CHAPTER 1

Classical Mechanics
Classical mechanics is used to describe the motion of macroscopic
objects, from projectiles to parts of machinery, as well as astronomical objects,
such as spacecraft, planets, stars, and galaxies. It produces very accurate results
within these domains, and is one of the oldest and largest subjects in science and
technology. The motion and balance of objects of the size with which we have
experience in everyday life are precisely described by Newtons laws of motion.
Classical mechanics is enhanced by special relativity for objects moving
with high velocity, approaching the speed of light. Furthermore, general
relativity is employed to handle gravitation at a deeper level. A special field in
physics is quantum mechanics which is able to describe the behaviour of very
small systems (at nanometric scale) where the classical mechanics approach
fails. The term classical mechanics was introduced in the early 20th century to
describe the system of mathematical physics developed in the 400 years since
the groundbreaking works of Brahe, Kepler, and Galileo, but before the
development of quantum physics and relativity. Therefore, some sources
exclude so-called "relativistic physics" from that category. However, a number
of modern sources do include Einstein's mechanics, which in their view
represents classical mechanics in its most developed and most accurate form.
The initial stage in the development of classical mechanics is often referred to as
Newtonian mechanics, and is associated with the mathematical methods
invented by Newton himself, in parallel with Leibniz, and others.
We shall present here some concepts and laws which are discussed in
elementary physics. On the other hand, we shall develop some viewpoints and
techniques which are useful in future approaches.
1.1. Particle Kinematics
In kinematics the motion of objects is considered in a formal manner,
without explaining the reasons for the variations in motion and without
employing the concepts of forces or mass. The simplest physical system consists
of a single or a relatively small number of particles. The position of a particle
with respect to a reference frame at an arbitrary moment in time t is determined
r
by the radius vector (or position vector) r r (t ) (Figure 1). One may choose a
Cartesian reference frame with the origin in the spatial space.

(ir, rj , k ) (i , j, k )
r

Also, we can set an origin in the temporal space to describe the temporal
coordinate t.
Comment: A boldface symbol, which is often found in physics textbooks,
r
means that the symbol represents a vector quantity, e.g. r r .

Fig. 1. Elements that determine the position of a particle

r
The position vector r can be represented in the following form:
r
r
r
r
r (t ) = x (t ) i + y (t ) j + z (t ) k

(1)

where x, y, z are named spatial Cartesian coordinates.

If the spatial position vector is constant in time, one says that the point
mass is in rest with respect to that reference frame.
The projection of the universal line (trajectory in the 4-D space) in the
spatial space is a continuous curve named trajectory. When a particle moves
r
r
from one position described by the vector r to another position r ' , we say that
r
the particle undergoes a displacement r , Figure 2, in a time interval t .

Fig. 2. The directed line between A and B represents the displacement vector r

r
r
r
The average vector velocity during this time interval is v ave =
. To
t
obtain the instantaneous vector velocity at time t, we have to impose the
r
r
r
r dr
=
condition that t0. Thus, v (t ) = lim
, is the general time derivative of
t 0 t
dt
r
r (t ) evaluated at time t.
A particle that moves in such a way that it speeds up or slows down
or is changing his direction of movement, undergoes accelerated motion and the
time rate of change of the velocity is called the acceleration of the particle. The
r
average acceleration a ave of a particle during a time interval t, starting at t, is

r
r
v
defined as a ave =
. The acceleration at the instant t is defined in a similar
t
way like for the velocity.
r
Thus, the velocity vector v = (v x (t ), v y (t ), v z (t ) ) and the acceleration
r
vector a = (a x (t ), a y (t ), a z (t ) ) are defined in terms of the appropriate derivative
by
r
r dr
vv =
=
dt
r
r dv
aa=
=
dt

r
r
r
dx r dy r dz r
i+
j + k = v x i + v y j + v z k [m/s]
dt
dt
dt
r
2 r
2 r
d x
d y
d 2 z r d 2r
i + 2 j + 2 k = 2 [m/s2]
2
dt
dt
dt
dt

(2)
(3)

The law of motion, eq.1, is fundamental in kinematics.

