Fundamental considerations for the design of non-linear viscous dampers

An Erratum has been published for this article in Earthquake Engineering and Structural Dynamics 2000; 29(7):1076. Two interrelated issues related to the design of non-linear viscous dampers are considered in this paper: structural velocities and equivalent viscous damping. As the effectiveness of non-linear viscous dampers is highly dependent on operating velocities, it is important to have reliable estimates of the true velocity in the device. This should be based on the actual relative structural velocity and not the commonly misused spectral pseudo-velocity. This is because if spectral pseudo-velocities (PSV) are used, they are based on design displacements (S_v=ω₀S_d) and are thus fundamentally different from the actual relative structural velocity. This paper examines the difference between these two velocities, and based on an extensive study of historical earthquake motions proposes empirical relations that permit the designer to transform the well-known spectral pseudo-velocity to an actual relative structural velocity for use in design. Non-linear static analysis procedures recommended in current guidelines for the design of structural systems with supplement damping devices are based on converting rate-dependent device properties into equivalent viscous damping properties based on an equivalent energy consumption approach. Owing to the non-linear velocity dependence of supplemental devices, an alternative approach for converting energy dissipation into equivalent viscous damping is advanced in this paper that is based upon power consumption considerations. The concept of a normalized damper capacity (ϵ) is then introduced and a simple design procedure which incorporates power equivalent linear damping based on actual structural velocities is presented. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

On the use of the half-power bandwidth method to estimate damping in building structures

The objective of this note is to assess the accuracy of the half-power bandwidth method for the estimation of damping ratios in single- and multi-degree-of-freedom structures with linear viscous damping including those that do not possess classical normal modes. This is done by performing some numerical experiments involving single- and multi-degree-of-freedom structures. It is found that the use of the half-power bandwidth method in its classical form may lead to significant errors, while a third order correction to this classical form provides conservative and more reliable results. It is also found in conjunction with this correction that application of the half-power bandwidth method should be performed to the acceleration frequency response transfer function of the structure on a mode-to-mode basis and that its damping ratio estimates for higher modes should always be viewed with caution.     

Damping identification of a full‐scale passively controlled five‐story steel building structure

A series of large‐scale dynamic tests was conducted on a passively controlled five‐story steel building on the E‐Defense shaking table facility in Japan to accumulate knowledge of realistic seismic behavior of passively controlled structures. The specimen was tested by repeatedly inserting and replacing each of four damper types, that is, the buckling restrained braces, viscous dampers, oil dampers, and viscoelastic dampers. Finally, the bare steel moment frame was tested after removing all dampers. A variety of excitations was applied to the specimen, including white noise, various levels of seismic motion, and shaker excitation. System identification was implemented to extract dynamic properties of the specimen from the recorded floor acceleration data. Damping characteristics of the specimen were identified. In addition, simplified estimations of the supplemental damping ratios provided by added dampers were presented to provide insight into understanding the damping characteristics of the specimen. It is shown that damping ratios for the specimen equipped with velocity‐dependent dampers decreased obviously with the increasing order of modes, exhibiting frequency dependency. Damping ratios for the specimen equipped with oil and viscoelastic dampers remained constant regardless of vibration amplitudes, whereas those for the specimen equipped with viscous dampers increased obviously with an increase in vibration amplitudes because of the viscosity nonlinearity of the dampers. In very small‐amplitude vibrations, viscous and oil dampers provided much lower supplemental damping than the standard, whereas viscoelastic dampers could be very efficient. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A mathematical model to predict the inelastic response of a steel frame: Formulation of the model

The purpose of this research is to use data from experiments to formulate a mathematical model that will predict the non-linear response of a single-storey steel frame to an earthquake input. The process used in this formulation is system identification. The form of the model is a second-order non-linear differential equation with linear viscous damping and Ramberg—Osgood type hysteresis. The damping coefficient and the three parameters in the hysteretic model are to be established. An integral weighted mean squared error function is used to evaluate the [goodness of fit] between the model's response and the structure's response when both are subjected to the same excitation. The function includes errors in displacement and acceleration and is integrated from zero to a time T, which may be the full duration of the recorded response or only a portion of it. The parameters are adjusted using a modified Gauss-Newton method until the error function is minimized. The computer program incorporating these steps in the system identification process is verified with simulated data. Results given in the paper show that in every case the program converges in few iterations to the assigned set of parameters.     

