Damping in Structures

18
18.1 CONCEPTS
•• The larger the damping ratio, ξ, the larger the ratio of successive peak displacements in free
vibration (un /un + 1), and the quicker the decay of oscillations.
•• The damping ratio can be determined from measurements using the vibration theory of a
single-degree-of-freedom system.
•• The damping ratio is a measure of the amount of damping in a structure which can effectively
reduce structural vibration at resonance.
•• The higher the amplitude of free vibration of a structure, the larger will be the critical damp-
ing ratio and the smaller will be the natural frequency.

18.2  THEORETICAL BACKGROUND

The process by which vibrations decrease in amplitude with time is called damping. Damping
dissipates the energy of a vibrating system and can do this in a number of ways. There are several
different types of damping: friction, hysteretic and viscous. For structural systems, the damping
encountered is best described using a viscous model in which the damping force is proportional to
its velocity. The damping ratio ξ is expressed as a fraction of critical damping and is often written
as a percentage (i.e. 1% critical).
The value of the damping ratio is required for predicting structural responses induced by differ-
ent forms of dynamic loading. When structural vibrations are too large, artificial damping devices
can be used to increase the damping and therefore reduce the levels of the vibrations. For example,
dampers were installed in the London Millennium Footbridge to reduce the large lateral vibration
of the bridge that occurred as a result of people walking across the bridge.

18.2.1 Evaluation of Viscous-Damping Ratio

from Free Vibration Tests
Consider the equation of motion of a single-degree-of-freedom system with viscous damping:

mu + cu + ku = 0 (18.1)

The solution of Equation 18.1 has been given in Equation 16.15 as follows:

 u ( 0 ) + u ( 0 ) ξω 
u (t ) =  sin ω D t + u ( 0 ) cos ω D t  e − ξ ωt (16.15)
 ωD 

where ω and ωD are the angular frequencies of the undamped and damped systems, respectively.

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 258  Understanding and Using Structural Concepts

EXAMPLE 18.1
10

5
un
un+1
un+m

u(t) (mm)
2 4 6 8 10
–5 t (s)
2π / ωD

–10

FIGURE 18.1
Damped free vibration.

Consider free vibrations of an undercritically damped system that has the following
properties:

ω
f= = 1.0 Hz, ξ = 0.05, u (0 ) = 10 mm and u (0 ) = 0
2π

SOLUTION
Substituting the data into Equation 16.15, the displacements of the system can be
represented in graphical form, as shown in Figure 18.1.
It can be seen that

•• The damped system oscillates about its neutral position with a constant angular
frequency ωD.
•• The oscillation decays exponentially due to the damping.

Consider any two successive positive peaks such as un and un + 1 which occur at time n(2π/ωD)
and (n + 1)(2π/ωD), respectively. Equation 16.15 can be used to obtain the ratio of the two successive
peak values as

un  2πξω 
= exp  (18.2)
un + 1  ω D 

Taking the natural logarithm of both sides of the equation and substituting ω D = ω 1 − ξ 2 into
Equation 18.2, the logarithmic decrement of damping, δ, is obtained since ξ is normally small for
structural systems:

un 2πξ δ 1 u
δ = ln =  2πξ or ξ = = ln n (18.3)
un + 1 1− ξ 2 2 π 2 π un +1

Equation 18.3 indicates that

The larger the damping ratio ξ, the larger the ratio of un  /un + 1 and thus the quicker the decay
of the oscillation.

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 18  Damping in Structures  259

Considering two positive peaks from Figure  18.1 which are not adjacent, say un and un + m,
Equation 18.3 becomes

un 2πmξ δ
δ = ln = = 2πmξ or ξ = (18.4)
un + m 1− ξ 2 2 m π

Thus, the damping ratio can be evaluated from Equation 18.3 or Equation 18.4 by measuring
any two positive peak displacements and the number of cycles between them.
If the damping is perfectly viscous, Equations 18.3 and 18.4 will give the same result. However,
this may not be true in all practical situations as will be shown in Section 18.4.
The advantages of using free vibration test responses to obtain values of damping ratio are

•• The requirements for equipment and instrumentation are minimal in comparison with forced
vibration test methods.
•• Only relative displacement amplitudes need to be measured.
•• The initial vibration can be generated by any convenient method, such as an initial displace-
ment, an impulse or a sudden change of motion.

