Special Issue Article

Journal of Intelligent Material Systems

and Structures
1–16
Principle, modeling, and control of a Ó The Author(s) 2016
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DOI: 10.1177/1045389X16672731

dynamic vibration absorber for jim.sagepub.com

powertrain mount systems of

automobiles

Fu-Long Xin, Xian-Xu Bai and Li-Jun Qian

Abstract
This article proposes and validates the principle of a new magnetorheological elastomer (MRE) dynamic vibration
absorber (DVA) for powertrain mount systems of automobiles. The MRE DVA consists of a vibration absorption unit
and a passive vibration isolation unit. The vibration absorption unit composed of a magnetic conductor, a shearing
sleeve, a bobbin core, an electromagnetic coil, and a circular cylindrical MRE is utilized to absorb the vibration
energy, and the passive vibration isolation unit is used to support the powertrain. The finite element method is
employed to validate the electromagnetic circuit of the MRE DVA and obtain the electromagnetic characteristics.
The theoretical frequency-shift principle is analyzed via the established constitutive equations of the circular cylindri-
cal MRE In order to demonstrate how the parameters of the MRE influence the vibration attenuation performance,
the MRE DVA is applied to a powertrain mount system to replace the conventional passive mount. The frequency-
shift property of the vibration absorption unit and the vibration attenuation performance of the MRE DVA on the
powertrain mount system are experimentally tested. To validate and improve the vibration attenuation performance
for the semi-active powertrain mount systems, an optimal variable step algorithm is proposed for the MRE DVA and
numerical experiments are carried out.

Keywords
Magnetorheological elastomer, dynamic vibration absorber, constitutive equation, optimal variable step algorithm, power-
train mount system

Introduction shortens service lifetime of the engines and related

Automobile powertrains composed of an engine, trans-
mission, and clutch are one of the main vibration
sources in automobiles (Adiguna et al., 2003). In order
to isolate the vibration transmitting from powertrain to
body, engine mounts are installed between powertrain
and body. The schematic representation of a conven-
tional powertrain mount system with three mounts is
presented in Figure 1. As can be seen from Figure 1,
since the engine mounts are required to support the
powertrain, the mounts are designed with large stiff-
ness, which would lead to the high natural frequency of
the powertrain mount system. As the engine’s vibration
frequency, especially at idle speed, approaches to the
natural frequency of the powertrain mount system, the
body would vibrate with amplified amplitude, which
not only deteriorates the noise, vibration, and harsh-
ness (NVH) performance of the automobiles but also
components (Hu and Singh, 2012; Liette et al., 2014;
Shangguan, 2009).
In engineering applications, dynamic vibration
absorbers (DVAs) are often employed for the vibration
attenuation systems. DVAs are composed of oscillator,
elastic element, and damping element. DVAs with a
controllable natural frequency range are widely devel-
oped to meet the requirements of the shift-frequency
Laboratory for Adaptive Structures and Intelligent Systems (LASIS),
Department of Vehicle Engineering, Hefei University of Technology, Hefei,
China
Corresponding author:
Xian-Xu Bai, Laboratory for Adaptive Structures and Intelligent Systems
(LASIS), Department of Vehicle Engineering, Hefei University of
Technology, Hefei 230009, China.
Email: bai@hfut.edu.cn

