For a bike wheel rolling down an incline as like the image, initially the axle of the wheel is not locked to the wheel, so the axle rotates as it moves down the incline but the wheel itself possesses only translation kinetic energy, 0 rotational. If the wheel was to be re-positioned at the top of the incline, but this time the wheel locked to the axle, so they must turn together, how will the motion of the wheel change in regards to transnational velocity due to changes in inertia and angular velocity and such?
1 Answer
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It would slow down the acceleration of the wheel because the potential energy of the wheel now will be divided between kinetic and rotational energy.
$$mgh= \frac{1}{2} mv^2 + \frac{1}{2} I\omega^2 $$