Contribution to the Characterization of Vibration Isolators Based on Metal Mesh

Abstract

The prediction of the behavior of vibration isolators is essential for effective and efficient design of these devices, as well as for accurately characterizing the isolator behavior. In this work, an experimental study was performed to characterize the behavior of metal-mesh isolators. Although these elements’ performance is of great interest because of their usage in several applications, their characterization is complex due to their nonlinear nature, among other factors. This study’s aim was to obtain the quasi-static behavior of these isolators, although dynamic tests are required for their complete characterization. These quasi-static tests allowed for the highlighting of some characteristics in a simpler and faster manner and also provided a starting point for designing future dynamic tests. The quasi-static tests performed resulted in the calculation of the hysteresis cycle under different operating conditions and manufacturing parameters. The study of different insulator characteristics, such as the energy dissipation coefficient and stiffness, led to interesting conclusions about the isolator performance. From the results, it was observed that the relative density affected most the nonlinear behavior of the insulator. Moreover, to correctly characterize their behavior, not only the Coulomb’s damping but also the viscous damping had to be considered.