18.2.2 Evaluation of Viscous-Damping Ratio

from Forced Vibration Tests
The dynamic magnification factor of a single-degree-of-freedom system subject to a harmonic load
is shown in Section 17.2, that is

A 1
MD = = (17.12)
∆ st (1 − f / f ) + (2ξf p / f )2
2
p
2

where:
fp is the frequency of the load
f is the natural frequency of the system

At resonance of a structure with a low damping ratio, the frequency of oscillation is approx-
imately equal to the natural frequency of the structure, that is, f p = f and Equation 18.12 becomes

A 1
MD = = (18.5)
∆ st 2ξ

Thus, if both the static displacement and the maximum dynamic displacement of a single-degree-
of-freedom system (or a particular mode of a structure) at resonance can be determined experimen-
tally, the critical damping ratio can be calculated from Equation 18.5. More accurate methods for
determining the damping ratio from forced vibration tests can be found in [1–3].

18.3  MODEL DEMONSTRATIONS

18.3.1 Observing the Effect of Damping in Free Vibrations
This set of models demonstrates the effect of damping provided by oil in free vibration, which can
be observed by eye.
Take a steel ruler and form a cantilever as shown in Figure 16.9a. Give the tip of the ruler an
initial displacement and release it. The steel ruler will perform many cycles of oscillation before it
becomes stationary, indicating that the damping ratio associated with steel alone is low.

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 260  Understanding and Using Structural Concepts

(a) (b)

FIGURE 18.2
(a,b) Effect of the damping provided by oil.

Figure 18.2a shows two identical steel strips acting as cantilevers. The only difference between
the two cantilevers is that connected to the free end of the cantilever on the left is a vertical metal
bar which in turn is attached to a disc immersed in oil. Figure 18.2b shows the disc by lifting up the
free end of the strip. Thus, the effect of the oil and the device can be examined.
Press the free ends of the two cantilevers down by the same amount and then release them sud-
denly. It will be observed that the cantilever on the left only vibrates for a small number of cycles
before stopping while the cantilever on the right oscillates through many cycles demonstrating the
effect of viscous damping provided by the oil.

18.3.2 Hearing the Effect of Damping in Free Vibrations

This set of models shows the effect of damping provided by rubber bands in free vibration, which
can be heard by ears.
The sound heard from the free vibrations of a taut string, such as a violin string, links two
different physical phenomena, sound transmission and the string vibrations, which both can be
described using the same differential equation of motion. Thus, hearing a sound can be related to
observing free vibrations, in this case those of a taut string.
Figure 18.3 shows two identical steel bars, one is a bare bar and the other has rubber bands
wrapped around it. The effect of the damping added by the rubber can be demonstrated as follows:

•• Suspend the bare bar and give it a knock at its lower end using the other metal bar, as shown
in Figure 18.3a. A sound will be generated from the bar for several seconds as it reverberates.
•• Suspend the wrapped bar and give it a similar knock on the exposed metal part (Figure 18.3b).
This time only a brief dull sound is heard as the rubber wrapping dissipates much of the
energy of the vibration.

18.4  PRACTICAL EXAMPLES

18.4.1 Damping Ratio Obtained from Free Vibration Tests
The true damping characteristics of typical structural systems are normally very complex and dif-
ficult to define with few structures actually behaving as ideal single-degree-of-freedom systems.

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 18  Damping in Structures  261

(a) (b)

FIGURE 18.3
(a,b) Effect of damping on sound transmission.

