In the study, vibrations of small elastic cylinders mounted in the shear flow of an air jet are investigated experimentally. In such cases, the amplitude of the cylinder oscillation changed along with the variation of the jet velocity gradient is due to the influence of fluid elastic instability. The experiment is based on the method of the magnetic field induction to measure the motion of the small cylinder, and it involves measurements of the varying velocity in a jet through the hot- wire anemometer. We focus on the fluid-elastic instability of a circular cylinder in shear flow. The vibration behaviors of the cylinder above the critical condition are be examined with different velocity gradients, mass ratios and damping factors. The vibration amplitude of the cylinder is also larger as velocity gradient is larger. With lower mass ratios and damping factor, moreover, the orbit of cylinder is larger. When the velocity gradient is increasing, the frequency of cylinder vibration becomes higher.

Slender marine risers used in deepwater applications often experience vortex-induced vibration (VIV). Fatigue damage associated with VIV is of great concern to offshore engineers; however, it has proven difficult to predict this fatigue damage using existing semi-empirical tools. Similarly, approaches based on theoretical and computational fluid dynamics (CFD) generally rely on simplified assumptions on the fluid flow fields and response characteristics. To gain an understanding of VIV and associated fatigue damage, full-scale field monitoring campaigns as well as reduced-scale laboratory experiments are often carried out, wherein the riser response in the form of strains and/or accelerations is recorded using an array of a limited number of sensors distributed over the length of the riser. Simultaneously, current velocities at a proximate location are also recorded. Such measurements generally reveal complex characteristics of the dynamic response of a riser undergoing VIV, including the presence of multiple vibration harmonics, non-stationary behavior, and the existence of sustained or intermittent traveling wave patterns. Such complex features, often not accounted for in some semi-empirical and theoretical approaches, are critical to take into consideration for accurate fatigue damage estimation. In this study, several empirical methods are employed to first reconstruct the response of an instrumented riser and, then, estimate fatigue damage rates over the entire span of the riser based on a limited number of discrete measurements. The methods presented employ the measured data in different ways. One method, referred to as ``weighted waveform analysis'' relies on expressing the riser response as a summation of several weighted waveforms or riser modes; the mode shapes are ``assumed'' and time-varying weights for each mode are estimated directly from the measurements. The riser response over the entire span is reconstructed based on these assumed mode shapes and estimated modal weights. Other methods presented extract discrete mode shapes from the data directly. With the help of interpolation techniques, continuous mode shapes are formed, and the riser response is again reconstructed. Fatigue damage rates estimated based on the reconstructed strains obtained using the various empirical methods are cross-validated by comparing predictions against direct measurements available at the same locations (but not used in the analyses). Results show that the empirical methods developed here may be employed to accurately estimate fatigue damage rates associated with individual recorded segments of measurements. Finally, a procedure for prediction of long-term fatigue damage rates of an instrumented marine riser is presented that relies on combining (multiplying) the fatigue damage rates associated with short recorded segments for specific current profile types, with the relative likelihood of different incident current profiles, and integration over all current profiles. It should be noted that the empirical approaches to fatigue damage estimation presented in this study are based only on measured data; also, they explicitly account for different riser response characteristics and for site-specific current profiles developed from metocean studies. Importantly, too, such estimation procedures can easily accommodate additional data that become available in any ongoing field monitoring campaign to improve and update long-term fatigue damage prediction. / text

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As power demand across communities increases, focus has been given to the maintenance of power lines against harsh environments such as wind-induced vibration (WIV). Currently, Inspection robots are used for maintenance efforts while fixed tuned mass dampers (FTMDs) are used to prevent structural damages. However, both solutions are facing many challenges. Inspection robots are limited by their size and considerable power demand, while FTMDs are narrowband and unable to adapt to changing wind characteristics, and thus are unable to reposition themselves at the antinodes of the vibrating loop. In view of these shortcomings, we propose a mobile damping robot (MDR) that integrates inspection robots' mobility and FTMDs WIV vibration control to help maintain power lines. In this effort, we model the conductor and the MDR by using Hamilton's principle and we consider the two-way nonlinear interaction between the MDR and the cable. The MDR is driven by a Proportional-Derivative controller to the optimal vibration location (i.e, antinodes) as the wind characteristics vary. The numerical simulations suggest that the MDR outperforms FTMDs for vibration mitigation. Furthermore, the key parameters that influence the performance of the MDR are identified through a parametric study. The findings could set up a platform to design a prototype and experimentally evaluate the performance of the MDR. / Master of Science / Power lines are civil structures that span more than 160000 miles across the United States. They help electrify businesses, factories and homes. However, power lines are subject to harsh environments with strong winds, which can cause Aeolian vibration. Vibration in this context corresponds to the oscillation of power lines in response to the wind. Aeolian vibration can cause significant structural damages that impact public safety and result in a significant economic loss. Today, different solutions have been explored to limit the damages to these key structures. For example, the lines are commonly inspected by foot patrol, helicopters, or inspection robots. These inspection techniques are labor intensive and expensive. Furthermore, Stockbridge dampers, mechanical vibration devices, can be used to reduce the vibration of the power line. However, Stockbridge dampers can get stuck at location called nodes, where they have zero efficiency. To tackle this issue, we propose a mobile damping robot that can re-adjust itself to points of maximum vibration to maximize vibration reduction. In this thesis, we explore the potential of this proposed solution and draw some conclusions of the numerical simulations.

