This thesis deals with the experimental study of magnetorheological shaft seal. The purpose of this diploma thesis is to describe the operating parameters of rotational magnetoreological shaft seal. In thesis, the effects of magnetic field and shaft speed on the pressure resistance and braking torque are described. Operating parameters were measured by an experimental device. Research has shown that the magnetoreological seal is characterized by a high pressure resistant. Disadvantages are the high braking torque and leakage of carrier oil from the magnetorheological fluid. These problems have been solved by a new design of magnetic circuit, that has been identified as a magnetoreological gradient pinch seal (MRGPS).

Sedimentation in magnetorheological (MR) fluids is undesirable for many technological applications. For this reason, several ways have been proposed to prevent sedimentation instability. This thesis deals specifically with the addition of a suitable additive. The topic was examined based on available literature and according to it was suggested a procedure for the experimental part. Two types of MR liquids with different composition and preparation method were prepared. The first suspensions included a water-in-oil emulsion as a carrier liquid and Span 80 and Tween 80 as additives. For the second MR fluids, the continuous phase was a blend of bearing oils and the suspension was stabilized with organoclay. In both cases, carbonyl iron particles with a diameter of 1,8–2,3 µm were used. The kinetic stability of the prepared MR fluids was monitored and compared using an analytical centrifuge.

In this thesis was designed, manufactured and tested the fourth evolution of a slit-flow rheometer with another necessary parts, eg. rheometer`s holder, drive frame and important jig tools. The rheometer is able to measure rheological properties of magnetic and non-magnetic fluids at very high shear rates, which commercial rheometers can not reach. It is designed for 200 bar pressure and maximum load 15 kN. The construction of the slit-flow rheometer with it`s holder and drive frame improves user friendliness, accelerates change of the fluid sample and expands research opportunities thanks to a big space for additional adjustments. It is possible to use different length of the slit and thanks to a changeable inserts it is possible to change parameters of the slit (roughness of the walls, wall material, thickness of the slit). A part of this thesis was focused on illation of necessary equations for planning calibration measurements. Aim of these measurements is to obtain minor pressure losses dependence on Reynolds number for specific slit.