Notwithstanding this, the earlier discussion of single-degree-of-freedom systems (Chapters 16

and 17) can be useful when considering more complex practical structures.
A free vibration test was conducted on a full-sized eight-storey test building (Figure 16.17) to
identify the damping ratio of its fundamental mode [4]. In order to amplify the displacements of the
structure, the building was shaken by a set of vibrators mounted at the four corners on the roof of the
building, at the fundamental frequency of the building. After the vibrators were suddenly stopped,
the ensuing free vibrations of the roof of the building were measured. The decay of the vibrations
in one of the two main directions of the building is shown in Figure 16.17. As the excitation caused
vibrations effectively only in the fundamental mode, the contributions of other modes of vibration
to the decaying response of the structure were negligible.
The natural frequency and damping ratio of the response of the structure can be determined
from the records shown in Figure 16.17. Five, continuous 10 s samples of vibrations were extracted
from the response and a curve-fitting technique was used to produce smooth curves from which the
natural frequency and damping ratio could be determined. One such smoothed curve, superimposed
on the measured curve, is shown in Figure 18.4. The response frequency and damping ratio values

0.02
0.611 Hz
2.87% crit
0.01
Acceleration (m s–2)

0.0
1.08 9.22 (s)

–0.01
Time (s)

–0.02

FIGURE 18.4
Extraction of natural frequency and damping ratio from free vibration records. (From Ellis, B. R. and
Ji, T. The Structural Engineer, 74, 186–192, 1996.)

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 262  Understanding and Using Structural Concepts

TABLE 18.1  N
 atural Frequency and Damping Ratio
Determined from Various Sections of Decay

Relative Amplitude Natural Frequency (Hz) Damping Ratio (%)

1.00 0.611 2.87
0.366 0.636 1.81
0.181 0.645 1.28
0.106 0.647 1.02
0.062 0.656 0.85

extracted from the five samples are given in Table 18.1 and related to the amplitude of vibration at
the start of each sample [4].
From Table 18.1 it can be observed that

•• The higher the amplitude of vibration, the smaller the natural frequency and the larger the
damping ratio.
•• The natural frequency for the relative amplitude of 1.00 is 6.86% lower than that for the rel-
ative amplitude of 0.062, while the damping ratio at the relative amplitude of 1.00 is 238%
higher than that at the relative amplitude of 0.062.

When the building vibrated with small amplitudes, the relative movements between joints and
other connections in the structure were small, involving frictional forces doing less work, and lead-
ing to lower damping ratios than were found when amplitudes were larger with associated larger
relative joint movements and friction-related work. These variations have been observed in many
different types of structure.

18.4.2 Damping Ratio Obtained from Forced

Vibration Tests
The forced vibration tests of the framed steel building for obtaining its resonance frequency are
described in Section 18.4.3. The frequency spectrum obtained from the experiment and curve fitting
are shown in Figure 17.17.
The natural frequency and damping ratio obtained from the forced vibration tests were 0.617 Hz
and 2.25%, respectively. It can be noted that the measured values have a characteristic negative skew
compared to the best-fit curve. This is typical of this type of measurement and shows one aspect of
nonlinear behaviour as observed in free vibration tests of buildings and other structures. It can be
observed from Table 18.1 that the measurements from the forced vibration tests agree favourably
with those obtained from the free vibration tests for relative amplitudes between 0.366 and 1.000.
In general, forced vibration tests normally provide larger forces than free vibration tests. Therefore,
forced vibration tests frequently produce smaller values for natural frequencies and larger values for
damping ratios than those obtained from free vibration tests.

18.4.3 Damping Ratios for Floor Structures

It has been shown in Sections 18.4.1 and 18.4.2 that damping is not a factor which can always be
determined accurately. However, damping reflects how a system is constructed as well as its constit-
uent materials. For example, a steel framework supporting precast concrete floor beams will have a
much larger damping value than that of the steel frame alone or the beams by themselves, the joints
between the two materials being a source of energy dissipation. Also, a bolted steel framework
will have much higher damping than a similar welded framework. Thus, damping of a structure is
greater than that of the elements from which it is constructed; which suggests that damping is not a
quantity readily compatible with finite elements. Instead, it is often sensible to estimate the damping
value for each mode of vibration based upon measurements taken on similar structures.

