MECHANICAL SYSTEMS, CLASSICAL MODELS
714
they result from the relation (A.2.5) and from the condition that the mixed derivatives
of second order of the quasi-potential
123
(, , ;)UUxxxt
be immaterial on the order
of differentiation (we assume that
2
()UCD∈ ,
3
123
(, , )xxx D∈⊂\ , with respect
to the space variables).
To a determined potential
123
(, , )UUxxx
one may add an arbitrary constant,
without any change of its properties. We mention also the properties:
iv)
12 1 2 2 1
grad( ) grad gradUU U U U U=+;
v)
grad() ()grad
UfU U
′
= ,
1
C∈ ;
vi)
12
12 1 2
grad ( , ) grad grad
UU
UU f U f U
′
=+
;
vii)
( )grad grad ( )d
UU fUU=
∫
,
integrable.
These properties hold for a quasi-potential field too. Concerning the position vector
r ,
we may write
1
grad
r
r
= r ,
()
grad ( )
r
fr
r
= r
,
1
C∈ , (A.2.16)
grad( )
=Cr C, const=
JJJJG
C . (A.2.16')
In the case of a potential
123
(, , ) ()UUxxx U
= r , the formula (A.2.9) allows to
write the differential
dgraddUU
⋅ r
. (A.2.17)
Introducing the mapping
()ss→ r , which defines a curve C , it results that
()UUs= , so that
dd
grad grad
dd
UU
UU
ss s
∂
== ⋅= ⋅
∂
r
, (A.2.18)
obtaining thus the derivative on the direction of the unit vector
of the tangent to this
curve; the partial derivative is, in this case, equal to the total derivative. By means of
the above introduced operator
, one may conceive the symbol d of the total
differential as an operator, in the form of a scalar product
dd dgrad
⋅= ⋅
rr. (A.2.19)
The formula (A.2.6') leads to the operator derivative in the direction of the unit vector
n , which may be expressed in the form
grad
n
=⋅ =⋅
∂
∇nn; (A.2.20)
if ()s=rr and
=n τ
, then we get the operator