A circular track of radius 600 m is to be designed for cars at an average speed of 180 km/hr. What should be the angle of banking of the track?
The correct option is A : tan−1(0.42)
Let's convert speed in m/s first: speed in m/s = 5/18 * speed in km/h
speed, v = 5/18 * 180 = 50 m/s
Let the angle of banking be θ. The forces on the car are
(a) weight of the car Mg downward and
(b) normal force N
For proper banking, static frictional force is not needed.
For vertical direction the acceleration is zero. So,
N cos θ = Mg ..........(i)
For horizontal direction, the acceleration is v2r towards the centre, so
N sin θ = Mv2r .......... (ii)
From (i) and (ii),
tan θ = v2rg
Putting the values, tan θ = (50 m/s)2(600 m)(10 m/s2) = 0.4167
θ = tan−1(0.42)