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 18  Damping in Structures  263

TABLE 18.2  M
 easured Characteristics of the Principal Mode of Vibration of a Single Panel for a
Range of Floors

Natural
Floor type Frequency (Hz) Damping (% crit)
Steel beams with composite floor 6.39 0.61
Slimfloor 12.03 0.67
In situ concrete 11.89 0.86
Steel beams with composite floor 5.31 0.87
Steel beams with composite floor 5.43 1.34
Steel girders with prestressed concrete planks 4.95 1.35
Deep profiled concrete slab 7.43 1.56
Steel beams with composite floor 8.50 1.65
Steel beams with composite floor 6.70 1.75
Composite steel/concrete beams with precast hollow floor units 7.91 1.81
Steel beams with precast concrete planks and false floor 6.96 1.90
Steel beams with composite floor 5.26 2.72
Steel beams with composite floor plus furnishings 9.26 4.45
Sprung wooden dance floor 7.62 4.54
Beam and pot floor 11.93 5.08

Source: Ellis, B. R., Ji, T., El-Dardiry, E. and Zheng, T. The Structural Engineer, 88, 18–26, 2010.

The previous paragraphs, and indeed most literature, suggest that damping is a constant factor,
but measurements show that damping does vary with amplitude of vibration, the damping generally
increasing with increasing amplitude of vibration. So, damping values should be measured at ampli-
tudes of vibration of a similar level to those under consideration.
A number of measurements have been made on various types of floor (at vibration amplitudes
similar to those induced by people walking) and these are given in Table  18.2, which lists the
floors in order of increasing damping so the range of damping values can be appreciated. It can be
observed from the table that there is quite a wide range of damping values.
The floors with the lower damping values have one thing in common: they have a continuous
floor system. The floors built up with precast concrete panels tend to have higher damping values
due to the joints which provide an extra damping mechanism. The furnished floors also tend to have
higher damping values, but it is questionable whether damping from furnishings can be relied on
and it is often the least furnished areas of multipanel floors that encounter problems. The two highly
damped floors are both quite old and of a type of construction with many joints.

18.4.4  Damping Ratios for Buildings

As indicated in the previous section, it is not really possible to calculate damping values accurately,
as they depend on how structures are assembled and on somewhat nebulous items like the quality
of construction. Usually, a viscoelastic model is used to represent damping, and this is because
observed behaviour aligns with this model, at least for a small range of amplitudes of motion, rather
than any identified damping mechanism. Hence, if a value for damping is required, it is sensible
to see what values have been measured on similar structures for similar amplitudes of vibration.
However, it is wise to see how the damping has been measured, because there are many ways of
determining it from experiment and some can have large potential errors [6].
Damping measurements were taken from forced vibration tests on a number of buildings in the
United Kingdom [6], and a range of damping ratios, from 1.0% to 2.5% critical, was apparent for the
translational modes of buildings where soil-structure interaction was insignificant, with the excep-
tion of 0.5% critical for one very tall building. This observation that a very tall building appears to
have lower levels of damping may be because any forced testing can only generate low amplitude
vibration, so this may be, in part, a function of nonlinear behaviour. The damping values for tor-
sional modes also seem to be slightly higher than those for the translational modes.

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 264  Understanding and Using Structural Concepts

(a) (b)

FIGURE 18.5
(a,b) Damping devices installed on the London Millennium Footbridge.

18.4.5 Reducing Footbridge Vibrations Induced

by Walking
A total of 37 viscous dampers were installed on the London Millennium Footbridge in order to
reduce the lateral vibrations of the bridge which occurred when people walked across the bridge.
The majority of these dampers are situated beneath the bridge deck, supported by transverse mem-
bers (Figure 18.5a). One end of each viscous damper is connected to the apex of a steel V brace,
known as a chevron. The apex of the chevron is supported on roller bearings that provide vertical
support but allow sliding in the other directions. The other ends of the chevron are fixed to the
neighbouring transverse members [7].
Viscous dampers were also installed in the planes between the cables and the deck at the piers
(Figure 18.5b) to provide damping of the lateral and lateral–torsional modes of vibration.