The direct problem of kinematics consists in finding any parameter
of motion from the known law of motion;
The inverse problem of kinematics consistsr in finding
the law of
r
motion from a known parameter of motion ( v or a ).

r
Now, we must make some remarks regarding the velocity vector v and
r
the acceleration vector a .
From eq.2, and
r the basic properties of the derivative operation, results that
the velocity, v , is tangent to the particle trajectory;
r
r
The acceleration vector a has two components at (tangential) and
r
a n (normal), to the particle trajectory, that can be expressed in the
following form:
r
r
dv r dv
du r r
=u
+v
= at + a n
dt
dt
dt

(4)

where

v2
R
r
r
and R is the curvature ray of the trajectory in the given point, v = v u and
r
r
u 2 = 1 ( u is the unit vector which is tangent to the trajectory see Figure 3).
r
du r
u and so to justify eq.4. In
It is easy to show (see example 1-3) that
dt
r
Figure 3 are presented the components of the accelerate on vector a .
an =

r
Fig. 3. The components of the acceleration vector a

Example 1-1
Given the position function of a linear motion
x(t ) =

1 2
bt + 5c t
2

where b=2 m/s2 and c=4 m/s, evaluate the average velocity vave during elapsed
time interval starting at t0=2 s, for which t=2 s. Find the instantaneous velocity
at t=2 s.
Solution
v ave =
v=

x(t 0 + t ) x(t 0 ) 96 44
m / s = 26 m / s
=
t
2

dx
= bt + 5c ; v(2 ) = 24 m / s
dt

Example 1-2
The position vector
function
for a particle is given by
r
r
r
r (t ) = x(t ) i + y (t ) j
x(t ) = at + b

y (t ) = ct 2 + d

where a=1 m/s, b=1 m, c=1/8 m/s2 and d=1 m.

Determine the velocity vector and his modulus (speed) at t=2 s.

Solution
The velocity components are
dx
= a = 1 m / s = conts., t
dt
dy
v y (t = 2 s ) =
= 2ct = 0.25 m / s
dt
vx =

Therefore,

r
r
r
r
r
v = v x i + v y j = a i + 2c t j
r
r
r
v (2 ) = (i + 0.5 j )m / s

The speed is

r
v = v = 1 + 0.25 = 1.118 m / s

Example 1-3
A particle travels at constant speed, but with no restriction on its direction of
motion. Show that the acceleration at any instant is always perpendicular to the
velocity.
Solution
Because v (t ) = const.
v 2 (t ) = v (t ) v (t ) = const .

r

d r r
(v v ) = 0
dt

But this condition ca expressed as

r
r
r
r
d r r r dv dv r
(v v ) = v + v = 2vr dv = 2v 2 ur du = 0
dt
dt dt
dt
dt
r
because of eq.4 and condition v (t ) = const.

Therefore,

r
r dv r r
v
= v a = 0
dt
r
r
r r
which, for a 0, v = ct , insures that we always have v a .

1.2. Particle Dynamics

When we study the dynamics of the objects motion we must introduce a
new concept
that allows for interaction between the objects. This is the concept
r
of force, F . In mechanics, we deal very often, with contact forces in which one
object exerts a force on another object by coming into direct contact with it.
There is another type of interaction, exemplified by the gravitational force, in
which a force acts between objects that need not be in physical contact with each
other. Thus, the gravitational force is sometimes said to be an action-at-adistance force. Another force that acts at a distance is the electromagnetic
force. This is the basic force that acts between electrically charged objects.
5

There are, in addition to these two forces, the strong and weak forces that
operate in the domain of nuclei and elementary particles. In arbitrary units, the
relations between these forces are
Strong force
1
Electromagnetic force
10-2
Weak force
10-13
Gravitational force
10-38
Observation. The comparison is made for two protons at a distance near 10-15 m
because the strong and weak forces are not effective over greater distances.
Newtons Laws of Motion
In Newtons words (translated from the original Latin version) these laws are
I.
An object remains in a condition of rest or of uniform motion in a
straight line unless acted upon by a net external force.
In mathematical language Newtons first law becomes
r
r
F = 0 v = const.

