Two-dimensional magnetic property measurement for magneto-rheological elastomer

Magneto-rheological elastomer (MRE) is a new kind of smart material. Its rheological properties can be altered and controlled in a real time manner when it is applied an external magnetic field. For calculating magnetic properties of MRE material, usually Maxwell-Garnet equation is used to acquire an approximately effective permeability. This equation treats the magnetic property of particles as linear. However, when the applied magnetic field is alternating or rotating, the nonlinearity of magnetic property and magnetic hysteresis cannot be neglected. Hence, the measurement and modelling of the magnetic properties under alternating and rotating magnetic fields are essential to explore new applications of the material. This paper presents the investigation on the magnetic hysteresis properties of MRE material under one-dimensional (1-D) alternating and two-dimensional (2-D) rotating magnetic field excitations. A kind of MRE material, consisting of 70% carbonyl iron particles, 10% silicone oil, and 20% silicone rubber, was used to investigate the magnetic properties. The diameter of carbonyl iron particles is 3–5 μm. The measurement results, such as the relations between magnetic field intensity (H) and magnetic flux density (B) under different magnetic field excitations on the MRE sample, have been obtained and analyzed. These data would be useful for design and analysis of MRE smart structures like MR dampers.