18.4.6 Reducing Floor Vibration Induced by Walking

Damping can be introduced into concrete floors by sandwiching a layer of high damping material
between the structural concrete floor and a protective concrete topping. This acts in a similar man-
ner to the demonstration model described in Section 16.3.3.
During the bending of a floor induced by footfall vibrations, energy is dissipated through the
shear deformation produced in the damping material by the relative deformations of the two con-
crete layers (Figure  18.6). The technique was originally used to damp out vibrations of aircraft
fuselage panels when the resonant frequencies of the panels were over 200 Hz.
x

Stiff material
Rubber

FIGURE 18.6
Deformation of bonded layers.

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 18  Damping in Structures  265

FIGURE 18.7
The test floor.

Response to walking at the critical rate – original floor

0.025

0.015
Acceleration (g)

0.005

–0.005

–0.015

–0.025
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Time (s)

Response to walking at the critical rate – damped floor

0.01
Acceleration (g)

0.00

–0.01
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Time (s)

FIGURE 18.8
Floor vibration induced by walking loads, with and without the damping layer.

A floor panel, 6  ×  9  m, in the steel-frame test building at the BRE Cardington Laboratory,
was selected for testing with and without damping layers (Figure 18.7). A variety of comparative
tests were conducted including heel-drop tests, forced vibration tests and walking tests at different
speeds.
Figure 18.8 shows the comparison of acceleration–time histories induced by the same individ-
ual walking on the floor panel without and with the damping layer. The benefit of the constrained
damping layer in reducing the vibration of the floor is obvious.

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 266  Understanding and Using Structural Concepts

PROBLEMS
1. The damping ratio in a structure is likely to be affected by the methods for pro-
cessing the measurements. Carry out the following exercises:
a. Digitise the acceleration and time curve shown in Figure 18.4.
b. Use Equation 18.3 to determine the damping ratio using the first two peak
values and the third and fourth peak values respectively.
c. Abstract the natural frequency and damping ratio from the digitised data.
2. A chimney has a fundamental natural frequency of 1.3 Hz and a damping ratio of
0.4% and a building has a fundamental natural frequency of 1.0 Hz and a damping
ratio of 0.5%. If the same initial disturbance is applied to each of the two struc-
tures to induce free vibration in their fundamental modes, does the vibration of
the building decay more quickly than that of the chimney? Give reasons to justify
your answer.

REFERENCES
1. Beards, C. F. Structural Vibration: Analysis and Damping, London: Arnold, 1996.
2. Clough, R. W. and Penzien, J. Dynamics of Structures, New York: McGraw-Hill,
1993.
3. Chopra, A. K. Dynamics of Structures, Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1995.
4. Ellis, B. R. and Ji, T. Dynamic testing and numerical modelling of the Cardington
steel framed building from construction to completion, The Structural Engineer,
74, 186–192, 1996.
5. Ellis, B. R., Ji, T., El-Dardiry, E. and Zheng, T. Determining the dynamic character-
istics of multi-panel floors, The Structural Engineer, 88, 18–26, 2010.
6. Ellis, B. R. Full-scale measurements of the dynamic characteristics of tall buildings
in the UK, Journal for Wind Engineering and Industrial Aerodynamics, 59, 365–382,
1996.
7. Dallard, P., Fitzpatrick, A. J., Flint, A., Le Bourva, S., Low, A., Ridsdill-Smith, R. M.
and Willford, M. The London Millennium Footbridge, The Structural Engineer, 79,
17–33, 2001.

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 CONTENTS
CHAPTER 19 19.1 Definitions and Concepts 269

19.2 Theoretical Background 269

19.3 Model Demonstrations 273

19.4 Practical Examples 277

268