• Smart Structures and Systems
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• v.16 no.3
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• pp.459-478
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• 2015

The design of a passive control solution based on tuned mass dampers (TMD's) requires the estimation of the actual masses involved in the undesired vibration. This task may result not so straightforward as expected when the vibration resides in subsets of different structural components. This occurs, for instance, when the goal is to damp out vibrations on stays. The theoretical aspects are first discussed and a design process is formulated. For sake of exemplification, a multiple TMD's configurations is eventually conceived for an existing timber footbridge located in the municipality of Trasaghis (North-Eastern Italy). The bridge span is 83 m and the deck width is 3.82 m.

• Proceedings of the Computational Structural Engineering Institute Conference
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• 2004.04a
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• pp.251-258
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• 2004

This paper presents the parameter study of multiple tuned liquid damper (MTLCD) applied to the 76-story benchmark building. A parameter study involves the effects of number of TLCD, frequency range, and central tuning frequency ratio, which are important parameters of MTLCD. The performance of MTLCD is carried out numerical analysis which reflects the nonlinear property of liquid motion. The parameters of TLCD exist different each optimal values according to mass ratio. The performance of single-TLCD (STLCD) is sensitive for tuning frequency ratio. Therefore, MTLCD is proposed to protect such the shortcoming of STLCD. The result of numerical analysis presents improved performance for robustness of MTLCD

• Smart Structures and Systems
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• v.32 no.5
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• pp.281-295
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• 2023

The purpose of this study is to demonstrate and verify the application of phase-control absolute-acceleration-feedback active tuned mass dampers (PCA-ATMD) to multiple-degree-of-freedom (MDOF) building structures. In addition, servo speed control technique has been developed as a replacement for force control in order to mitigate the negative effects caused by friction and inertia. The essence of the proposed PCA-ATMD is to achieve a 90° phase lag for a structure by implementing the desired control force so that the PCA-ATMD can receive the maximum power flow with which to effectively mitigate the structural vibration. An MDOF building structure with a PCA-ATMD and a real-time filter forming a complete system is modeled using a state-space representation and is presented in detail. The feedback measurement for the phase control algorithm of the MDOF structure is compact, with only the absolute acceleration of one structural floor and ATMD's velocity relative to the structure required. A discrete-time direct output-feedback optimization method is introduced to the PCA-ATMD to ensure that the control system is optimized and stable. Numerical simulation and shaking table experiments are conducted on a three-story steel shear building structure to verify the performance of the PCA-ATMD. The results indicate that the absolute acceleration of the structure is well suppressed whether considering peak or root-mean-square responses. The experiment also demonstrates that the control of the PCA-ATMD can be decentralized, so that it is convenient to apply and maintain to real high-rise building structures.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.48 no.4
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• pp.475-483
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• 2023

In this paper, a new energy-efficient semi-active hybrid bulk damper is developed that is cost-effective for use in structural applications. In this work, the possibility of active and semi-active component configurations combined with suitable control algorithms, especially vibration control methods, is explored. The equations of motion for a container bridge equipped with an MDOF Mass Tuned Damper (M-TMD) system are established, and the combination of excitation, adhesion, and control effects are performed by a proprietary package and commercial custom submodel software. Systematic methods for the synthesis of structural components and active systems have been used in many applications because of the main interest in designing efficient devices and high-performance structural systems. A rational strategy can be established by properly controlling the master injection frequency parameter. Simulation results show that the multiscale model approach is achieved and meets accuracy with high computational efficiency. The M-TMD system can significantly improve the overall response of constrained structures by modestly reducing the critical stress amplitude of the frame. This design can be believed to build affordable, safe, environmentally friendly, resilient, sustainable infrastructure and transportation.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.14 no.6
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• pp.567-576
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• 2018

This manuscript introduces a new damping device which is composed of a water tank and a pendulum. The new damping device can be tuned to multiple frequencies. In addition, it has a higher energy dissipation capacity when compared with the conventional Tuned Liquid Dampers (TLDs). In order to evaluate the efficiency of this new damping device a series of free vibration and forced vibration tests were conducted on a scaled down single-story one-bay steel frame. Two different configurations were studied for the mass of the pendulum that included a completely and a partially submerged mass. It was observed that the completely submerged configuration led to 44% higher damping ratio when compared with the conventional TLD. In addition, the completely submerged configuration reduced the peak displacement response of the structure 1.6 times more than the conventional TLD. The peak acceleration response of the structure equipped with the new damping device was reduced twice more than the conventional TLD. It was also found that, when the excitation frequency is lower than the resonance frequency, the conventional TLD performs better than the partially submerged configuration of the new damping device.

