Fundamental performance of the controllable vibration damper using electro-rheological fluid

A new controllable damper is proposed for suppressing the vibration of the piping system in a wide frequency range. Electro-Rheological fluid (ERF) is enclosed in the damper casing of metallic bellows in place of viscous oil, and the apparent viscosity of ERF can be varied by applying an electric field strength. The construction of an ERF vibration damper was proposed both for suppressing small amplitude vibration and for releasing thermal movement of piping systems. Performance of this damper was investigated using a simple L-shaped piping model with rotary-type excitor. The experimental results show the effectiveness of the controllable damper for suppressing small amplitude vibration.