With the zero-force condition, the object moves with constant velocity in an
unaccelerated reference frame, which we call an inertial reference frame. We
can say that any frame in which any particle subject to no force moves with
r
v = const. is, in fact, an inertial frame. From this reason Newtons first law is
called, also, the law of inertia, and we use the term inertial reference frame
for any frame in which the law is valid. The measure of the inertia of a body
is its mass.
r
r
II.
The rate of change of momentum ( p = m v [kgms-1]) of an object
is directly proportional to the net force applied to it and is in the direction
r
of the applied force F . In mathematical language Newtons second law
becomes
r
r
r
r
r
dv
d
= ma F
( mv ) F or, for constant m, m
dt
dt

The scalar quantity, m, was introduced simply as a constant of

proportionality. For the same force results different accelerations for different
bodies. Thus, the quantity m has an inertial quality, and we refer to m as the
inertial mass of the object. Mass is an intrinsic property of matter. We say
that the mass is a measure of the amount of matter in an object.

We choose the unit of force in such a way that the constant of

proportionality is 1. In the mks system results 1N=1 kg1 m/s2. The statement of
the second law can be expressed as
r dpr d
r
r
F=
= (mv ) = ma or
dt dt

r
r
r
d 2r
F = m 2 = ma [N]
dt

(5)

r
III.
Whenever an object, A, is exerting a force F AB on another object,
B, the second is exerting an equal and oppositely directly force on the
r
first FBA . In mathematical language Newtons third law becomes
r
r
FAB = FBA

1.3. Conservation Laws

1.3.1. Conservation of Energy
The elementary work, W, done by an agent in a process is defined by:
r r

W = Fdr = F dr cos

(6)

r
r
where F is the force exerted by the agent, dr is the elementary displacement
r
through which the force is applied and is the angle between the direction of F
r
and dr (see Figure 4a). The work done between positions A and B is:
B

r r
W ( A B) = Fdr =
A( 1 )

cos
( Fdr
)

[J]

(7)

A 1

Fig. 4.(a) The work done by a force between points A and B; (b) Usually this workr depends
on the path followed by the particle during his motion under the action of the force F .

In general terms, W depends on the path followed, during the motion,

B r
B r
r
r
between A and B (see Figure 4b). This means that Fdr Fdr .
A(1 )

A(2 )

Energy is stored work. We consider two kinds of energy: kinetic energy

(WC) and potential energy (WP).
The kinetic energy of an object moving with speed v is the energy it has
because it is moving. It is the work required to accelerate it from rest to speed v.
Starting from eq.6 we can write:
r
r r
dp r
1 r
1

v dt = d ( mv )v = d mv 2 = d mv 2
W =
dt
2

(8)

1 2
The term WC = mv represents the kinetic energy of an object moving
2
with speed v. The eq.8 which can be written as

W = dWC

(9)

express the law of variation of the kinetic energy.

A positive work increases the kinetic energy. A negative work (done by a
frictional force for example) decreases the kinetic energy. A dissipative force
decreases the mechanical energy. The result of this work is the generation of
heat; this heat cannot be fully recovered and converted into mechanical work.
The potential energy WP of a system is the energy possessed by the
system because of its position or the arrangement of its parts. There are many
important situations in which the work done by a force on a body can be
recovered at a later time. For example, if you do work in raising a box from the
floor to a shelf, Figure 5, this amount of work can be recovered in the form of
kinetic energy by allowing the box to fall to the floor.
Because of this feature of reversibility, the box in its elevated position
possesses stored energy that is called potential energy.
Suppose that a student raises this box very slowly from the floor to a shelf at a
height h. In this case at any instant the velocity of the box, and hence its kinetic
energy, is essentially zero. The acceleration is zero, so that Fa=Fg=mg.

Fig. 5. (a) An object acquires a potential energy mgh by being raised to the height h. (b) Freebody diagram for the block as it is raised very slowly.

