Frequency and damping adaptation of a TMD with controlled MR damper

Abstract

This paper describes the new concept of a semi-active tuned mass damper with magnetorheological damper (MR-STMD). The real-time controlled MR damper force emulates controlled damping and a superimposed controllable stiffness force to augment or diminish the force of the passive spring stiffness which enables us to control the MR-STMD natural frequency. Both the damping and natural frequency are tuned according to Den Hartog’s formulae to the actual dominant frequency of the main structure irrespective of whether it is a resonance or a forced frequency. The MR-STMD is experimentally validated on the Empa bridge with a 15.6 m main span for different added masses to shift its resonance frequency −12.2% and +10.4% away from its nominal value. The experimental results are compared to those obtained when the MR-STMD is operated as a passive TMD that is precisely tuned to the nominal bridge. The comparison shows that the MR-STMD outperforms the TMD both in the tuned and all de-tuned cases by up to 63%. Simulations of the MR-STMD concept point out that the proposed semi-active control algorithm is most suitable for MR-STMDs due to the small amount of clipped active forces. A sensitivity analysis demonstrates that the real MR-STMD could be even more powerful if the force tracking errors in the MR damper force due to the current driver and MR fluid dynamics and remanent magnetization effects could be further reduced. The MR-STMD under consideration represents the prototype of the 12 MR-STMDs that have been running on the Volgograd Bridge since late fall 2011.