Dynamic non-linear analysis of reinforced concrete shear wall by finite element method with explicit analytical procedure

A numerical procedure for a dynamic non-linear finite element analysis is proposed here to analyse three-dimensional reinforced concrete shear wall structures subjected to earthquake motions. A shear wall is modelled as a quasi-three dimensional structure which is composed of plane elements considering the in-plane stiffness of orthogonal flange panels. The proposed constitutive model is based on the non-linearity of reinforcement and concrete in which the tension stiffening in tension and the degradation of stiffness and strength in compression of concrete after cracking are considered. The acceleration-pulse method, which is a kind of explicit analytical procedure, is employed to solve the non-linear dynamic equations, where the dynamic equation can be solved without stiffness matrix and so the iterative procedure is not necessary for descending portion of stress–strain relationship caused by cracking and softening after compressive strength in concrete. The damping effect is considered by assuming equivalent viscous damping which can give good cyclic behaviours of inertia force vs. displacement relationships. This analytical method was applied to a test specimen of a reinforced concrete shear wall with a H-shaped section which was vibrated up to failure by using a large-scale shaking table with high -performance in Japan. The test was performed as one of the dynamic model tests for evaluation of seismic behaviour of nuclear reactor buildings. The calculations were performed sequentially from the elastic range to failure. The comparison with the test results shows that this approach has good accuracy. © 1997 by John Wiley & Sons Ltd     

Computational aspects of a seismic performance test method using on-line computer control

The basic computational procedure of a newly developed seismic performance test méthod is presented and examined in this paper. This method uses a direct step-by-step integration technique to compute the displacement response of a test specimen subjected to a numerically specified seismic excitation record, utilizing the non-linear restoring forces actually developed by the specimen during the experiment. Due to the limitations of the experimental procedure and conditions, special analytical assumptions and numerical methods must be adopted. The adequacy of such analytical techniques is evaluated and possible computational errors are identified. An improved numerical integration algorithm is also proposed for this specific application. It has been found that the method can be a reliable and powerful experimental tool provided appropriate analytical and numerical criteria, as discussed in this paper, are observed.     

Effects of the improper modeling of viscous damping on the first-mode and higher-mode dominated responses of base-isolated buildings

In many finite element platforms, a classical global damping matrix based on the elastic stiffness of the system (including isolators) is usually developed as part of the solution to the equations of motion of base-isolated buildings. The conducted analytical and numerical investigations illustrate that this approach can lead to the introduction of unintended damping to the first and higher vibration modes and the spurious suppression of the respective structural responses. A similar shortcoming might be observed even when a nonclassical damping model (ie, an assembly of the superstructure and isolation system damping sub-matrices) is used. For example, the use of Rayleigh damping approach to develop the superstructure damping sub-matrix can lead to the undesired addition of damping to the isolated mode arising from the mass-proportional component of the superstructure damping. On the other hand, the improper use of nonclassical stiffness-proportional damping (eg, determining the proportional damping coefficient, β_k , based on the first mode) can result in assigning significant damping to the higher-modes and the unintended mitigation of the higher-mode responses. Results show that a nonclassical stiffness-proportional model in which β_k is determined based on the second modal period of a base-isolated building can reasonably specify the intended damping to the higher modes without imparting undesirable damping to the first mode. The nonclassical stiffness-proportional damping can be introduced to the numerical model through explicit viscous damper elements attached between adjacent floors. In structural analysis software such as SAP2000®, the desired nonclassical damping can be also modeled through specifying damping solely to the superstructure material.     

