Analyzing the motion of a plastic bottle down an elevated ramp

[coolness]

Hi All

I am doing an experiment where I am analyzing how the volume of water in a plastic bottle affects the time taken for it to roll down an elevated ramp and particular distance along a horizontal plane. I need rigorous theory for this experiment which includes moment of inertia, fluid dynamics and angular momentum. I need to know how VOLUME affects TIME. Very specific. Give me lots of theory.

 

[tiny-tim]

welcome to pf!

hi coolness! welcome to pf!

in this forum, we expect you to do most of the work, and then we comment and help ​

but first, tell us from your observations what the water actually does …

does it stay completely level, does it slosh backwards and forwards a little, does it "loop the loop", or something in between, and does its behaviour change as the speed (or the slope) increases?

… an elevated ramp …

is there any other sort of ramp?

or do you mean a ramp in an elevator? ​

 

[A.T.]

... fluid dynamics ...Give me lots of theory.

Fluid dynamics -> forget theory, just try it!

But seriously, this is way to complex to treat with a theoretical analysis on paper, unless you assume no friction between the water and bottle, so the water stays level and doesn't start to rotate.