (i) and (ii)

2 2 2
Mk 2  m (r1  r2  r3  .......... ..  rn2 )
2 2 2 2
nmk  m (r1  r2  r3  ..........  rn2 ) [As M  nm ]
2 2 2
r1  r2  r3  .......... .  rn2
 k
n
Hence radius of gyration of a body about a given axis is equal to root mean square distance of the constituent
particles of the body from the given axis.
(1) Radius of gyration (k ) depends on shape and size of the body, position and configuration of the axis of rotation,
distribution of mass of the body w.r.t. the axis of rotation.
(2) Radius of gyration (k ) does not depends on the mass of body.

(3) Dimension [M 0 L1 T 0 ] .
(4) S.I. unit : Meter.
 Rotational Motion 117

(5) Significance of radius of gyration : Through this concept a real body (particularly irregular) is replaced by a
point mass for dealing its rotational motion.
Example : In case of a disc rotating about an axis through its centre of mass and perpendicular to its plane
I (1 2)MR 2 R
k  
M M 2
So instead of disc we can assume a point mass M at a distance (R / 2 ) from the axis of rotation for dealing the
rotational motion of the disc.
Note :  For a given body inertia is constant whereas moment of inertia is variable.
7.9 Theorem of Parallel Axes.
Moment of inertia of a body about a given axis I is equal to the sum of moment of inertia of the body about an axis
parallel to given axis and passing through centre of mass of the body Ig and Ma 2 where M is the mass of the body and a is
the perpendicular distance between the two axes.
I IG
2
I  I g  Ma

Example: Moment of inertia of a disc about an axis through its centre and a G

1
perpendicular to the plane is MR 2 , so moment of inertia about an axis through its
2
tangent and perpendicular to the plane will be

I  Ig  Ma 2

1 I IG
I MR 2  MR 2 R
2 G

3
 I MR 2
2
7.10 Theorem of Perpendicular Axes.
According to this theorem the sum of moment of inertia of a plane lamina about two mutually perpendicular axes
lying in its plane is equal to its moment of inertia about an axis perpendicular to the plane of lamina and passing through
the point of intersection of first two axes.
Iz  I x  Iy
Z

Example : Moment of inertia of a disc about an axis through its centre of mass and perpendicular to its plane is
1
MR 2 , so if the disc is in x–y plane then by theorem of perpendicular axes
2 Z
ID

ID X
O

Y
118 Rotational Motion

i.e. I I I
z x y
1
 MR 2  2 ID [As ring is symmetrical body so I x  I y  I D ]
2
1
 ID  MR 2
4
Note :  In case of symmetrical two-dimensional bodies as moment of inertia for all axes passing through
the centre of mass and in the plane of body will be same so the two axes in the plane of body need not be
perpendicular to each other.

7.11 Moment of Inertia of Two Point Masses About Their Centre of Mass.
Let m 1 and m 2 be two masses distant r from each-other and r1 and r2 be the distances of their centre of mass from
m 1 and m 2 respectively, then
(1) r1  r2  r Centre of mass
m1 m2
(2) m 1 r1  m 2 r2 r1 r2

m2 m1
(3) r1  r and r2  r
m1  m 2 m1  m 2

(4) I  m 1 r12  m 2 r22

 m m  2 m1m 2
(5) I   1 2 2
 r   r [where   is known as reduced mass   m 1 and   m 2 .]
m 1  m 2  m 1  m2

(6) In diatomic molecules like H 2 , HCl etc. moment of inertia about their centre of mass is derived from above
formula.
7.12 Analogy Between Tranlatory Motion and Rotational Motion.

Translatory motion Rotatory motion

Mass (m ) Moment of Inertia (I)
Linear momentum P  mv Angular Momentum L  I

P  2mE L 2 IE
Force F  ma Torque   I
Kinetic energy 1 1 2
E mv 2 E I
2 2

P2 L2
E E
2m 2I

7.13 Moment of Inertia of Some Standard Bodies About Different Axes.

 Rotational Motion 119

Axis of Moment of
Body Figure k k2/R2
Rotation inertia
About an axis
passing through
Ring C.G. and R 1
perpendicular to its MR 2
plane

About its diameter 1 R 1

Ring MR 2
2 2 2

About a tangential
axis in its own 3 3 3
Ring plane MR 2 R
2 2 2

About a tangential
Ring axis perpendicular 2MR 2 2R 2
to its own plane

About an axis
passing through
1 R 1
Disc C.G. and MR 2
2 2 2
perpendicular to its
plane

About its Diameter

1 R 1
Disc MR 2
4 2 4

About a tangential
5 5 5
Disc axis in its own MR 2 R
4 2 4
plane
120 Rotational Motion