Stiffness‐damping simultaneous identification using limited earthquake records

A new method of stiffness‐damping simultaneous identification of building structures is proposed using limited earthquake records. It is shown that when horizontal accelerations are recorded at the floors just above and below a specific storey in a shear building model, the storey stiffness and the damping ratio can be identified uniquely. The viscous damping coefficient and the linear hysteretic damping ratio can also be identified simultaneously in a numerical model structure. The accuracy of the present identification method is investigated through the actual limited earthquake records in a base‐isolated building. It is further shown that an advanced identification technique for mechanical properties of a Maxwell‐type model can be developed by combining the present method with a perturbation technique. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

非线性粘滞阻尼器消能结构设计方法探讨

在建立非线形粘滞阻尼器消能结构性能曲线的基础上，建议了依据减震性能目标确定阻尼器参数的概略设计方法。提出了多自由度非线性粘滞阻尼器消能结构的等效阻尼比计算公式。在此基础上建议了适用于多自由度非线性粘滞阻尼器消能结构地震反应预测的模态叠加法，方法与时程分析结果对比吻合良好。为使各层阻尼器参数更好地满足减震性能要求，提出了将概略设计得到的层阻尼器参数依据减振性能目标进行调整的方法。     

Validation of nonlinear time history analysis models for single‐storey concentrically braced frames using full‐scale shake table tests

The concentrically braced frame (CBF) structure is one of the most efficient steel structural systems to resist earthquakes. This system can dissipate energy during earthquakes through braces, which are expected to yield in tension and buckle in compression, while all other elements such as columns, beams and connections are expected to behave elastically. In this paper, the performance of single‐storey CBFs is assessed with nonlinear time‐history analysis, where a robust numerical model that simulates the behaviour of shake table tests is developed. The numerical model of the brace element used in the analysis was calibrated using data measured in physical tests on brace members subjected to cyclic loading. The model is then validated by comparing predictions from nonlinear time‐history analysis to measured performance of brace members in full scale shake table tests. Furthermore, the sensitivity of the performance of the CBF to different earthquake ground motions is investigated by subjecting the CBF to eight ground motions that have been scaled to have similar displacement response spectra. The comparative assessments presented in this work indicate that these developed numerical models can accurately capture the salient features related to the seismic behaviour of CBFs. A good agreement is found between the performance of the numerical and physical models in terms of maximum displacement, base shear force, energy dissipated and the equivalent viscous damping. The energy dissipated and, more particular, the equivalent viscous damping, are important parameters required when developing an accurate displacement‐based design methodology for CBFs subjected to earthquake loading. In this study, a relatively good prediction of the equivalent viscous damping is obtained from the numerical model when compared with data measured during the shake table tests. However, it was found that already established equations to determine the equivalent viscous damping of CBFs may give closer values to those obtained from the physical tests. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Viscous damping formulation and high frequency motion propagation in non-linear site response analysis

Non-linear time domain site response analysis is widely used in evaluating local soil effects on propagated ground motion. This approach has generally provided good estimates of field behavior at longer periods but has shortcomings at relatively shorter periods. Viscous damping is commonly employed in the equation of motion to capture damping at very small strains and employs an approximation of Rayleigh damping using the first natural mode only. This paper introduces a new formulation for the viscous damping using the full Rayleigh damping. The new formulation represents more accurately wave propagation for soil columns greater than 50 m thick and improves non-linear site response analysis at shorter periods. The proposed formulation allows the use of frequency dependent viscous damping. Several examples, including a field case history at Treasure Island, California, demonstrate the significant improvement in computed surface response using the new formulation.     

Steady- and transient-state inversion in hydrogeology by successive flux estimation

A calibration method to solve the groundwater inverse problem under steady- and transient-state conditions is presented. The method compares kriged and numerical head field gradients to modify hydraulic conductivity without the use of non-linear optimization techniques. The process is repeated iteratively until a close match with piezometric data is reached. The approach includes a damping factor to avoid divergence and oscillation of the solution in areas of low hydraulic gradient and a weighting factor to account for temporal head variation in transient simulations. The efficiency of the method in terms of computing time and calibration results is demonstrated with a synthetic field. It is shown that the proposed method provides parameter fields that reproduce both hydraulic conductivity and piezometric data in few forward model solutions. Stochastic numerical experiments are conducted to evaluate the sensitivity of the method to the damping function and to the head field estimation errors.     