A self·excited system with weak nonlinearities and multifrequency parametric excitation is investigated in this study. The method of multiple scales is used to analyze the system under four different resonances relating parametric excitation frequencies with the natural frequencies. In the first case, the parametric excitation frequency is approximately equal to twice the natural frequency, λ≃2ω. In the second case, the parametric excitation frequency is approximately equal to the natural frequency, λ≃ω. The third case treats a system with two parametric excitation frequencies under the condition λ₁±λ₂≃2ω. In the last case, a two-degree-of-freedom system with natural frequencies ω, and ω, is considered and the resonance λ₁+ λ₂≃ω_r- ω_q , is analyzed. Different parameters (the 1' load amplitudes, a detuning parameter, and a system stiffness parameter) are varied in each case and the responses obtained are presented in plots. The stability of the solutions is affected by all the parameters mentioned, especially the load amplitudes and the detuning parameter. / Master of Science

A circular cylinder is a geometrically simple bluff body that occurs in various practical applications. As with any bluff body, it exhibits large drag forces and a strong fluctuating lift force, both related to the strong shedding of vortices from the body, which is commonly referred to as the Karman Street. Rigid splitter plates in the wake of the cylinder are known to suppress shedding from the body, and thereby result in reduced drag and fluctuating lift forces, the latter being important to reduce flow-induced vibrations of the body. In the present work, the flow past a cylinder with a downstream flexible splitter plate/flap is studied, the length (L) and flexural rigidity (EI) of the flap being the main parameters besides the flow speed (U). Two flaps length to cylinder diameter ratios (L/D), namely, a short (L/D = 2) and a long (L/D = 5) flaps have been studied, the shorter one being smaller than the recirculation zone, while the larger is longer than the recirculation zone. In both these cases, the flexural rigidity (EI) and the flow speed are systematically varied. In all cases, the flaps motion are directly visualized, the lift and drag forces are measured with a force balance, and the wake velocity field is measured using PIV. In both the long and short flaps cases, the flexural rigidity (EI) of the flexible flap has been varied over a large range of values, and it has been found that the results for flaps tip motion and forces collapse well when plotted with a non-dimensional bending stiffness (K∗), which is defined as K∗ = EI/(1/2ρU2L3). This collapse occurs across flexible flaps with different values of EI, as long as Re > 5000. The collapse is not found to be good for Re < 5000. This difference appears to be related to the large reduction in fluctuating lift for a bare cylinder in the Re range between approximately 1600 and 5000 discussed by Norberg[41]. In the long flap case, the existence of two types of periodic modes is found within the range of K∗ values from 5 × 10−6 to 1 × 10−1 studied. The first one corresponds to a local peak in amplitude at K∗ ≈ 1.5 × 10−3 that is referred to as mode I, and the second that occurs at low values of K∗ (K∗ < 3 × 10−5) that is referred to as mode II. The fluctuating lift is found to be minimum for the mode I oscillation. The mean drag is also found to reach a broad minimum that starts at K∗ corresponding to mode I and continues to be at the same low level of approximately 65% of the bare cylinder drag for all higher K∗ values, representing an approximately 35% decrease in mean drag of the cylinder. The wake measurements also show significant changes with K∗. The formation length (lf /D) obtained from the closure point of the mean separation bubble is found to continuously increase with K∗, reaching values of approximately 2.6 at mode I and thereafter only small increases are seen as K∗ is increased to large values corresponding to the rigid splitter plate case, consistent with the observed variations in the mean drag. The stream wise and cross-stream turbulent intensities and the Reynolds shear stress are all found to be strikingly lower in the mode I case compared to the bare cylinder case, and more importantly, these values are even lower than the rigid splitter plate case. This is consistent with the shedding of weaker vortices and with the minimum in fluctuating lift found in the mode I case. The results for this flap length show that the mode I flap oscillation, corresponding to K∗ ≈ 1.5 × 10−3, may be useful to reduce lift, drag, velocity fluctuations in the wake and the strength of the shed vortices. In particular, the wake fluctuations corresponding to this mode are found to be significantly lower than the rigid