• International Journal of Aeronautical and Space Sciences
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• v.7 no.1
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• pp.137-147
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• 2006

In this study, shape memory alloy damper with characteristics of pseudoelastic hysteresis for helicopter rotor blades are investigated. SMAs can be available in damping augmentation of vibrating structures. SMAs show large hysteresis in the process of pseudoelastic austenite-martensite phase transformation which takes place while subjected to loading above the austenite finish temperature. Since SMAs display pseudoelastic hysteresis behavior over large strain ranges, a significant amount of energy dissipation is possible. A damper can be designed with SMA wires prestressed to a baseline level somewhere in the middle of the pseudoelastic stress range. An experimental study of the effects of pre-strain and cyclic strain amplitude as well as frequency on the damping behavior of pseudoelastic shape memory alloy wires are performed. The effects of the shape memory alloy damper on aeroelastic and ground resonance stability of helicopter are studied. In aeroelastic stability, the dynamic characteristics of blades related to pitch angle and the amplitude of lag motion for the rotor equipped with SMA damper were examined. The performance of SMA damper on ground resonance instability are presented through the frequencies and modal damping with respect to rotating speed.

• Advances in aircraft and spacecraft science
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• v.6 no.1
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• pp.31-49
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• 2019

Flutter is a dangerous phenomenon encountered in flexible structures subjected to aerodynamic forces. This includes aircraft, helicopter blades, engine rotors, buildings and bridges. Flutter occurs as a result of interactions between aerodynamic, stiffness and inertia forces on a structure. The conventional method for designing a rotor blade to be free from flutter instability throughout the helicopter's flight regime is to design the blade so that the aerodynamic center (AC), elastic axis (EA) and center of gravity (CG) are coincident and located at the quarter-chord. While this assures freedom from flutter, it adds constraints on rotor blade design which are not usually followed in fixed wing design. Periodic Structures have been in the focus of research for their useful characteristics and ability to attenuate vibration in frequency bands called "stop-bands". A periodic structure consists of cells which differ in material or geometry. As vibration waves travel along the structure and face the cell boundaries, some waves pass and some are reflected back, which may cause destructive interference with the succeeding waves. In this work, we analyze the flutter characteristics of a helicopter blades with a periodic change in their sandwich material using a finite element structural model. Results shows great improvements in the flutter forward speed of the rotating blade obtained by using periodic design and increasing the number of periodic cells.

• Wind and Structures
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• v.31 no.6
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• pp.561-573
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• 2020

Unsteady self-excited forces are commonly represented by parametric models such as rational functions. However, this requires complex multiparametric nonlinear fitting, which can be a challenging task that requires know-how. This paper explores the alternative nonparametric modeling of unsteady self-excited forces based on relations between flutter derivatives. By exploiting the properties of the transfer function of linear causal systems, we show that damping and stiffness aerodynamic derivatives are related by the Hilbert transform. This property is utilized to develop exact simplified expressions, where it is only necessary to consider the frequency dependency of either the aeroelastic damping or stiffness terms but not both simultaneously. This approach is useful if the experimental data on aerodynamic derivatives that are related to the damping are deemed more accurate than the data that are related to the stiffness or vice versa. The proposed numerical models are evaluated with numerical examples and with data from wind tunnel experiments. The presented method can evaluate any continuous fitted table of interpolation functions of various types, which are independently fitted to aeroelastic damping and stiffness terms. The results demonstrate that the proposed methodology performs well. The relations between the flutter derivatives can be used to enhance the understanding of experimental modeling of aerodynamic self-excited forces for bridge decks.

• Wind and Structures
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• v.4 no.5
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• pp.367-382
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• 2001

Wind tunnel tests were conducted on a model of deck section from the Ting Kau cable stayed bridge. The purpose of the tests was to determine the set of aerodynamic derivatives conventionally used to describe the motion-induced forces arising from the wind flow, and to investigate the stability of the deck under different conditions of turbulence and angle of attack. The study shows that except for large negative angles of attack the deck section itself is stable up to a high wind speed, and that when instability does occur it is essentially a single degree of freedom (torsional) flutter.

• Wind and Structures
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• v.10 no.1
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• pp.83-97
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• 2007

In the last decades there have been frequent reports of oscillations of slender tension members under simultaneous action of rain and wind - characterized by large amplitudes and low frequencies. The members, e.g. cables of cable-stayed bridges, slightly inclined hangers of arch bridges or cables of guyed-masts, show a circular cross section and low damping. These rain-wind induced vibrations negatively affect the serviceability and the lifespan of the structures. The present article gives a short literature review, describes a mathematical approach for the simulation of rain-wind induced vibrations, sums up some examples to verify the calculated results and discusses measures to suppress the vibrations.

• Wind and Structures
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• v.7 no.3
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• pp.187-202
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• 2004

Wind tunnel experiments are often performed for the identification of aeroelastic parameters known as flutter derivatives that are necessary for the prediction of flutter instability for flexible structures. Experimental determination of all the eighteen flutter derivatives for a section model facilitates complete understanding of the physical mechanism of flutter. However, work in the field of identifying all the eighteen flutter derivatives using section models with all three degree-of-freedom (DOF) has been limited. In the current paper, all eighteen flutter derivatives for a streamlined bridge deck and an airfoil section model were identified by using a new system identification technique, namely, Iterative Least Squares (ILS) approach. Flutter derivatives of the current bridge and the Tsurumi bridge are compared. Flutter derivatives related to the lateral DOF have been emphasized. Pseudo-steady theory for predicting some of the flutter derivatives is verified by comparing with experimental data. The three-DOF suspension system and the electromagnetic system for providing the initial conditions for free-vibration of the section model are also discussed.

