I Torque and Rotational Kinetic Energy Relationship

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Calculating Kinetic Energy or Rotational Kinetic Energy requires more than just Power (kW), Torque (Nm), and Speed (RPM); it also necessitates knowing the moment of inertia of the object. Power represents the rate of energy transfer and does not indicate the total energy or angular momentum of the object. While torque and speed can be used to derive power, they do not provide sufficient information to determine kinetic energy without additional context. The relationship between these variables is complex, as different configurations can yield the same power and torque while having varying kinetic energy. Understanding these distinctions is crucial for accurate calculations in rotational dynamics.
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I am wondering if it is possible to calculate either the Kinetic Energy or Rotational Kinetic Energy of an object if we have the Power (kW), Torque (Nm), and Speed (RPM) of the object.
 
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alichoudhry57 said:
I am wondering if it is possible to calculate either the Kinetic Energy or Rotational Kinetic Energy of an object if we have the Power (kW), Torque (Nm), and Speed (RPM) of the object.
Depends, but probably not. Do we have a continuous function for those? Is there any more info you can provide on your scenario?
 
alichoudhry57 said:
I am wondering if it is possible to calculate either the Kinetic Energy or Rotational Kinetic Energy of an object if we have the Power (kW), Torque (Nm), and Speed (RPM) of the object.
Welcome @alichoudhry57 !
Objects can’t have those by themselves, as power refers to a transfer of energy, you need at least another object or substance receiving that energy.
Therefore, could you please clarify your reference to that object?
 
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alichoudhry57 said:
Power (kW), Torque (Nm), and Speed (RPM) of the object.
Power can be computed from torque and speed, so it is redundant.

Finding the kinetic energy requires knowing the speed, and the moment of inertia of the object.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moment_of_inertia
 
alichoudhry57 said:
I am wondering if it is possible to calculate either the Kinetic Energy or Rotational Kinetic Energy of an object if we have the Power (kW), Torque (Nm), and Speed (RPM) of the object.
Power tells you the rate at which energy is flowing through the object. It will not tell you how much energy or angular momentum the object contains. A drive shaft with an attached flywheel and a second drive shaft without can have the same power and torque passing through and can be rotating at the same rate. But the amount of kinetic energy and angular momentum that the two contain can be dramatically different.

If you have torque in Nm and rotation rate in RPM then you can get power in kilowatts. Indeed, given any two of the three, you can calculate the one you do not know.

For power, first convert RPM to radians per second (multiply by 0.104719755). Multiply torque in Nm by rotation rate in rad/s to get power in watts. Then divide by 1000 to get power in kilowatts.

Edit: scooped by @Baluncore on the power from torque and speed calculation.
 

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