splitter plate case. In the short flap case (L/D = 2), it is found that there exists a richer set of flapping modes compared to the long flap, with these modes being dependent on K∗. At low K∗ values, the flap exhibits large amplitude symmetric flap motion that is referred to as mode A, while clearly asymmetric flaps motion are seen at higher K∗ values corresponding to modes B and C. Mode B corresponds to asymmetric large amplitude flapping motion, while mode C is also asymmetric with the flap clearly deflected off to one side, but having small oscillation amplitudes. At even higher K∗ values, corresponding to mode D, symmetric flaps motion are again seen with the amplitudes being smaller than in mode A. Apart from the flap tip amplitude, the non-dimensional frequency of flap tip motion also changes as the flap changes modes. In this case, there is a minimum in the fluctuating lift corresponding to mode B and C oscillation. The mean drag is found to reach a minimum again corresponding to mode C, which corresponds to an approximately 35% decrease in mean drag of the cylinder. In this case, there is a large increase in fluctuating lift (approximately 150% of the bare cylinder case) at higher values of K∗ that appears to correspond to a “resonant” condition between the structural natural frequency of the flexible splitter plate/flap and the wake shedding frequency of the bare cylinder. The wake measurements show that the formation length (lf /D) is the largest for mode C (deflected flap state), which is consistent with the observed minimum in mean drag observed for this mode. The stream wise and cross-stream turbulent intensities and the Reynolds shear stress are all found to be strikingly lower in the mode C case compared to the bare cylinder case, with the values for the Reynolds shear stress being lower than the rigid splitter plate case. This is again consistent with the minimum in fluctuating lift found in the mode C case. The results for this flap length show that the mode C flap oscillation, corresponding to K∗ ≈ 5 × 10−2 that correspond to a deflected flap state with very small oscillation may be useful to reduce lift, drag, velocity fluctuations in the wake and the strength of the shed vortices. The results from the present study show that the flexible flap/splitter plate down-stream of the cylinder exhibits a variety of mode shapes depending on the effective bending rigidity of the flap K∗ for both the long and short flaps cases. The forces and the wake are also found to be strongly dependent on this parameter K∗ with the wake fluctuations, lift fluctuations and the drag being very effectively suppressed at an intermediate value of K∗ that is found to be dependent on the plate/flap length.

Vortex shedding is an important mechanism, by which the flow around bluff bodies create forces that excite vibratory motion. Vortex-induced vibration (VIV) is studied for a single circular cylinder by means of Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations. An arbitrary Lagrangian Eulerian (ALE) formulation is used to achieve the grid deformation needed for VIV. In this thesis, a multifaceted approach is undertaken by which response dynamics and wake interaction are addressed. Four major aspects are considered in the study: the Reynolds number (Re); the mass and damping; the degree-of-freedom for VIV; and the mutual effect between VIV and heat transfer.As attention is paid towards high pre-critical Re flow, the turbulent flow around the cylinder is treated by two turbulence modelling approaches: unsteady Reynolds Averaged Navier Stokes (uRANS), and Large Eddy Simulation (LES). The wake-VIV interaction is analyzed by looking at mean velocities and Reynolds stresses, where decomposition of flow scales is undertaken to explore the evolution of coherent eddy structures, downstream of the cylinder. Conversely, the VIV response is analyzed by considering oscillation amplitude and frequency, in addition to the excitation and inertial dynamics.High turbulence in the separated shear layers disorders the cylinder's VIV response and induces higher amplitudes. The sensitivity for Re is found more pronounced in cylinders with low mass and damping. Meanwhile, VIV is found to enhance wake mixing, and to significantly change the near wake Reynolds stresses. It is suggested that the increase in Re brings a change to the wake patterns, which are known in VIV at lower Re. The kinetic energy production, of near wake eddy structures, is qualitatively altered with the presence of VIV. Furthermore, the surface heat flux is found to cause a noticeable increase in VIV amplitude, as long as it does not disorder the wake correlation. The cylinder's oscillation increases the average value of the Nusselt number (Nu), while the local variance of Nu rises markedly post-separation.

