A magneto-rheological fluid-elastomer vibration isolator

A magneto-rheological (MR) fluid-elastomer vibration isolator is constructed by encapsulating a MR fluid inside an elastomer. The structural properties of this system are controllable by an applied magnetic field. Previous studies have shown that the damping capacity of this MR fluid-elastomer vibration isolator is a function of strain amplitude and field strength, and weakly dependent on the excitation frequency. The energy-dissipated mode, subjected to a magnetic field during oscillatory motion, is similar to a combined viscous and frictional damping. In this paper, a mechanical model is presented to account for the dynamic behavior of the MR fluid-elastomer vibration isolators under oscillatory compressive deformations. This model is a two-element analogy comprised of a variable friction damper and a nonlinear spring. The parameters of the model have been identified by a series of harmonic loading tests. The theoretical and experimental results are in excellent agreement.