Worked Example of 2 Particle System - MATLAB Tutorial - Implications of Energy and Momentum Conservation

Overview

Explore a comprehensive tutorial on the dynamics of a two-particle system using MATLAB. Learn about the center of mass corollary and its implications for energy and momentum conservation. Delve into decomposing the motion of a particle system into center of mass movement and motion around it. Work through a detailed example of a spring-mass system with two particles, utilizing a center of mass-centered frame. Discover how the absence of external forces and the presence of conservative internal forces lead to the conservation of total angular momentum and energy. Apply these principles to reduce the model to a single first-order ordinary differential equation. Gain hands-on experience solving this problem using MATLAB, enhancing your understanding of space vehicle dynamics and computational methods in engineering.

Syllabus

Center of mass definition.
Center of mass corollary.
If total external force is zero, center of mass motion is very simple.
Two particle spring system (dumbbell spring).
Use center of mass as origin of frame and polar coordinates.
Angular momentum and total energy are conserved.
Radial dynamic equation.
Computational tutorial, including Matlab.