Synthesis of Magnetorheological fluid Compositions for Valve Mode Operation

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Abstract Smart materials such as Magnetorheological Fluids (MRF) have become sought-after material in wide ranging applications due to the ability to change properties in a controlled manner under application of stimulation such as a variable current, magnetization, heat, force, stress and deformation. Magnetorheological fluids in the rheological fluid domain has found use due to its ability to change its shear strength based on the applied magnetic field. Magnetorheological fluids are composed of magnetizable micron sized iron particles and a non-magnetizable base/ carrier fluid. The shear strength of commercially available MRF varies from 0 to 100kPa under the effect of the magnetic field. In a valve mode, the Magnetorheological damper (MR Damper or MRD), the MR fluid flows between two-fixed poles, which are parallel to each other. When the fluid flows between them, due to the applied magnetic field the magnetic particles align themselves in a chain form (on state) which is easily reversible when the field is removed (off state). Physical change of the fluid from liquid to semi-solid is controlled by the magnetic field, which makes the fluid a reliable member in active vibration control applications. In this study, two types of magnetizable particles (Carbonyl iron (CI) and Electrolytic iron (EI)) are taken and characterized using an Anton Paar MCR 702 rheometer set-up, in on and off states. To overcome issues like sedimentation, agglomeration and corrosion of the MR fluid, the iron particles are coated with natural gum like guar and xanthan, to the carrier fluid grease and other thixotropic additives are added. The addition of grease and thixotropic additives will inhibit the microbiological degradation of natural gum over an extended period. These engineered MR fluids are then used to analyze the performance of designed and developed stand-alone MR damper, which is tested using an electro-dynamic shaker. The response and damping performance of the MR Damper is analyzed with controlled changes in variables including percentage of additives in MR fluid & magnetization values