Modular High-Force Seismic Magneto-Rheological Fluid Damper

In this work, a large-scale magneto-rheological fluid (MRF) bypass valve damper for seismic mitigation applications is designed, constructed, and tested. The damper utilizes a simple design, with a modular bypass MRF valve, connected to a passive commercial seismic damper. The modular feature of the new MRF valve provides the flexibility of adding as much force as needed to the damper with minimal modification to an existing passive viscous damper. The performance of the MRF valve and the combined semiactive bypass MRF damper are examined through quasi-static and dynamic tests. It is demonstrated that the proposed modular MRF bypass damper can provide a maximum damping force over 200 kN which meets the high-force requirements of a semiactive seismic damper for large-scale structure vibration control.