Find the center of mass with tripl-integral

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Homework Help Overview

The discussion revolves around finding the center of mass of two sections of a sphere using triple integrals in spherical coordinates. The original poster describes a scenario involving a being digging towards the center of a sphere, leading to the need for calculating the center of mass for the divided sections A and B.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory, Assumption checking, Mathematical reasoning

Approaches and Questions Raised

  • Participants discuss the use of triple integrals to find the center of mass, questioning the differences between mass and center of mass calculations. There are inquiries about the appropriate coordinate systems and limits for integration, particularly in spherical coordinates.

Discussion Status

Several participants have offered insights into the mathematical setup, including the use of spherical coordinates and the need to define limits for the integrals. There is an ongoing exploration of the correct parameters and methods to apply, with some participants expressing confusion about the integration process.

Contextual Notes

Some participants mention constraints related to the uniform density of the sphere and the specific regions being analyzed. There are indications of varying interpretations regarding the setup of the problem and the parameters involved in the calculations.

ppitsme
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A being is on a sphere like planet. Sudently hey grabs a GPS and starts diging straight on a diemeter, heading to the center. We can theoretically say tha he is carrying a level with him. Then tha sphere is theoretically cut in two section , A and B. I have(well...with help) found the volume of the two sections with a tripl-integral using Spherical coordinate system.We know that the sphere has the same density all over (an inside) the sphere. I neeeeeeeeeeeeed to find the center of mass. Odviously the center of mass is going to be on the z Axle. Can someone help me find the center of mass?
 

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If you can find the mass, why can't you find the center of mass? It's just the integral of rho*dV*z whereas the mass is the integral of rho*dV*z.
 
I don't quite understand what the question is about, with the digging and stuff o.0
For a sphere with uniform density, clearly the centre of mass must be at the centre of the sphere.
 
Well what i ment is that i need to find the center of mass of each section , A and then B.
 
ideasrule, i fail to see the difrens between the two integral, also rho=?
 
Oh ok I get it now. For each region just apply the usual formulas with the appropriate parameters:
[tex] \overline{x} = \frac{1}{M} \iiint x \rho (x,y,z) dV[/tex]
[tex] \overline{y} = \frac{1}{M} \iiint y \rho (x,y,z) dV[/tex]
[tex] \overline{z} = \frac{1}{M} \iiint z \rho (x,y,z) dV[/tex]
 
I can understand that i am only going to use the z formula. I alsow understand it is going to be a tripl-integral. What i can't find is from where to where am i going to integrat, and what coordinate system would be most suted
 
Since it is a sphere, definitely we will be using spherical coordinates:
[tex] \psi (\rho, \theta, \phi) = (\rho\,sin \phi\, cos \theta, \rho\, sin \phi\, sin \theta, \rho\, cos \phi)[/tex]
for both regions A and B.
However, the parameters have different ranges.
For A:
[tex]0 \leq \rho \leq R\,\, , 0\leq \theta \leq 2\pi\,\, , 0\leq \phi \leq a[/tex]
For B:
[tex]0 \leq \rho \leq R\,\, , 0\leq \theta \leq 2\pi\,\, , a\leq \phi \leq \pi[/tex]
I presume you are able to convert the triple integral in rectangular coordinates into spherical coordinates?

--Scrap this, i made a terrible mistake--
 
Last edited:
you meen dV=dz*dy*dx=r^2*sinθ*dr*dθ*dφ ?? Also by a you meen the corner acording to the depth?
 
  • #10
ppitsme said:
you meen dV=dz*dy*dx=r^2*sinθ*dr*dθ*dφ ??
Yup. And remember to convert z as well.
ppitsme said:
Also by a you meen the corner acording to the depth?
Wait I think I made a blunder in my parameters...oops I did a cone instead...gimme a while to fix it
 
  • #11
"Yup. And remember to convert z as well" what do you meen?
 
  • #12
Scrap those, we'll return to good old rectangular coordinates for now. If I'm not mistaken, the region A can be represented as
[tex]\int_{-\sqrt{R^2-a^2}}^{\sqrt{R^2-a^2}}\,\int_{-\sqrt{1-x^2}}^{\sqrt{1-x^2}}\,\int_{a}^{\sqrt{R-x^2-y^2}}\,\,dz\,dy\,dx[/tex]
where a = height of base of region above the origin.
Looks pretty ugly though, so maybe someone else wants to help out here?
 
  • #13
if this helps, when calculating the volume i had to solve this:
triple-integral{(r from b/Cosθ to R,θ from 0 to ArcCos[b/R],φ from 0 to 2π)r^2 sinθ dr dθ dφ} R = radius, b = R - depth of being
 
  • #14
Sadly, my calculus remains rather weak.
Ah..So those will be the limits of the centre of mass integral as well. Just substitute z with the parameterised equivalent.
 

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