Materials Today: Proceedings 21 (2020) 782–786

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Materials Today: Proceedings

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/matpr

Prediction of material discontinuity and modal analysis of aluminium

beam using finite element method
B. Gokul Kumar a, V. Velmurugan a,⇑, V. Paramasivam b, S. Thanikaikarasan c
a
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Saveetha School of Engineering, Saveetha University, Chennai, Tamil Nadu 602105, India
b
Department of Mechanical Engineering, PSNA College of Engineering and Technology, Dindigul, Tamil Nadu 624622, India
c
Division of Physics, Department of Science and Humanities, Saveetha School of Engineering, Saveetha University, Chennai, Tamil Nadu 602105, India

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: The component failure in the machine parts that affect the function during its operation is due the fatigue
Received 3 June 2019 failure and stress due to discontinuities. As an initiative of dynamic analysis of the discontinuity in the
Accepted 1 July 2019 envelope a metal beam of aluminum of the recommended size is taken and the test of the beam is carried
Available online 19 September 2019
out by fixing as a cantilever and applying the excitation using the hammer excited, and the behaviour of
the beam is recorded as the modal analysis to find the natural frequency and the different mode shapes
Keywords: have been observed using the experimental setup, and same have been verified using the ANSYS software
Cantilever beam
in which the theoretical value can be compared to the experimental value and the convergences’ of the
Discontinuity
Dynamics
results are discussed.
Modal Ó 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Natural frequency Peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of the International Conference on Recent
Convergence Trends in Nanomaterials for Energy, Environmental and Engineering Applications.

1. Introduction
Crack is the one of the most common faults that if develops,
may cause catastrophic damages in structures. Therefore, it must
be detected in the early stage when it is small. Many researchers
have reported the behaviour of beam Mechanical vibration is one
of the means through which the energy dissipates or generates,
for a finite period of time; therefore we can say that vibration is
an important phenomenon to be observed. Dunn et al. have intro-
duced closed form expressions for stress intensity for cracked I-
beams subjected to a bending moment. Gao and Herman has esti-
mated the stress intensity factor for cracked beams and pipes. Most
structural components are often subjected to cyclic loading and
fatigue fracture is the most common form of failure. Stephens
et al. [1]. In the application of engineering, structures working in
high temperature and vibration environment is prone to appear
varying degrees of structural damage, and structural damage
occurs mostly in the form of cracks. The existence of cracks will
damage the strength of the structure and reduce the safety, and
reliability of the structure. So, the dynamic analysis of the cracked
structure under high temperature has been concerned by the
⇑ Corresponding author.
E-mail address: profvel@gmail.com (V. Velmurugan).
scholars. In the. modal analysis of the simply supported steel with
multiple cracks, the variation of the mechanical properties and the
temperature load caused by the temperature rising is considered,
and the torsion springs without mass are used to replace the trans-
verse cracks, then the transfer matrix method is used to calculate
the natural frequencies of the cracked simply supported steel
beam. The numerical results of Vibration analysis of a cantilever
beam with load at the tip and simply supported beam with the
center load. Modal analysis of a cantilever beam and simply sup-
ported beam was carried out in ANSYS for different materials.
The results were compared and it was found that for the same
cross-section and for both configurations (i.e. cantilever and simply
supported) structural steel gives higher natural frequencies [2].
The free vibration analysis of different materials under surface
cracks to estimate the effect of cracks on damping ratio and natural
frequency. All the values will find with the help of Vibscanner and
Omnitrend software under a free vibration test [3]. Using
Lagranges equations with the trial functions in the polynomial
form and satisfying the constraint conditions by the use of
Lagrange multipliers is a nice way for studying the free vibration
characteristics of the beams. In this study, the system equations
are solved by Differential Quadratic Method, which is a succeeding
and easy transformation technique. By solving the algebraic func-
tions set which are the transforms of differential equations, natural

