Lateral Vibrations of a Damped Laminated Hollow Circular Cross-Section Beam

Abstract

The free lateral bending vibrations of an “infinitely” long or simply-supported thin-walled circular cross-section beams having elastic-viscoelastic-elastic layers are investigated to determine the natural frequencies and associated composite loss factors. The analysis considers the inner and outer beams to behave as elastic beams in which the mass and mass-moment of inertia are both considered along with the interaction of the two elastic beams through the viscoelastic material. The results indicate that there are two natural frequencies. The lower one associated with the two elastic beams moving together so that little damping is obtained in this mode of vibration; the higher mode in which the two elastic beams vibrate in opposite directions so that there is an amount of damping comparable to the material loss factor of the viscoelastic material. A simplified model analysis is performed which is used to corroborate the trends obtained in the computer solutions of the more rigorous analysis. A series of curves are obtained for equal thickness elastic layers which can be used to obtain natural frequencies and composite loss-factors for a realistic range of geometrical and physical properties of a laminated circular cross-section simply supported beam.