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2 Journal of Intelligent Material Systems and Structures
Figure 1. The schematic representation of a conventional
powertrain mount system with three mounts.
vibration absorption. The elastic elements of DVAs are
often synthesized using smart materials, such as magne-
torheological (MR) materials, electrorheological (ER)
materials, and piezoelectric ceramics (Anh and Nguyen,
2016; Davis and Lesieutre, 2000; Nambu et al., 2014;
Thompson, 1981). Magnetorheological elastomers
(MREs) are one kind of MR materials based on non-
magnetic elastic matrices filled with micro-sized magne-
tizable particles (Jolly et al., 1998). Their mechanical
parameters, such as shear storage modulus and shear
loss modulus, can be controlled rapidly, continuously,
and reversibly by applying external magnetic fields.
MREs do not leak as liquids, the embedded magnetiz-
able particles do not settle down, and MREs can toler-
ate large deformations in tension, compression, and
shear. These specific characteristics enable MREs to be
used as the elastic element of DVAs and have received
increasing attention in decades (Davis, 1999; Deng
et al., 2006; Eem et al., 2012; Gordaninejad et al., 2012;
Li et al., 2014; Xing et al., 2016; Yang et al., 2015).
In recent years, literature on MRE DVAs and the
corresponding control algorithms can be found. Ginder
et al. (2001) proposed an MRE DVA working in shear
mode. It showed that the natural frequency could shift
from around 500 Hz to above 600 Hz when the applied
magnetic flux density tuned from 0 to 0.56 T. Lerner
and Cunefare (2008) proposed three kinds of working
modes for MRE DVAs, that is, shear mode, longitudi-
nal mode, and squeeze mode. The natural frequency of
a new bottom-up MRE DVA designed by Deng and
Gong (2008) can be tuned from 27.5 to 40 Hz with a
45% increase in frequency shift. Zhang and Li (2009)
developed an MRE DVA using two anisotropic MREs,
and the natural frequency of the proposed MRE DVA
can be changed from 35 to 90 Hz. To enlarge the
frequency-shift range of the MRE DVA, Ni et al. (2009)
designed an MRE DVA working in shear–squeeze-com-
bined mode by installing a piezoelectric actuator on a
movable arm to apply controllable compressive load. For
automobiles’ vibration attenuation, Hoang et al. (2013)
developed a DVA for the transmission systems, which
exhibited significant vibration attenuation performance on
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the transmission’s vibration. To reduce axial vibration of
ship shafting, Yang et al. (2014) designed an axial MRE
DVA working in shear mode, the theoretical analysis of
frequency-shift property was investigated, and the vibra-
tion absorption capacity was validated.
On the control of MRE DVA, Zhang and Li (2009)
proposed a real-time control strategy, and the numeri-
cal simulation results indicated that the vibration
attenuation performance of MRE DVA can be
improved significantly. Based on the characteristics of
the designed active–adaptive DVA, Liao et al. (2011)
developed a novel algorithm, and the experimental
results showed that the algorithm can rapidly suppress
the vibration. Kim et al. (2011) fitted the mathematical
expression between the natural frequency of MRE
DVA and the external magnetic flux intensity. The
desired magnetic flux intensity can be calculated
with the detected excitation frequency, and the simula-
tion results exhibited good vibration attenuation per-
formance. With the consideration of the nonlinear
characteristics of MREs, Liao et al. (2014) proposed a
phase-based control algorithm, and the vibration
attenuation performance was also validated. Qian et al.
(in press) proposed a state observation-based control
algorithm with fuzzy steps for MRE DVA, and the
simulation results show that the proposed algorithm
could attenuate the vibration rapidly, effectively, and
robustly. In general, most of these proposed MRE
DVA structure and the control algorithms can be effec-
tively applied for the relevant engineering applications.
However, the conventional DVAs could not support
the powertrain and an extra space is needed for instal-
lation, which would limit the application of DVAs on
powertrain mount systems. When applying MRE DVA
to powertrain mount system, not only the methods to
realize the vibration attenuation should be considered
but also the vertical support of powertrain and the lim-
itation of the installation space should be taken into
account. The structural optimization and related semi-
active vibration control strategy are worth of further
study.
For the application of powertrain mount systems,
this article proposes a novel MRE DVA which not only
can support the powertrain but also can attenuate the
vibration. The structural principle of the MRE DVA is
validated using finite element method. The theoretical
frequency-shift principle is analyzed based on the
magneto-elastic theory. The 2-degree-of-freedom
dynamic model for the semi-active powertrain mount
system based on the MRE DVA is derived. The
frequency-shift property and the vibration attenuation
performance of the MRE DVA are tested on the built
test rigs. An optimal variable step algorithm for the
MRE DVA is proposed to realize optimal vibration
attenuation for the semi-active powertrain mount
system.
Xin et al.
MRE DVA
Designing an MRE DVA with appropriate perfor-
mance is the premise and the key to attenuate the vibra-
tion of powertrain mount systems. In the light of the
characteristics of powertrain mount systems, a new
MRE DVA with a simple but effective structure is
designed. The electromagnetic circuit of the MRE
DVA is validated with the finite element method, and
the corresponding electromagnetic characteristics are
obtained. Based on the magneto-elastic theory, the the-
oretical frequency-shift principle is analyzed and dis-
cussed by establishing the constitutive relations of the
circular cylindrical MRE.
Structural principle
Figure 2(a) and (b) presents the configuration of the
proposed MRE DVA. Observing Figure 2(a), the MRE
DVA is composed of a semi-active vibration absorption
unit and a passive vibration isolation unit. The vibra-
tion absorption unit is composed of a magnetic conduc-
tor, a shearing sleeve, a bobbin core, an electromagnetic
coil winding, and a circular cylindrical MRE vulcanized
between the shearing sleeve and the bobbin core. The
vibration isolation unit is composed of a strut, a rubber
spring, an upper housing, and a lower housing, as pre-
sented in Figure 2(a). The magnetic conductor, the bob-
bin core, and the electromagnetic coil are supported on
the shearing sleeve through the MRE. The magnetic
conductor and the bobbin core are connected by a bolt,
and the shearing sleeve is fixed to the lower housing.
The outer surface of the shearing sleeve is in clearance
fit with the inner surface of the magnetic conductor,
(a)
Figure 2. The configuration of the MRE DVA: (a) the 3D drawing and (b) the schematic representation.
Downloaded from jim.sagepub.com at University of Otago Library on November 3, 2016
3
and the magnetic conductor can move vertically along
the shearing sleeve. The MRE works in pure shear
mode, and the magnetic conductor, the bobbin core,
and the electromagnetic coil form the dynamic mass of
the MRE DVA together.
The main magnetic flux is formed by the magnetic
conductor, the bobbin core, the MRE, and the shearing
sleeve, as can be seen from Figure 2(a). The magnetic
field starts from the bobbin core and passes through the
magnetic conductor, the shearing sleeve, and the MRE
and then forms a closed loop. To ensure the closed prop-
erty of the magnetic circuit and increase the magnetic flux
intensity through the MRE, the magnetic conductor, the
bobbin core, and the shearing sleeve are made of pure
iron (Type: DT4) with high magnetic permeability. When
the MRE DVA is installed into the powertrain mount
system, the vibration isolation unit is used to support the
powertrain and works as a passive vibration isolator.
The vibration absorption unit is utilized to absorb the
vibration energy generated by the powertrain. When the
excitation frequency imposed on the powertrain mount
system changes, the stiffness of the MRE as well as the
natural frequency of the MRE DVA can be tuned by
adapting the applied current, and the vibration of the
powertrain mount system can be attenuated correspond-
ingly. Besides, the key functional structure (i.e. the MRE)
and the rubber spring of the proposed MRE DVA are
decoupled, which is beneficial to the vibration attenua-
tion and practical applications on automobiles.
Based on the structural principle of the MRE DVA,
the optimal parameters of the electromagnetic circuit
can be obtained according to Kirchoff’s law (Bai et al.,
2015). Figure 2(b) presents the schematic representation
of the MRE DVA and the parameters are listed in
(b)
4 Journal of Intelligent Material Systems and Structures