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.matpr.2019.07.243
2214-7853/Ó 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of the International Conference on Recent Trends in Nanomaterials for Energy, Environmental and Engineering
Applications.
 B. Gokul Kumar et al. / Materials Today: Proceedings 21 (2020) 782–786
frequencies are obtained. The results are tabulated and compared
with the former studies and a great accuracy to exact results is
obtained [4]. First, the crack growth is predicted analytically by
numerically integrating the Paris–Walker equation. Then, three-
point bending tests are performed to obtain edge transverse
cracks; two original control procedures enable the tests to be
traced, the results of which are compared with the numerical pre-
dictions. Second, free vibrations of undamaged and cracked can-
tilever beams are excited by hammer impact. The experimental
results are compared with the numerical solutions of a finite ele-
ment model including local flexibility increase at crack opening.
The differences between the dynamic behaviours of the intact,
and cracked beams regarding frequency and damping allow the
damage to be detected. Even if this is a ‘linear’ method, it seems
to enable the crack presence to be detected and to account for
the so-called ‘breathing’ crack. These features open the door to
future developments towards nonlinear detection methods [5]
(see Figs. 1–7 and Table 1).
2. Crack analysis techniques
The natural frequencies of this beam has been calculated using
the new developed model in conjunction with the Galerkin projec-
tion method. The crack has been modeled as a continuous distur-
bance function in displacement field which could be obtained
from fracture mechanics. Some results show that the natural fre-
quencies of a cracked beam reduce by increasing crack depth.
There is an excellent agreement between the theoretically calcu-
lated natural frequencies and those obtained using the finite ele-
ment method [6]. The natural frequency of a simply supported
beam with a triangular crack, be investigated numerically by finite
element method using of FE analysis software ANSYS. Different
crack location effects are considered and the results are compared
with that of the simply supported beam without crack. The results
obtained from the vibration analysis of the beam show that the
lowest fundamental frequency of the beam without crack is higher
than the lowest frequency obtained for beam with cracks [7].
Firstly, theoretical calculations had being done to obtain first three
natural frequencies by solving the Euler equation for un-crack
beam and cracked beam considering various crack positions for
the beam. Secondly, static and modal analysis of un-crack and
crack beam is performed to find deflection and natural frequencies
of beam. Finally, the results are presented in tabular form to show
the effect of crack in change of deflection and lower natural fre-
quencies. ANSYS software was used for the analysis of un-crack
and crack beam [8]. The dynamic characteristics of beam for struc-
tural steel and aluminum. As the crack location increases from
fixed end the natural frequency increases up to the center of beam
and after it decreases. The natural frequency of beam when crack
Fig. 1. Experimental setup of beam structure.
783
at 100 mm location is same as that of when crack at 400 mm loca-
tion which is 25.942 Hz at 100 mm and 25.947 Hz at 400 mm for
Aluminium beam. And for structural steel having the natural fre-
quency 25.895 Hz at 100 mm which is nearly same to 26.064 Hz
at 400 mm [9] study on the free vibration of Euler-Bernoulli beam
containing open edge transverse cracks. In this study, two springs
steel materials (EN 8 and EN 47) are considered. The effect of the
top side cracks and bottom side cracks on the natural frequency
of a cantilever beam is discussed. The natural frequency of a
cracked case cantilever beam is investigated numerically using FE
analysis software ANSYS. Experimental work is done by using
DeweFRF to investigate the natural frequency of cracked beams
for strong validation of the numerical results. The results of this
study suggest that the average value of natural frequencies for all
top side cracked beams are identical to the average value of natural
frequency for all bottom side cracked beams [10].
This paper focuses on the numerical analysis and experimental
analysis of transverse vibration of fixed free beam and investigates
the mode shape frequency. All the frequency values are analyzed
with the numerical approach method by using ANSYS finite ele-
ment package has been used. The numerical results are in good
agreement with the experimental tests results [11]. Cantilever
beam model is sensitive to the crack location, crack depth and
vibration modes. The crack depth and natural frequency are inver-
sely proportional to each other while the crack location is kept con-
stant. While the crack depth keeping constant natural frequency
decreases with increase in crack location from the cantilever end
[12]. The modal analysis has been carried out on cantilever with
and without crack and observed the influence of crack on the beam
by using vibration and mode shapes analysis, in this transverse
open crack as considered as damage in the beam. Evaluation the
natural frequencies and their corresponding mode shapes for dif-
ferent crack parameters (depths and locations) of the cantilever
beam has been done by commercially available ANSYS software.
Also, the experimental work is done by using Universal Vibration
Machine with different crack depth; obtained experimental results
are validated with simulation results, which give satisfactory
results [13].
3. Crack measuring sensors and devices
The Type 8774A. . . and 8776A. . . are low impedance, voltage
mode accelerometers designed for vibration measurement in sin-
gle or multichannel applications. The unique connector design is
rugged and maintains excellent integrity with repeated connec-
tions. The ceramic sensing element components are carefully
designed to provide the level of performance most often required
in general purpose vibration measurements. These accelerometers
provide 2,5 mg threshold suitable for use in low level measure-
ment applications. The wide bandwidth and rugged construction
are ideal for impact and vibration related applications including
condition monitoring and vehicle testing. The load cells are ideally
suited for force application where high sensitivity, high rigidity
and fast response are required. Conventional load cell are capable
of measuring compression and tension forces. They can be used
for modal analysis, impact testing, and machine tool measure-
ments. Impact hammer range: 250ibf Impact hammer’s sensitivity
with unit: 20mv/g.
(i) Universal Analog Inputs: Instrument can accept voltage
and full bridge signals natively as well as IEPE, charge, ther-
mocouples, half bridge, quarter bridge, RTD, current, resis-
tance and LVDT signals with the use of DSI adapters. The
sampling rate is up to 200 kS/s per channel, sigma-delta
with 24-bit ADC.
784 B. Gokul Kumar et al. / Materials Today: Proceedings 21 (2020) 782–786

