Period of Leaky Pendulum

Poster Image
Event poster; details follow in description
Poster Session
D
Poster Number
01
Project Author(s)
Madeline Fischer
Institution
Portland State University
Project Description

It has been established by Mires and Peters in their 1994 paper Motion of a Leaky Pendulum, that if a pendulum’s mass decreases with respect to time, the period will increase, then decrease. The purpose of this experiment is to expand on this finding by evaluating what happens to the period of a pendulum with decreasing mass when some of the mass begins above the pendulum’s pivot point. Another point is to use sand, which has a density much larger than any liquids used previously. By designing a pendulum using a machined aluminum mount and a glass tube, the period is measured as both liquid water and sand leak from the tube using a photogate. The data are analyzed using Excel and MATLAB. The results of this experiment confirm those of Mires and Peters by Page 11 of 11 2022 Spring Symposium Proceedings showing that the period of a pendulum that is losing mass will increase, then decrease. Additionally, when the initial liquid level is above the pivot point the period decreases initially, then increases followed by a decrease. Finally, by using liquids of varying densities and assuming we can neglect the properties of the tube suspension system, this experiment establishes that there are two levels of liquid where the period is the same as the empty tube, irrespective of the liquid used.