A escolha do propulsor é uma etapa-chave no projeto de um navio. Muito do que se espera qualitativamente do desempenho de uma embarcação implica em economia de energia, em condições de operação e habitabilidade adequadas à tripulação, e em baixo custo de manutenção dos elementos estruturais e dos equipamentos. Essas questões estão diretamente relacionadas ao aproveitamento de combustível pelo sistema propulsivo e à propagação de vibração, cabendo ao propulsor um papel significativo para a performance do navio em ambos os aspectos. Por esta razão, a dissertação propõe a avaliação de propulsores navais com respeito à excitação de vibração e à eficiência, quando atuando em esteira não uniforme. A dissertação inicia-se com uma abordagem resumida especificamente sobre os estudos já realizados sobre indução de vibração pelo propulsor focados nas chamadas forças de mancal. Em seguida, revisam-se os assuntos pertinentes ao projeto de propulsor, isto é, definição de sua geometria, de seus coeficientes de operação, e dos métodos teóricos e computacionais utilizados para estudar seu comportamento hidrodinâmico. A metodologia do trabalho fundamenta-se no estudo paramétrico da geometria do hélice, objetivando identificar a influência de cada um dos parâmetros de projeto do propulsor nos dois aspectos destacados no início. As diversas configurações geométricas são submetidas a campos de velocidades advindos de diferentes navios, que representam três grupos de embarcações (navios série 60, porta-containers e navios-tanque), com o intuito de verificar as diferentes tendências de comportamento possíveis. Para a execução computacional, elabora-se uma rotina encarregada de sistematizar o processo de alterações geométricas, encaminhar os numerosos casos à análise hidrodinâmica, realizar o processo de integração casco-hélice e o pós-processamento dos resultados. A análise hidrodinâmica citada é feita através do uso de um software comercial, que, baseado na teoria do escoamento potencial, aplica o método dos painéis para a resolução do escoamento ao redor do propulsor. Os esforços excitados pelo hélice são traduzidos em critérios objetivos, baseados na transmissão de vibração através do eixo, que, associados ao critério de eficiência propulsora e à restrição relativa à ocorrência de cavitação, avaliam os casos e identificam-se o comportamento dos parâmetros de projeto. Obtém-se, como conclusão, uma metodologia de avaliação aplicável em outros casos de propulsores e navios. / The propeller choice is a key-step of the ship design. The high quality of the vessel performance requires energy economy, appropriated operating and environmental conditions for the crew, and low maintenance costs of structural elements and equipment. These questions consider directly fuel consumption by the propulsion system and the transmitted vibration, regarding the propeller an important role in the ships performance about both attributes. For this reason, the evaluation of marine propellers, regarding the induced vibration and the propulsive efficiency under a non-uniform inflow, is proposed. The study begins with a briefly state of the art about the propeller induced vibration focused in bearing forces. Then, a propeller design overview is made about subjects such as geometry definition, operation coefficients, and theoretical and computed methods for studying its hydrodynamic behavior. The methodology is based on a parametric study of the propeller geometry, in order to identify the influence of each of the propeller design parameters in both aspects highlighted in beginning. The several geometric configurations are submitted to the wake fields from different ships, that represent three groups of vessels (60 series, containers and tankers), then different tendencies of behavior can be expected. For computational execution, a routine is in charge of systematizing the process of geometrical parameterization, send the cases to the hydrodynamic analysis, make the hull-propeller integration and post process the data. The hydrodynamic analysis is compelled by a HSVA® software, which applies the panel method in the propeller flow, based on potential flow theory. The propeller induced bearing forces are converted in objective criteria, based on vibration transmission through the shaft, which, combined with the propulsive efficiency criteria and the cavitation restriction, evaluate the propeller geometric configurations. As a conclusion, a propeller evaluation methodology applicable to another kind of propeller series and wake fields is obtained.

