CM.2 · Rotation, buoyancy and terminal-speed balances

Turning a floating block upside down can change how much wood is submerged even though the total weight stays the same.

Prerequisites: 10.

• Use pivot torque and rotational inertia consistently
• Partition rolling kinetic energy with the no-slip constraint 无滑动约束
• Balance buoyancy and drag for composite bodies

Torque about a fixed pivot is r×F; its magnitude uses the perpendicular lever arm. For a uniform rod of length L pivoted at one end, gravity acts at its centre L/2 and the moment of inertia 转动惯量 is ML²/3. If its angle θ is measured from vertical, gravitational torque magnitude is Mg(L/2)sinθ, so angular-acceleration magnitude is 3g sinθ/(2L). Define the positive rotation direction before assigning a sign. Using the centre-of-mass inertia ML²/12 without the parallel-axis correction gives a wrong acceleration.

An object rolling without slipping satisfies v=Rω. Write total kinetic energy as ½Mv²+½Iω². With I=βMR², the rotational fraction is β/(1+β); for a solid disk β=1/2 and the fraction is 1/3. A hoop has β=1 and fraction 1/2. Static friction can supply the torque required for rolling without dissipating energy at an instantaneously stationary contact on a fixed surface. A sliding object does not satisfy the no-slip relation automatically.

For a floating composite, buoyancy equals the weight of displaced fluid, summed over every submerged part. Let a wood block have volume V and a dense stone volume Vs. If the stone is above the water, only submerged wood contributes: ρwater g fV equals total weight. If the stone is attached below and fully submerged, its displaced volume reduces the wood’s required submerged fraction to f−Vs/V. The stone does not cease to weigh anything; the water now supplies some of its support. Check whether the assumed orientation and flotation are physically possible.

Terminal speed 终端速度 means zero acceleration, not zero speed or zero force. With quadratic drag C v² and a downward weight Mg, neglecting buoyancy gives vt=sqrt(Mg/C). Two otherwise identical balls share the drag coefficient C; doubling mass then multiplies terminal speed by sqrt(2). If buoyancy matters, replace Mg by (M−ρfluid V)g. A linear-drag model instead gives a different mass scaling. State the specified drag law and compare force balances, rather than transferring a formula between models.

A body rolls without slipping on a fixed surface. The no-slip constraint is v = R omega.

For a solid disk, beta = 1/2, so the rotational share is For a uniform rod pivoted at one end, use $I=ML^2/3$, not its centre-of-mass inertia. About this pivot $\tau=-Mg(L/2)\sin\theta$, for theta measured from downward vertical.

Use the inertia about the chosen pivot. In flotation, include the stone’s displaced volume as well as its weight. Terminal speed requires a specified drag law.

moment of inertia: Mass-weighted squared perpendicular distance from a specified rotation axis.

terminal speed: Steady speed at which opposing forces balance.