The work done by the student is (see eqs. 6-7)

rr
Wa = Fa s = Fa h = mgh, = 0

During this process, the work Wg done by the gravitational force is

r r
W g = Fg s = Fg h = mgh = Wa ,

The energy possessed by the box on the shelf is a positive quantity

relative to the level of the floor.
It is natural to ascribe to the box an energy named potential energy Wp
which has to be expressed by
W p = W g

It is important to emphasis the fact that this result takes in account only
the initial and final position of the box during the motion.
We can now generalize this idea for an arbitrary motion under a special
kind of force. This discussion can take place only when the work done by the
force between the points A and B is independent on the path (1 or 2) followed
by the moving body (consider Figure 4b). This condition can be expressed as
follows:
B

r r
F
dr =

A( 1 )

r r
F
dr

(10)

A( 2 )

This type of force is named conservative force (gravitational force, elastic

force, coulombian (electrostatic) force).
The eq.10 can be written as
r r
F
dr = 0, = 1 + 2

(11)

Using Stokes theorem we can find:

r r

r r

Fdr = ( F )ds = 0

(12)

(S )

which means that

r
r
F = curl F = 0

(13)

S is an arbitrary surface placed on the closed path .

r
If the force F has the property described by eqs.(10-13) then is a
conservative force and it is easy to show that we can define a scalar function
r
r
WP (r ) from which we can obtain the force F :
r
WP r W P r W P r
F = WP =
i+
j+
k

(14)

If the motion takes place only under x direction (linear motion) than the
force is simply expressed as
F (x ) =

dW p

(14)

dx

Using this definition (eq. 14) we can calculate the work done by this type
r
of (conservative) force F (see eq. 6):
r

W = W P dr with dr = i dx + j dy + k dz

(15)

which gives us:

W = dWP

(16)

10

The eq.16 expresses the law of variation of the potential energy WP. The
potential energy in a position B, WP(B), is the potential energy in a position A,
WP(A), minus the work required, in absence of dissipative (friction-like) forces,
to take the system from position A to position B.
W P ( B ) = WP ( A) W A B

(17)

If the potential energy of the position A (as reference) is chosen to be

r
zero, the potential energy of any position B described by r is:
r
W P ( r ) = W A B

(18)

From eq.9 and eq.16 we have (if there are only conservative forces):
d (WC + W P ) = 0

(19)

that means:
WC + WP = const.

(20)

Equation 20 is one of the most useful and powerful law of physics and is
known as the law of conservation of mechanical energy.
Example 1-3
A particle with mass m moves across a horizontal surface under the influence of
a force which can be described by the potential energy W p =

1 2
kx . A frictional
2

force acts on the particle, namely, f (x ) = ax , where the sign depends on the
direction of motion at x. The particle is released from rest at x=x0. What is the
speed, v , of the particle as it passes x=0 for the first time?
Solution
Using eq.20, we can write
0
1 2 1 2
1
1
mv = kx0 + a x dx = kx 02 ax 02
x0
2
2
2
2

so that
v=

k a
x0
m

11

1.3.2. Conservation of Momentum

No matter how complicated the system or how much force one of its parts
exerts on any other, if the net external force is zero, then
r
d
( mv ) = 0
dt

(21)

which states that the total momentum of the system is a constant vector quantity
r
( p = const . ).
The law of conservation of momentum states that the total momentum of
any system remains constant when there is no net external force applied to the
system.
In a collision between two objects with no external forces (no third body),
the conservation of the total momentum of the system occurs:
r
r
p final = p initial

(22)

Basically, we consider two kinds of collisions (elastic and inelastic

collisions) for which the conservation laws are:
IV.
Elastic collisions the conservation of the total kinetic energy and
the total momentum of the system is applied (eq.22);
V.
Inelastic collisions - conservation of the total momentum occurs but
the total kinetic energy of the system is not constant. Part of the kinetic
energy is transformed in thermal energy (heat).
1.3.3. Conservation of Angular Momentum
The angular momentum of a particle of mass m about a point O is defined
as (see Figure 6)
r r r
L=rp

(23)

Fig. 6. The definition of the angular momentum, L , of a particle relative to a point O.