Industrial development processes as well as research in physics, materials and engineering science rely on computer modelling and simulation techniques today. With increasing computer power, computations are carried out on multiple scales and involve the analysis of coupled problems. In this work, continuum modelling is therefore applied at different scales in order to facilitate a prediction of the effective material or structural behaviour based on the local morphology and the properties of the individual constituents. This provides valueable insight into the structure-property relations which are of interest for any design process. In order to obtain reasonable predictions for the effective behaviour, numerical models which capture the essential fine scale features are required. In this context, the efficient representation of discontinuities as they arise at, e.g. material interfaces or cracks, becomes more important than in purely phenomenological macroscopic approaches. In this work, two different approaches to the modelling of discontinuities are discussed: (i) a sharp interface representation which requires the localisation of interfaces by the mesh topology. Since many interesting macroscopic phenomena are related to the temporal evolution of certain microscopic features, (ii) diffuse interface models which regularise the interface in terms of an additional field variable and therefore avoid topological mesh updates are considered as an alternative. With the two combinations (i) Extended Finite Elemente Method (XFEM) + sharp interface model, and (ii) Isogeometric Analysis (IGA) + diffuse interface model, two fundamentally different approaches to the modelling of discontinuities are investigated in this work. XFEM reduces the continuity of the approximation by introducing suitable enrichment functions according to the discontinuity to be modelled. Instead, diffuse models regularise the interface which in many cases requires even an increased continuity that is provided by the spline-based approximation. To further increase the efficiency of isogeometric discretisations of diffuse interfaces, adaptive mesh refinement and coarsening techniques based on hierarchical splines are presented. The adaptive meshes are found to reduce the number of degrees of freedom required for a certain accuracy of the approximation significantly. Selected discretisation techniques are applied to solve a coupled magneto-mechanical problem for particulate microstructures of Magnetorheological Elastomers (MRE). In combination with a computational homogenisation approach, these microscopic models allow for the prediction of the effective coupled magneto-mechanical response of MRE. Moreover, finite element models of generic MRE microstructures are coupled with a BEM domain that represents the surrounding free space in order to take into account finite sample geometries. The macroscopic behaviour is analysed in terms of actuation stresses, magnetostrictive deformations, and magnetorheological effects. The results obtained for different microstructures and various loadings have been found to be in qualitative agreement with experiments on MRE as well as analytical results. / Industrielle Entwicklungsprozesse und die Forschung in Physik, Material- und Ingenieurwissenschaft greifen in einem immer stärkeren Umfang auf rechnergestützte Modellierungs- und Simulationsverfahren zurück. Die ständig steigende Rechenleistung ermöglicht dabei auch die Analyse mehrskaliger und gekoppelter Probleme. In dieser Arbeit kommt daher ein kontinuumsmechanischer Modellierungsansatz auf verschiedenen Skalen zum Einsatz. Das Ziel der Berechnungen ist dabei die Vorhersage des effektiven Material- bzw. Strukturverhaltens auf der Grundlage der lokalen Werkstoffstruktur und der Eigenschafen der konstitutiven Bestandteile. Derartige Simulationen liefern interessante Aussagen zu den Struktur-Eigenschaftsbeziehungen, deren Verständnis entscheidend für das Material- und Strukturdesign ist. Um aussagekräftige Vorhersagen des effektiven Verhaltens zu erhalten, sind numerische Modelle erforderlich, die wesentliche Eigenschaften der lokalen Materialstruktur abbilden. Dabei kommt der effizienten Modellierung von Diskontinuitäten, beispielsweise Materialgrenzen oder Rissen, eine deutlich größere Bedeutung zu als bei einer makroskopischen Betrachtung. In der vorliegenden Arbeit werden zwei unterschiedliche Modellierungsansätze für Unstetigkeiten diskutiert: (i) eine scharfe Abbildung, die üblicherweise konforme Berechnungsnetze erfordert. Da eine Evolution der Mikrostruktur bei einer derartigen Modellierung eine Topologieänderung bzw. eine aufwendige Neuvernetzung nach sich zieht, werden alternativ (ii) diffuse Modelle, die eine zusätzliche Feldvariable zur Regularisierung der Grenzfläche verwenden, betrachtet. Mit der Kombination von (i) Erweiterter Finite-Elemente-Methode (XFEM) + scharfem Grenzflächenmodell sowie (ii) Isogeometrischer Analyse (IGA) + diffuser Grenzflächenmodellierung werden in der vorliegenden Arbeit zwei fundamental verschiedene Zugänge zur Modellierung von Unstetigkeiten betrachtet. Bei der Diskretisierung mit XFEM wird die Kontinuität der Approximation durch eine Anreicherung der Ansatzfunktionen gemäß der abzubildenden Unstetigkeit reduziert. Demgegenüber erfolgt bei einer diffusen Grenzflächenmodellierung eine Regularisierung. Die dazu erforderliche zusätzliche Feldvariable führt oft zu Feldgleichungen mit partiellen Ableitungen höherer Ordnung und weist in ihrem Verlauf starke Gradienten auf. Die daraus resultierenden Anforderungen an den Ansatz werden durch eine Spline-basierte Approximation erfüllt. Um die Effizienz dieser isogeometrischen Diskretisierung weiter zu erhöhen, werden auf der Grundlage hierarchischer Splines adaptive Verfeinerungs- und Vergröberungstechniken entwickelt. Ausgewählte Diskretisierungsverfahren werden zur mehrskaligen Modellierung des gekoppelten magnetomechanischen Verhaltens von Magnetorheologischen Elastomeren (MRE) angewendet. In Kombination mit numerischen Homogenisierungsverfahren, ermöglichen die Mikrostrukturmodelle eine Vorhersage des effektiven magnetomechanischen Verhaltens von MRE. Außerderm wurden Verfahren zur Kopplung von FE-Modellen der MRE-Mikrostruktur mit einem Randelement-Modell der Umgebung vorgestellt. Mit Hilfe der entwickelten Verfahren kann das Verhalten von MRE in Form von Aktuatorspannungen, magnetostriktiven Deformationen und magnetischen Steifigkeitsänderungen vorhergesagt werden. Im Gegensatz zu zahlreichen anderen Modellierungsansätzen, stimmen die mit den hier vorgestellten Methoden für unterschiedliche Mikrostrukturen erzielten Vorhersagen sowohl mit analytischen als auch experimentellen Ergebnissen überein.

