Pulley System: Solving for Acceleration (a3)

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asi123
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Homework Statement



Hey guys.
Look at this pulley system, I wrote down all the equations.
The pulley on the left is massless, the one on the right has the mass of m3 and radius R.
I also wrote the the torque equation of the pulley and the thing I don't understand is the what is the acceleration of the pulley (a3), is it equal to a2 or to a1?
Thanks a lot.

Homework Equations





The Attempt at a Solution

 
Attachments
  • Handwritten derivation on grid paper of equations for a pulley system: T3 = T1 + T2, m1g - T3 = m1a1, m2g - T1 - T2 = m2a2, T1 - m1g = m1a1, RT2 - RT1 = I alpha = (1/2)m3R^2 a3/R, with a3 = a1 and a3 = a2 boxed as questions.
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Doc Al said:
Aren't m2 and m3 (the pulley) attached?

Oh, you right...:blushing:
Thanks.