Energy dissipation of tuned mass dampers during earthquake excitations

The effectiveness of energy-dissipative tuned mass dampers (TMD) on structural dynamic responses have been studied extensively since its development in the 1970s. Its applications have recently been extended to the use of active multiple tuned mass dampers. However, the process of a damper in improving a structure's ability to dissipate the earthquake's input energy has never been investigated. In this research, the objective lies in studying the process of structural energy transfer and the ability for the structure to dissipate energy. Numerical simulations are performed to study the energy responses of structures with and without TMD installed. The effectiveness of TMD in reduction of energy responses is also studied by using energy spectra and in a case study of a six-storey building. Results show that TMD is more effective in reducing the energy responses for structures with a moderate to long period of vibration than those for short period structures. In addition, TMD is very effective in reducing both the maximum kinetic energy and strain energy of the structure, while it is also effective in reducing the amount of damping energy that must be dissipated through the structure by providing an alternating route of damping energy dissipation through the TMD. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.