Fig. 2. Modal graph before hole-frequency Vs TF. 1st Natural Frequency = 62.256 Hz; 2nd Natural Frequency = 382 Hz.

Fig. 3. Damping values before the hole in the beam.

Fig. 4. Modal test shows after hole Frequency Vs TF. 1st Natural Frequency = 62.256 Hz; 2nd Natural Frequency = 378 Hz.

(ii) Sensor Power Supply: Each channel provides power for sen-
sor excitation. Counter/Encoder/Digital Inputs: Each chan-
nel is capable of 3x digital inputs, 1x event counter,
encoder, period, pulse-width, duty-cycle. Precise frequency
and angle measurement use patented SUPERCOUNTERÒ
technology.
DEWESoft is measurement software which can acquire data
from much different measurement hardware and enables the user
to do processing, storage and analysis in a simple way. The main
idea of Dewesoft is to have two modes of operation: Acquisition
and Analysis. The main difference is that Acquisition part works
with a real hardware while Analysis works with stored file. But
same math processing and visualization can be applied either dur-
ing measurement or also on stored files. Therefore the parts of the
manual describing the Measurement are valid also for analysis.
4. Experimental methodology
The problem involves calculation of natural frequencies and
mode shapes for beam without a hole and with holes of different
diameter. The results calculated experimentally are validated with
the results obtained by simulation analysis. In this project the spin-
dle rod is considered as a beam structure. The defects are identified
using the FFT Analyzer. The Modal Analysis is taken for both the
normal & Holed beam structures. The beam modelling is done
using CREO 3.0. The FEM analysis is done using the Ansys Software
 B. Gokul Kumar et al. / Materials Today: Proceedings 21 (2020) 782–786 785

Fig. 5. Damping values for beam with holes.

Fig. 6. Mode shape shows the second natural frequency.

Fig. 7. Mode shapes showing first natural frequency with holes.

