Vibration damping using low-wave-speed media with applications to precision machines

Vibration and noise are an ever-present problem in the majority of mechanical systems, from consumer products to precision manufacturing systems. But most approaches for vibration suppression are expensive and invasive, so only a small subset of the techniques developed in research labs are widely used. In this thesis, we present a novel wave-based damping approach for the suppression of vibration in machines and structures. Our studies show that significant broad-band damping can be attained with little added mass via dynamic interaction between a structure and a low-density, low-wave-speed medium (such as a foam or powder). This damping phenomenon has great promise for many applications because it is robust (that is, not tuned), does not introduce significant creep into a structure, can accommodate large strains, and can be realized using materials that are light weight, low cost, durable, insensitive to temperature, and easy to package. We report on several experiments in which flexural and longitudinal vibration are attenuated using this approach. Experiments on flexural vibration of structures filled with low-density powder show that high damping is obtained (with loss factors as high as 12 percent for a powder fill whose mass is 2.3 percent of that of the beam) over a broad frequency range. Somewhat surprisingly, the response is found to be linear over a wide range of amplitudes. We propose that the powder can be modeled as a fluid in which pressure waves can propagate and find that such a model matches the experiments well. These findings suggest that any moderately lossy medium in which the speed of wave propagation is sufficiently low can be used to obtain similar responses.

Department dc:contributor.department

Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dept. of Mechanical Engineering.

Grantor dc:publisher

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Year dc:date.issued

2004

Author dc:creator

• Varanasi, Kripa K. (Kripa Kiran), 1977-

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Samir A. Nayfeh.

• Mechanical Engineering.

Statement dc:rights

• M.I.T. theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed from this source for any purpose, but reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission. See provided URL for inquiries about permission.

Licence dc:rights.uri

• http://dspace.mit.edu/handle/1721.1/7582

Language dc:language.iso

eng

Handle dc:identifier.uri

http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/30333

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:dspace.mit.edu:1721.1/30333