12

We have seen that the time rate of change of the momentum of a particle
is given by the net force applied to it. Similarly, the time rate of change of the
r
angular momentum of a particle around a point (O) is equal to the net torque M
r
around that point applied to the particle. Using equation 23 we have: F
r
r
r& dL d r
r r d
r r r
r dr
L
= (r mv ) =
mv + r (mv ) = r F
dt dt
dt
dt

r
r
because v mv = 0 .
Using the above result we can write

where

r
d r
M = L
dt

(24)

r r r
M =rF

(25)
r

is the net torque and F is the force which is acting on the mass m.
r

VI.
If M = 0 then L = const. This is the law of conservation of the
angular momentum.
r
r
r r
If the force can be expressed as F = F (r ) (central force) then from
r
eqs.24-25 we have

and

r
r r
r r
M = r F (r ) = 0
r

(26)

r
r
dL
= 0
L = const.
dt

(27)

This is the case of planetary motion or the case of the electrons that move
around the nucleus.
1.4. Gravitational Field
The most common conservative field is the gravitational one, i.e., the field
of gravitational forces which act upon every body (which have non-null mass)
and are due to a given body, named the source of the field. The force field
r
between M and m which is located in a position r (we consider the origin of the
coordinate frame placed in the centre of mass M) is given by:

13

r
r
mM r
F = r 2
r
r

(28)

where =6.6725910-11 m3kg-1s-2 is the gravitational constant.

Experiment. The value of the gravitational constant was determined, for the first
time, by an English chemist, Henry Cavendish (1738-1810). For his
measurement, Cavendish used an instrument called a torsion balance (similar to
the one invented independently by Charles Coulomb for studies of electric
forces). This balance consists of a thin rod that carries two small balls with mass
m like in Fig. 7.

Fig. 7. Schematic diagram of the apparatus used by Cavendish to determine the value of .

The large balls, M, are moved close to the small balls. Because the masses M
attract m, a torque is exerted on the rod. The rod rotates trough a small angle
until the restoring torque due to torsional force just balances the gravitational
force. The angular displacement of the rod is proportional to the gravitational
force. The value of obtained from Cavendishs data is only 1% different from
the value now accepted!
The work done by the gravitational force is
r r r
W = F (r )dr

(29)

r
r
on a plane curvature starting from r1 and ending on r2 (see equation 7). In
polar coordinates (r, )

14

r
r
r
dr = dr u r + rd u

(30)

one obtain

r
r
1 r
1
u
dr
u
rd
u
dr
m
M
dr =

r
r

2
2
r
r

W = m M
r2

1 1
1
= m M 2 dr = m M
r2 r1
r1 r

(31)

and the gravitational field is a conservative one.

Now, we can introduce the potential energy by
r
mM
W P (r ) =
r

(32)

Dividing the potential energy to m, one obtains a magnitude which

characterizes the source of the field, named gravitational potential:
r
M
V P (r ) =
r

(33)

Applying the gradient operator one obtain the intensity of the

r
gravitational field, g :
r
r
M r
r
VP (r ) = 2 r = g
r
r

(34)

15

Problems
r
r
r
1. A particle moves according to the law r = (sin 5t ) i + (cos 2 5t ) j , with
=2 m and =3 m. Find the velocity vector, acceleration vector and trajectory
y=f(x)- of the particles motion.
r
r
r
2. The acceleration of a particle varies according to the law a = t 2 i j
with =3 m/s2 and =3 m/s2. Find the distance from the origin to the point
r
r
where particle will be at time t=1 s if v 0 = 0 and r0 = 0 at t=0.
3. A skydiver of mass m=100 kg is making a delayed drop with an initial speed
v0=0. Find the law by which the skydivers speed varies before the parachute
r
r
is opened if the air drag is proportional to the skydivers speed, Fd = kv ,
with k=20 kg/s.
4. Determine the velocity that a meteorite of mass m at a distance r=1.51011 m
from the Sun (of mass M) if at infinity it had a zero velocity and is moving
toward the Sun.

16