• Wind and Structures
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• v.7 no.4
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• pp.251-264
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• 2004

The effects of a class of nonlinear Tuned Mass Dampers on the aeroelastic behavior of SDOF systems are investigated. Unlike classical linear TMDs, nonlinear constitutive laws of the internal damping acting between the primary oscillator and the TMD are considered, while the elastic properties are keept linear. The perturbative Multiple Scale Method is applied to derive a set of bifurcation equations in the amplitude and phase and a parametric analysis is performed to describe the postcritical scenario of the system. Both cubic- and van der Pol-type dampings are considered and the dependence of the limit-cycle amplitudes on the system parameters is studied. These new results, compared with the previously obtained bifurcation scenario of a SDOF aeroelastic oscillator equipped with a linear TMD, show a detrimental effect on the maximum limit-cycle amplitude reduction of the nonlinear TMD. However, the analyses evidence that in the parameter region away from the perfect tuning condition the nonlinear connection can be used to tune the system with an enhancement of the limit-cycle amplitude reduction.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.19 no.4
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• pp.243-259
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• 2020

This study aims to optimize, design, and predict the MTMDs performance in SDOF systems using spectral analysis, and then apply their results to MDOF structures. Given the importance of spectral analysis in the design of new engineering structures, achieving a method for designing TMDs based on this theory can be of great importance for structural designers. In this study, several convenient combinations of MTMDs in an SDOF system are first considered to minimize the maximum displacement. For calculating the frequency ratios of dampers, an innovative technique is adopted in which the values of different modal responses obtained from the spectral analysis are approached together. This procedure is done using a harmony search (HS) algorithm. Also, using the random vibration theory, the damping ratio of the dampers is obtained. Then, an equation is presented for predicting the performance of MTMDs. For evaluating this equation, three structures with different stories are designed. Some of the presented combinations of dampers are added to them. The time history analyses are employed to analyze the structures under 30 different accelerograms. The findings indicated that the proposed equation could efficiently predict the performance of the MTMDs. Furthermore, four different patterns of damper distribution along the height of the structures are defined. The effect of them on the maximum deformation of the structures in time history analyses is discussed, and an equation is presented to estimate this effect. The results indicated that the average and maximum error percentages of the proposed equations are about three and seven percent, respectively, compared to the time history analyses results, which are negligible values.

• Wind and Structures
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• v.6 no.5
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• pp.387-402
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• 2003

In the past decades, much effort has been made towards the study of single-mode-based vibration controls with dynamic energy absorbers such as single or multiple Tuned Mass Dampers(TMDs). With the increase of bridge span length and the tendency of the bridge cross-section being more slender and streamlined, multi-mode coupled vibrations as well as their controls have become very important for large bridges susceptible to strong winds. As a simple but effective device, the TMD system especially the semi-active one has become a promising option for such coupled vibration controls. However, despite various studies of optimal controls of single-mode-based vibrations with TMDs, research on the corresponding controls of the multi-mode coupled vibrations is very rare so far. For the development of a semi-active control strategy to suppress the multi-mode coupled vibrations, a comprehensive parametric analysis on the optimal variables of this control is substantial. In the present study, a multi-mode control strategy named "three-row" TMD system is discussed and the general numerical equations are developed at first. Then a parametric study on the optimal control variables for the "three-row" TMD system is conducted for a prototype Humen Suspension Bridge, through which some useful information and a better understanding of the optimal control variables to suppress the coupled vibrations are obtained. This information lays a foundation for the design of semi-active control.