Table 1
Technical specification o the specimen.
S.No Description
1 Base Length
2 Height
3 Thickness
4 Material
& the readings are compared with experimental values. The mate-
rial selected for this experimental investigation of modal charac-
teristics of a beam with enveloped discontinuities of a material is
Aluminium. Because of the aluminum has high amount of tensile
Features strength, and it has high resistance. Physical parameters affecting
500 mm Dynamic characteristics of cracked structures: Usually the physical
300 mm dimensions, boundary conditions, the material properties of the
25 mm
structure play important role for the determination of its dynamic
Stainless Steel
response. Their vibrations cause changes in dynamic characteris-
786 B. Gokul Kumar et al. / Materials Today: Proceedings 21 (2020) 782–786
Table 2
The mode and frequency values of beam without hole.
Mode No. Frequency
1 68.82
2 227.06
3 430.45
4 1201.8
5 1388.1
6 1551.3
Table 3
The mode and frequency value of beam with holes.
Mode No. Frequency
1 71.89
2 238.2
3 421.7
4 1133.1
5 136.8
6 1531.1
Table 4
Comparisons of beam with hole and without hole showing frequency for different
modes.
S.No Specimen Experimental Simulation
Frequency value Frequency Value
(Hz) (Hz)
Mode 1 Mode 2 Mode 1 Mode 2
1 Beam without Hole 62.256 382 68.826 430.45
2 Beam with Hole 62.256 378 70.70 421
tics of structures. In addition to this presence of a crack in struc-
tures modifies its dynamic behavior. The following aspects of the
crack greatly influence the dynamic response of the structure.
(i) The position of crack (ii) The depth of crack (iii) The orienta-
tion of crack (iv) The number of cracks
Modal analysis is the study of the dynamic properties of struc-
tures under vibration excitation. The goal of modal analysis in
structural mechanics is to determine the natural mode shapes
and frequencies of an object or structure during free vibration.
An alternative approach is the system-analysis technique in which
a dual-channel FFT analyzer can be used to measure the ratio of the
response to a measured input force. The frequency response func-
tion (FRF) measurement removes the force spectrum from the data
and describes the inherent structural response between the mea-
surement points. From a set of FRF measurements made at defined
points on a structure, we can begin to build up a picture of its
response.
5. Results and discussion
The mode shapes and the natural frequency of the beam with-
out the discontinuity shows that when the beam is subject to the
impact load the beam is subjected to vibrate in all the three direc-
tion where as the vertical direction of the vibration is more due to
the excitation and since the aluminium steel composites has a bet-
ter shock absorbing capacity when compared to the original alu-
minium and the mechanical properties of the specimen is
checked for the damping properties which arrest the vibration
and avoids the damage. The results of the beams frequency is tab-
ulated and shown in Table 2 and shows that there is a gradual
increase in with respect to the subsequent mode shapes. The same
procedure is carried out and the values of the natural frequency
and the mode shapes are show in the Table 3 and the comparison
of the both the cases are shown in Table 4 and from the compar-
isons the beam with the holes has more amount of stress concen-
tration and vibration when compared to the beam without the
holes and there is weight reduction in the beam but the vibration
is comparatively more and which is compared with the finite ele-
ment analysis method ANSYS and the convergence shows that the
predicted values are nearer to the experimental values. Maximum
bending frequency is known as natural frequency. Natural fre-
quency is the frequency at which a system tends to oscillate in
the absence of any driving or damping force. Free vibrations of
any elastic body are called as natural vibration. For Aluminium
Length = 27 cm; Width = 2.5 cm; Depth = 0.5 cm; Mass den-
sity = 2700 kg/m3; Modulus of elasticity = 69–70 Gpa.
6. Conclusions
The main thrust of the work is towards the understanding of the
vibration behaviour of plates with diff conditions for beam in static
condition. Analysis of vibration characteristics of circular plates
with free boundary condition but having different numbers of
holes are done with the FEM analysis and the results are predicted.
Depending on the various conditions the results are concluded.
Conclusion on various specimens for different conditions is
obtained as, For Variable No. of Holes in beam; Natural frequency
decreases if holes are added to the beam. For Variable diameter
of Holes in beam, As the diameter of the holes is changed the nat-
ural frequency is reduced.
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