Magnetorheological Damper Working in Squeeze Mode

This research is focused on evaluation of the magnetorheological fluids (MRFs) based damper which works in squeeze mode. The operation direction of this damper is parallel to the direction of the external magnetic field. Before testing, commercial software ANSYS was used to analyze the magnetic field distribution inside the damper generated by charging current in the coil. The performance of the damper was tested by using the MTS809 (produced by MTS Systems Corporation, USA). For simulation of this damper, a mathematical model was set up. Experimental results showed that the small squeezed MR damper could produce large damping force; for example, the maximum damping force is nearly 6 kN, while the amplitude is 1.2 mm, the frequency is 1.0Hz, and the current is 2.0 A, and the damping force was controllable by changing the current in the coil. The damping force versus displacement curves are complex. We divide them into four regions for simulation. The maximum damper force increased quickly with the increasing of the current in coil. This kind of damper can be used in vibration isolation for precise equipment.