This work deals with the research of degradation of magnetorheological (MR) fluid during long-term loading under conditions that correspond to the real load in the linear MR devices such as dampers. The behaviour of MR fluid is described by a Bingham model of viscoplastic fluid. The parameters of this model are the yield stress and viscosity. Their values are determined by the shear rate from 1 to 2,8104 s-1. Results of durability tests show a significant decrease in viscosity of MR fluid, a gradual increase in yield stress in the off-state and a significant decrease in MR effect. The paper also described the effect of temperature on these parameters and there is also designed a method of non-assembly diagnostic of the MR fluid state in the damper using the "rate of pulsation."

No description available.

This study of adaptable vibration isolating mounts sets out to capture the uniqueness of magnetorheological (MR) fluid's variable viscosity rate, and to physically alter the damping and stiffness when used inside an elastomeric mount. Apparent variable viscosity or rheology of the MR fluid has dependency on the application of a magnetic field. Therefore, this study also intends to look at the design of a compact magnetic field generator which magnetizes the MR fluid to activate different stiffness and damping levels within the isolator to create an adaptable and tunable feature. To achieve this adaptable isolator mount, a mold will be fabricated to construct the mounts. A process will then be devised to manufacture the mounts and place MR fluid inside the mount for later compatibility with the magnetic field generator. This process will then produce an MR fluid-elastic mount. Additionally for comparative purposes, passive mounts will be manufactured with a soft rubber casing and an assortment of metal and non-metal inserts. Next, the design of the magnetic field generator will be modeled using FEA magnetic software and then constructed. Stiffness or force/displacement measurements will then be analyzed from testing the isolator mount and magnetic field generator on a state-of-the-art vibration dynamometer. To vary the magnetic flux through the mount, an electro-magnet is used. To analyze the results, a frequency method of the stiffness will be used to show the isolators adaptation to various increments of magnetic flux over the sinusoidal input displacement frequencies. This frequency response of the stiffness will then be converted into a modeling technique to capture the essence of the dynamics from activating the MR fluid within the isolator mount. With this methodology for studying the adaptability of an MR fluid-elastic mount, the stiffness increases are dependent on the level of magnetic field intensity provided from the supplied electro-magnet. When the electro-magnet current supply is increased from 0.0 to 2.0 Amps, the mount stiffness magnitude increase is 78% in one of the MR fluid-elastic mounts. Through comparison, this MR fluid-elastic mount at off-state with zero magnetic field is similar to a mount made of solid rubber with a hardness of 30 Shore A. With 2 Amps of current, however, the MR fluid-elastic mount has a higher stiffness magnitude than a rubber mount and resembles a rubber casing with a steel insert. Moreover, when the current in the electro-magnet is increased from 0.0 to 2.0 Amps the equivalent damping coefficient in a MR fluid-elastic mount increases over 500% of the value at 0 Amps at low frequency. Through damping comparisons, the MR fluid-elastic mount with no current is similar to that of a mount made of solid rubber with a hardness of 30 Shore A. At full current in the electromagnet, however, the damping in the MR fluid-elastic mount is greater than any of the comparative mounts in this study. Therefore, the results show that the MR fluid-elastic mount can provide a wide range of stiffness and damping variation for real-time embedded applications. Since many aerospace and automotive applications use passive isolators as engine mounts in secondary suspensions to reduce transmitted forces at cruise speed, the MR fluid-elastic mount could be substituted to reduce transmitted forces over a wider range of speeds. Additionally, this compact MR fluid-elastic mount system could be easily adapted to many packaging constraints in those applications. / Master of Science