• Wind and Structures
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• v.12 no.3
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• pp.205-217
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• 2009

Aerodynamic flutter control for long-span cable-supported bridges was investigated based on three basic girder sections, i.e. streamlined box girder section, box girder section with cantilevered slabs and two-isolated-girder section. Totally four kinds of aerodynamic flutter control measures (adding fairings, central-slotting, adding central stabilizers and adjusting the position of inspection rail) were included in this research. Their flutter control effects on different basic girder sections were evaluated by sectional model or aeroelastic model wind tunnel tests. It is found that all basic girder sections can get aerodynamically more stabled with appropriate aerodynamic flutter control measures, while the control effects are influenced by the details of control measures and girder section configurations. The control effects of the combinations of these four kinds of aerodynamic flutter control measures, such as central-slotting plus central-stabilizer, were also investigated through sectional model wind tunnel tests, summarized and compared to the flutter control effect of single measure respectively.

• International Journal of High-Rise Buildings
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• v.2 no.3
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• pp.193-212
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• 2013

The Endless Column by Constantin Brâncuşi is "the most radical sculpture in the history of classic modernism", "the only one of modern times that can be compared with the great Egyptian, Greek and Renaissance monuments". It "is not only an artistic masterpiece, but also an extraordinary feat of engineering", the greatest example of collaboration between a sculptor and an engineer. This article illustrates the path that led the artist to conception of the column, its planning and construction, the investigations on preservation of the monument and its restoration, the aerodynamic tests in the wind tunnel, the modeling of the wind and the structure in virtue of which the aeroelastic instability, dynamic response and fatigue life were investigated. The conclusions discuss the column's role in the panorama of the great works of modern engineering.

• Wind and Structures
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• v.35 no.4
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• pp.255-268
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• 2022

Light-weight or low-damped structures may encounter the unsteady galloping instability that occurs at low reduced wind speeds, where the classical quasi-steady assumption is invalid. Although this unsteady phenomenon has been widely studied for rectangular cross sections with one side perpendicular to the incidence flow, the effect of the mean wind angle of attack has not been paid enough attention yet. With four sectional models of different side ratios and geometric shapes, the presented research focuses on the effect of the wind angle of attack on unsteady galloping instability. In static tests, comparatively strong vortex shedding force was noticed in the middle of the range of flow incidence where the lift coefficient shows a negative slope. In aeroelastic tests with a low Scruton number, the typical unsteady galloping, which is due to an interaction with vortex-induced vibration and results in unrestricted oscillation initiating at the Kármán vortex resonance wind speed, was observed for the wind angles of attack that characterize relatively strong vortex shedding force. In contrast, for the wind angles of attack with relatively weak shedding force, an "atypical" unsteady galloping was found to occur at a reduced wind speed clearly higher than the Kármán-vortex resonance one. These observations are valid for all four wind tunnel models. One of the wind tunnel models (with a bridge deck cross section) was also tested in a turbulent flow with an intensity about 9%, showing only the atypical unsteady galloping. However, the wind angle of attack with the comparatively strong vortex shedding force remains the most unfavorable one with respect to the instability threshold in low Scruton number conditions.

• Wind and Structures
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• v.30 no.6
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• pp.633-648
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• 2020

The objective of this work was to investigate the interference effects of two-parallel bridge decks on aerodynamic coefficients, vortex-induced vibration, flutter instability and flutter derivatives. The two bridges have significant difference in cross-sections, dynamic properties, and flutter speeds of each isolate bridge. The aerodynamic static tests and aeroelastic tests were performed in TU-AIT boundary layer wind tunnel in Thammasat University (Thailand) with sectional models in a 1:90 scale. Three configuration cases, including the new bridge stand-alone (case 1), the upstream new bridge and downstream existing bridge (case 2), and the downstream new bridge and the upstream existing bridge (case 3), were selected in this study. The covariance-driven stochastic subspace identification technique (SSI-COV) was applied to identify aerodynamic parameters (i.e., natural frequency, structural damping and state space matrix) of the decks. The results showed that, interference effects of two bridges decks on aerodynamic coefficients result in the slightly reduction of the drag coefficient of case 2 and 3 when compared with case 1. The two parallel configurations of the bridge result in vortex-induced vibrations (VIV) and significantly lower the flutter speed compared with the new bridge alone. The huge torsional motion from upstream new bridge (case 2) generated turbulent wakes flow and resulted in vertical aerodynamic damping H1^* of existing bridge becomes zero at wind speed of 72.01 m/s. In this case, the downstream existing bridge was subjected to galloping oscillation induced by the turbulent wake of upstream new bridge. The new bridge also results in significant reduction of the flutter speed of existing bridge from the 128.29 m/s flutter speed of the isolated existing bridge to the 75.35 m/s flutter speed of downstream existing bridge.