Axis of Moment of
Body Figure k k2/R2
Rotation inertia

About a tangential
3 3 3
Disc axis perpendicular MR 2 R
2 2 2
to its own plane

Passing through
Annular disc inner R2
the centre and M 2
radius = R1 and outer R1
[R 1  R 22 ] – –
perpendicular to 2
radius = R2
the plane

M 2
Annular disc Diameter [ R1  R 22 ] – –
4

Tangential and
M
Annular disc Parallel to the [5 R 12  R 22 ] – –
4
diameter

Tangential and
M
Annular disc perpendicular to [3 R 12  R 22 ] – –
2
the plane

1 R 1
Solid cylinder About its own axis L MR 2
2 2 2

Tangential 3 3 3
Solid cylinder MR 2 R
(Generator) 2 2 2
 Rotational Motion 121

Axis of Moment of
Body Figure k k2/R2
Rotation inertia

About an axis
passing through its L2 R 2
 L2 R 2  
Solid cylinder C.G. and M   12 4
perpendicular to its  12 4 

own axis

About the diameter L2 R 2

 L2 R 2  
Solid cylinder of one of faces of M   3 4
the cylinder  3 4 

Cylindrical shell MR2 R 1

About its own axis

Tangential
Cylindrical shell 2MR2 2R 2
(Generator)

About an axis
passing through its L2 R 2
 L2 R 2  
Cylindrical shell C.G. and M   12 2
perpendicular to its  12 2 

own axis

About the diameter L2 R 2

 L2 R 2  
Cylindrical shell of one of faces of M   3 2
the cylinder  3 2 
122 Rotational Motion

Axis of Moment of
Body Figure k k2/R2
Rotation inertia

R2 R1

Hollow cylinder with

M 2
inner radius = R1 and Axis of cylinder (R1  R 22 )
2
outer radius = R2

Hollow cylinder with

M 2
inner radius = R1 and Tangential (R 1  3 R 22 )
2
outer radius = R2

About its diametric

axis 2 2 2
Solid Sphere MR 2 R
5 5 5

About a tangential 7 7 7
Solid sphere MR 2 R
axis 5 5 5

About its diametric 2 2 2

Spherical shell MR 2 R
axis 3 3 3

About a tangential 5 5 5
Spherical shell MR 2 R
axis 3 3 3
 Rotational Motion 123

Axis of Moment of
Body Figure k k2/R2
Rotation inertia
Hollow sphere of inner
radius R1 and outer About its diametric
radius R2 axis 2  R 2 5  R1 5 
M 
5  R 2 3  R1 3 

2 M [R 25  R 15 ]
Hollow sphere Tangential  MR 22
5(R 23  R13 )

About on axis
passing through its
ML 2 L
Long thin rod centre of mass and
12 12
perpendicular to the
L
rod.

About an axis
passing through its
ML 2 L
Long thin rod edge and
3 3
perpendicular to the
L
rod

Passing through the

Rectangular lamina of centre of mass and M 2
[l  b 2 ]
length l and breadth b perpendicular to the b 12
plane
l

Tangential
perpendicular to the M
Rectangular lamina [4 l 2  b 2 ]
plane and at the 12
mid-point of breadth

Tangential
perpendicular to the M 2
Rectangular lamina [l  4 b 2 ]
plane and at the 12
mid-point of length
124 Rotational Motion

Axis of Moment of
Body Figure k k2/R2
Rotation inertia
Passing through M [b 2  t 2 ]
iii (i)
centre of mass and ii 12
b
Rectangular parallel to
parallelopiped length l,
i M [l 2  t 2 ]
(i) Length (x) (ii)
t 12
breadth b, thickness t
(ii) breadth (z) l
M [b 2  l 2 ]
(iii) thickness (y) (iii)
12

M 2
Tangential and (i) [3l  b 2  t 2 ]
parallel to 12
i
Rectangular
(i) length (x) ii M 2
parallelepiped length l, (ii) [l  3b 2  t 2]
12
breath b, thickness t (ii) breadth (y)
iii M 2 2
(iii) thickness(z) (iii) [l  b  3t 2]
12

Elliptical disc of Passing through CM

M 2
semimajor axis = a and and perpendicular to [a  b 2 ]
4
semiminor axis = b the plane

Axis joining the

Solid cone of radius R 3
vertex and centre of MR 2
and height h 10
the base

Passing through CM
Equilateral triangular
and perpendicular to a Ma 2
a
lamina with side a 6
the plane
a

Mb 2
(1)
6

Right angled triangular Ma 2

Along the edges b c (2)
lamina of sides a, b, c 6

1 M  a 2b 2 
a (3)  2
6 2 
3  a  b 
2