Um dos grandes desafios enfrentados pelos fabricantes de turbinas hidráulicas é prevenir o aparecimento de vibrações induzidas pelo escoamento nas travessas do pré-distribuidor e pás do rotor. Considerando apenas as travessas, e atribuídos a tais vibrações, foram relatados 28 casos de trincas ou ruídos anormais nas últimas décadas, que acarretaram enormes prejuízos associados a reparos, atrasos e perda de geração. O estado da arte na prevenção destes problemas baseia-se na utilização de sofisticados, e caros, programas comerciais de dinâmica dos fluidos computacional para o cálculo transiente do fenômeno. Este trabalho faz uma ampla revisão bibliográfica e levantamento de eventos de trincas ou ruídos ocorridos em travessas nos últimos 50 anos. Propõe, então, um enfoque alternativo, baseado exclusivamente em ferramentas de código aberto. A partir de hipóteses simplificadoras devidamente justificadas, o problema é formulado matematicamente de forma bidimensional, no plano da seção transversal da travessa, levando em conta a interação fluido-estrutura. Nesta estratégia, as equações de Navier-Stokes são resolvidas pelo método dos elementos finitos por meio da biblioteca gratuita oomph-lib. Um código especial em C++ é desenvolvido para o problema de interação fluido-estrutura, no qual o fenômeno de turbulência é levado em consideração por meio de um algoritmo baseado no modelo de Baldwin-Lomax. O método proposto é validado por meio da comparação dos resultados obtidos com referências e medições disponíveis na literatura, que tratam de problemas de barras retangulares suportadas elasticamente. O trabalho finaliza com a aplicação do método a um estudo de caso envolvendo uma travessa particular. / One of the biggest challenges for hydraulic turbine manufacturers is to prevent vortex-induced vibration on the stay vanes and runner blades. Only regarding stay vanes, 28 cases of cracks or unusual noises attributed to such vibrations were reported in the past decades leading to huge costs due to repair, delays and lack of generation. The state of the art today is to use powerful and expensive commercial computational fluid dynamics software to address the required transient phenomena. The present work carries out a comprehensive survey on occurred events in stay vanes during the last 50 years. Then, an alternative approach, based only on free open-source tools, is proposed. From due justified simplifying assumptions, the problem is formulated two-dimensionally, in the stay vane cross section plane, taking the fluid-structure interaction into account. In such a strategy, the Navier-Stokes equations are solved using oomph-lib, an object-oriented, finite-element library. A special C++ computational code is developed to deal with the fluid-structure interaction problem, in which turbulence is considered through a special algorithm, based on the Baldwin-Lomax model. The proposed method is validated through comparisons with an aerodynamics benchmark and an experimental measurement of oscillating rectangular bars both available in the literature. The method is finally applied to a case study of a particular stay vane. Keywords: Hydraulic turbine. Fluid-structure interaction. Vortex-induced vibration.

This thesis investigates the footfall excitation of higher modes of vibration in low-frequency floor structures. This is motivated by the increased number of floors reportedly failing to meet the required occupants comfort level although being designed in accordance with the current state-of-the-art design guidelines. In particular modern, lightweight, and slender floor structures. The contribution to knowledge of this thesis can be summarised as: quantifying the signal energy of measured walking forces within and above the natural frequency cut-off proposed by the current state-of-the-art design guidelines; quantifying the contribution of higher modes of vibration to the overall response of low-frequency floors to human walking; propose measures to judge the response nature of low-frequency floors, these are the relevant change of the point stiffness and the shape of frequency response functions; proposing a frequency-domain approach that enables designers to include higher modes of vibration in the design against human-induced vibration. It was found that the signal energy of walking forces is distributed well beyond the natural frequency cut-off proposed by the current state-of-the-art design guidelines. Also, the contribution of localised, higher, modes of vibration to the overall response of ultra-lightweight floors was significant. Moreover, it was found that higher modes affect the response of floors of various construction types in one way or another. Hence, it was recommended to consider their contribution in the design of floors against human-induced vibration. Also, it was found that the higher the relative change of the point stiffness the more higher modes contribute to the overall response of floors. Finally, the frequency-domain analysis was found less expensive than time-domain analysis and could result in similarly useful information.