Since their invention in the early 1900s, Tuned Vibration Absorbers (TVAs) have shown to be effective in suppressing vibrations of machines and structures. A vibration absorber is a vibratory subsystem attached to a primary system. It normally consists of a mass, a spring, and a damper. Mounted to the primary system, a TVA counteracts the motions of the primary system, "absorbing" the primary structure's vibrations. A conventional passive TVA, however, is only effective when it is tuned properly, hence, the name "tuned" vibration absorber. In many practical applications, inevitable off-tuning (or mistuning) of a TVA occurs because of the system's operating conditions or parameter changes over time. For example, the mass in a building floor could change by moving furnishings, people gathering, etc., which can "off-tune" TVAs. When TVAs are off-tuned, their effectiveness is sharply reduced. Moreover, the off-tuned TVAs can excessively amplify the vibration levels of the primary structures; therefore, not only rendering the TVA useless but also possibly causing damage to the structures. Off-tuning is one of the major problems of conventional passive TVAs. This study proposes a novel semiactive TVA, which strives to combine the best features of passive and active TVA systems. The semiactive TVA in this study includes a Magneto-Rheological (MR) damper that is used as a controllable damping element, for providing the real-time adjustability that is needed for improving the TVA performance. This study is conducted in two phases. The first phase provides a numerical investigation on a two-degree-of-freedom (2-DOF) numerical model in which the primary structure is coupled with a TVA. The numerical investigation considers four semiactive control methods for the MR TVAs, in addition to an equivalent passive TVA. These numerical models are optimally tuned using numerical optimization techniques to compare each TVA system. These tuned systems then serve as the basis for numerical parametric studies for further evaluation of their dynamic performance. The parametric study covers the effects of damping, as well as system parameter variations (off-tuning). The results indicates that semiactive TVAs are more effective in reducing the maximum vibrations of the primary structure and are more robust when subjected to off-tuning. Additionally, the numerical study identifies the "On-off Displacement-Based Groundhook control (on-off DBG)" as the most suitable control method for the semiactive TVA among control methods considered in this study. For the second phase of this study, an experimental study is performed on a test setup, which represents a 2-DOF structure model coupled with an MR TVA. Using this setup, a series of tests are conducted in the same manner as the numerical study to evaluate the performance of the semiactive TVA. The primary purposes of the experiment are to further evaluate the most promising semiactive control methods and to serve as a "proof-of-concept" of the effectiveness of this MR TVA for floor vibration applications. The results indicate that the semiactive TVA with displacement-based groundhook control outperforms the equivalent passive TVA in reducing the maximum vibrations of the primary structure. This confirms the numerical result that identifies on-off DBG control method as the "best" control method for the MR TVA among four semiactive control schemes considered. The experimental robustness study is also conducted, focusing on the dynamic performance of both the passive and the semiactive TVAs when the mass of the primary system changes (mass off-tuning). The mass of the primary system varied from -23 % to +23 % of its nominal value by adding and removing external masses. The experimental results show that the semiactive TVA is more robust to changes in the primary mass than the passive TVA. These results justify the benefits of the use of semiactive MR TVAs in structures, such as building floor systems. The off-tuning analysis further suggests that, in practice, semiactive TVAs should be tuned slightly less than their optimum in order to compensate for any added masses to the structure. Additionally, the lessons learned from the experimental study have paved the way for implementing the semiactive MR TVA on a test floor, which is currently in progress under a separate study. / Ph. D.

This project focuses on the design and modeling of a two degree-of-freedom dissipative passive haptic display. Haptic displays are man-machine interfaces that transmit forces to the human operator. A dissipative passive haptic display is one that may only remove energy from the system using actuators such as brakes and dampers, thus ensuring the safety of the human operator. These devices may be used to implement virtual constraints such as desired paths and obstacles. Traditional friction brakes have previously been used as dissipative and coupling elements in a two degree-of-freedom parallel manipulator, resulting in undesired effects such as vibration, stiction, and slow response times. Alternatively, the new robot is actuated by rheological brakes, which feature fast response times and smooth application of torque. This approach aims to improve upon the accuracy and feel of the previous design. A commercial magnetorheological (MR) fluid brake was selected and put through an extensive series of tests. The data was used to develop a model that characterizes MR fluid behavior in low speed braking applications. A parallel five bar linkage was designed and built that has separate configurations corresponding to 3-brake and 4-brake operation. The length of each arm was chosen by means of a geometrical optimization that weighs the size and area of the workspace and actuator effects. A simulation was then developed by incorporating the brake model into the equations of motion of the robot. Next, two forms of path following velocity control were devised and tested in simulation. Finally, the accuracy, workload, and smoothness of both controllers and both configurations were examined in preliminary tests with human operators.

This diploma thesis covers the topic of magnetic fluids and their utilisation in hydrodynamic dampers. The first part of the work consists of research on the current state of technology in hydraulic dampers with the focus on dampers using magnetorhelogical fluid. This chapter is followed by research on magnetic fluids with regard to their physical properties and mathematical description, which is used for CFD simulation of flow. The second part deals with the computational simulation of the flow of MR liquid in real MR damper in order to determine the damping characteristic and it's comparison with the experimental data.