Active viscous damping system for control of MDOF structures

The development and applications of a supplemental viscous damping device with active capacity are described. The system of the dampers defined as active viscous damping system (AVDS) is presented herein. Structural control principles defined here as active control theory (ACT) are used to obtain the control forces at each time step during an excitation. Control of the damping forces is possible due to a mechanical structure of the proposed AVDS and do not require the input of large power and energy. This system can be efficiently used to enhance the damping of a structure without adding in stiffness and strength. The added damping forces can be adjusted in a wide range. Its efficiency is demonstrated by a numerical simulation of a seven‐storey building subjected to earthquakes. The simulation shows that the behaviour of the damped structure with the AVDS is significantly improved compared to that of an uncontrolled system. Moreover, the response is better than that of adding either passive viscous dampers or electrorheological damping devices. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

结构阻尼与材料阻尼的关系

针对固体材料在弹性阶段的内阻尼,采用材料粘弹性本构关系,通过有限单元法建立了考虑剪切变形影响的杆单元阻尼矩阵,得到了材料拉压粘滞系数和剪切粘滞系数之间的关系。我们可以通过实验测试材料的损耗因子或粘滞阻尼系数(材料阻尼),像结构质量矩阵、刚度矩阵一样通过比较确切的计算得到弹性阶段结构内阻尼的阻尼矩阵(结构阻尼),而且此阻尼矩阵既基于材料阻尼实验测试,又便于数学处理,且物理意义明确。其次,本文分析了材料阻尼对结构阻尼比影响,得到了材料损耗因子与结构模态阻尼比间的关系,并通过10层钢筋混凝土剪切型框架结构进一步给出了具体的数值结果。     

The effect of coulomb damping on multidegree of freedom elastic structures

This paper is based on the premise that the damping mechanism of a multidegree of freedom structure can be represented by viscous and coulomb dampers. A closed form solution for the structure subjected to a sinusoidal forcing function is presented. The solution is used as the basis of a method for determining relative amounts of viscous and coulomb damping from vibration tests. The method was applied to the results of a series of vibration tests on a five storey reinforced concrete structure and approximate values of viscous and coulomb damping obtained. A comparison of the effect of various combined damping values on the earthquake response of the structure was made. It was concluded that the use of the equivalent viscous damping concept to approximate the combined effect of viscous and coulomb damping results in a low estimate of the elastic response of the structure.     

Asymmetric one‐storey elastic systems with non‐linear viscous and viscoelastic dampers: Simplified analysis and supplemental damping system design

Investigated is the accuracy in estimating the response of asymmetric one‐storey systems with non‐linear viscoelastic (VE) dampers by analysing the corresponding linear viscous system wherein all non‐linear VE dampers are replaced by their energy‐equivalent linear viscous dampers. The response of the corresponding linear viscous system is determined by response history analysis (RHA) and by response spectrum analysis (RSA) extended for non‐classically damped systems. The flexible and stiff edge deformations and plan rotation of the corresponding linear viscous system determined by the extended RSA procedure is shown to be sufficiently accurate for design applications with errors generally between 10 and 20%. Although similar accuracy is also shown for the ‘pseudo‐velocity’ of non‐linear VE dampers, the peak force of the non‐linear VE damper cannot be estimated directly from the peak damper force of the corresponding linear viscous system. A simple correction for damper force is proposed and shown to be accurate (with errors not exceeding 15%). For practical applications, an iterative linear analysis procedure is developed for determining the amplitude‐ and frequency‐dependent supplemental damping properties of the corresponding linear viscous system and for estimating the response of asymmetric one‐storey systems with non‐linear VE dampers from the earthquake design (or response) spectrum. Finally, a procedure is developed for designing non‐linear supplemental damping systems that satisfy given design criteria for a given design spectrum. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Effect of viscous damping devices on the response of seismically isolated structures

