Lab 8 - Centripetal Force

  This is a top view of the setup that we had.

Purpose: The purpose of this lab was to show how the various independent factors affect centripetal force. These factors include mass, radius, and angular speed.

Theory: We are trying to figure out how angular acceleration and force are affected by various factors.

Apparatus: The apparatus was a large, circular, wooden disk with four wheels under the four outermost points, with a motor at the bottom that drove it in a circle. The force sensor was at the center of the disk, with a string tied to it and a mass tied to the other end of the string. The mass was closer to the edge of the circle so that as the disk spun, it would pull on the force sensor.

Procedure: This was a relatively simple, observational lab. The professor ran various trials with varying angular speeds, varying masses, and varying radius by changing the length of the string. The forces were calculated by the force sensor and computer and written on the board. Everyone had the same data, however everybody generated their own graphs and calculations. This is all of our data, first put into a neat table, and then with varying graphs.

 Force vs. Radius graph

 Force vs. mω^2

 Force vs. rω^2

 Force vs. ω^2

Force vs. mrω^2

 Conclusion: Based on the graphs, the variable that affected the slopes the most is the angular speed. This is due to the fact that in any centripetal force equation, the velocity is squared, be it linear or angular velocity. What this means in real life is that in any rotating object, as the speed is increased, the centripetal force will increase exponentially. So an engine spun at high rpm will generate a lot more stress on rotating components than a similar engine that operates at lower rpms. This also means that a car traveling 2x as fast as another car around a turn will require a lot more grip on its tires to keep it from sliding out of the curve.

My lab partner is Elliot Sandoval for this lab.