Viscous and other damping devices are often used as elements of seismic isolation systems. Despite the widespread application of nonlinear viscous systems particularly in Japan (with fewer applications in the USA and Taiwan), the application of viscous damping devices in isolation systems in the USA progressed intentionally toward the use of supplementary linear viscous devices due to the advantages offered by these devices. This paper presents experimental results on the behavior of seismically isolated structures with low damping elastomeric (LDE) and single friction pendulum (SFP) bearings with and without linear and nonlinear viscous dampers. The isolation systems are tested within a six‐story structure configured as moment frame and then again as braced frame. Emphasis is placed both on the acquisition of data related to the structural system (drifts, story shear forces, and isolator displacements) and on non‐structural systems (floor accelerations, floor spectral accelerations, and floor velocities). Moreover, the accuracy of analytical prediction of response is investigated based on the results of a total of 227 experiments, using 14 historic ground motions of far‐fault and near‐fault characteristics, on flexible moment frame and stiff braced frame structures isolated with LDE or SFP bearings and linear or nonlinear viscous dampers. It is concluded that when damping is needed to reduce displacement demands in the isolation system, linear viscous damping results in the least detrimental effect on the isolated structure. Moreover, the study concludes that the analytical prediction of peak floor accelerations and floor response spectra may contain errors that need to be considered when designing secondary systems. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Tuned inerter dampers with linear hysteretic damping

This paper explores the influence of linear hysteretic damping on the performance of passive tuned-inerter devices. An inerter is a device that produces a force proportional to the relative acceleration across its two terminals; devices incorporating inerters have received widespread attention in the earthquake engineering community, because they offer the ability to improve the seismic response of structures. However, the majority of this research has assumed that the damping components within the tuned-inerter device exhibit viscous, rather than hysteretic, damping. This restriction imposes an essential question on how the hysteretic damping model will change the performance of the device compared with the viscous damping model. It is shown that the response of viscous and hysteretic inerter systems have significant differences in displacement amplitude due to the frequency dependency of the damping. Therefore, a new formulation for obtaining the optimum loss factor of the hysteretic damping in the inerter system is proposed. Next, the challenges associated with accurately predicting the time-response of a hysteretically damped system are discussed. A numerical time-integration method is extended to address these challenges, using a new formulation that has the benefit of being broadly applicable to multidegree-of-freedom hysteretic linear systems and nonstationary random signals. The results show that the earthquake responses from the hysteretic damping model can differ significantly from the ones obtained via the viscous model.     

常摩擦TMD地震控制效果的理论和实验研究

在TMD中采用摩擦阻尼代替传统的粘滞阻尼,可有效降低TMD的造价,从而促进其推广应用。但摩擦元件是非线性的,给摩擦TMD分析和设计造成了一定的困难。为了研究常摩擦TMD地震控制的特点和规律,文中采用时程分析法进行了简谐激励和地震激励下摩擦TMD对单自由度结构响应控制的理论分析;在理论分析结果的指导下,进行了单自由度主结构和摩擦TMD系统在简谐激励和地震激励下的振动台试验。理论分析和试验结果表明:除了频率比和质量比的影响,摩擦TMD的控制效果和摩擦力大小、激励幅值有关,只要参数设置合适,其控制效果是令人满意的;在设计摩擦TMD时要针对激励大小、目标控制效率进行具体分析。     

The ρ-family of algorithms for time-step integration with improved numerical dissipation

The dynamic analysis of complex non-linear structural systems by the finite element approach requires the use of time-step algorithms for solving the equations of motion in the time domain. Both an implicit and an explicit version of such a time-step algorithm, called the ρ-method, the parameter ρ being used for controlling numerical damping in the higher modes, are presented in this paper. For the implicit family of algorithms unconditional stability, consistency, convergence, accuracy and overshoot properties are first discussed and proved. On the basis of the algorithmic damping ratio (dissipation) and period elongation (dispersion) the ρ-method is then compared with the well-known implicit algorithms of Hilber, Newmark, Wilson, Park and Houbolt. An explicit version of the algorithm is also derived and briefly discussed. This shows numerical properties similar to the central difference method. Both versions of the algorithm have been implemented in a general purpose computer program which has been often used for both numerical tests and practical applications.