Table 1. The structural parameters of the MRE DVA.

Symbol Parameter Value

d1 Diameter of the bobbin core 40 mm

d2 Inner diameter of the MRE 56 mm
d3 Outer diameter of the MRE 68 mm
d4 Outer diameter of the 76 mm
shearing sleeve
d5 Outer diameter of the 96 mm
magnetic conductor
h1 Length of the electromagnetic 60 mm
coil winding
h2 Length of the bobbin core 70 mm
h3 Thickness of the magnetic 10 mm
conductor
m0 Permeability of vacuum 4p 3 1027 Wb/A
mr1 Permeability of the DT4 2000 Figure 4. Magnetic flux intensity distribution in the MRE gap
mr2 Permeability of the MRE 3.2 perpendicular to the magnetic circuit.

that the designed MRE DVA can satisfy the practical

demands.

Figure 3. Magnetic flux lines through the MRE DVA.
Table 1. The finite element method is employed to vali-
date the effectiveness of the MRE DVA for applica-
tions. When the maximum current p2 A is applied to
the electromagnetic coil, the magnetic flux lines through
the MRE DVA is shown in Figure 3. It can be seen
from Figure 3 that the magnetic flux lines can form a
closed loop and the magnetic leakage is negligible.
Figure 4 presents the magnetic flux intensity distri-
bution in the MRE gap perpendicular to the magnetic
circuit. As shown in Figure 4, the magnetic flux inten-
sity distribution in the MRE gap is uniform. The mag-
netic flux intensities at the end and the middle of the
MRE are 0.66 and 0.68 T, respectively. The magnetic
flux intensities at the two ends are slightly less than
that in the middle, which results from the magnetic
leakage phenomenon at the end of the MRE (Wang
and Bai, 2011), and the simulation results illustrate
Frequency-shift property
As shown in Figures 3 and 4, a circular cylindrical
MRE is utilized by the proposed MRE DVA, and the
magnetic field in the MRE distributes along the radial
direction. When preparing the MRE, if an anisotropic
MRE (cured with the action of an external magnetic
field) is adopted, the external magnetic field should be
a radial one as well, which is very difficult to realize
during the curing process. To simplify the preparing
process of the MRE, an isotropic MRE (cured without
the activation of an external magnetic field) is adopted.
When the MRE DVA is installed into the power-
train mount system, the controller can adjust the
applied current of the MRE DVA to realize rapid and
effective vibration attenuation, only if an accurate
frequency-shift model (i.e. dynamic mechanical model
of the MRE) is obtained. The natural frequency of the
MRE DVA (i.e. the natural frequency of the vibration
absorption unit) can be expressed as
sffiffiffiffiffiffi
ka
va = ð1Þ
ma
where ka is the stiffness of the MRE, and ma is the
dynamic mass of the MRE DVA.
In recent years, the mechanism researches on the
anisotropic MREs have been well developed, and the
proposed dipole models based on the magnetic field
energy between two adjacent particles are the most
widely accepted models (Dang et al. 2006; Davis, 1999;
Gong, 2006; Jolly et al., 1998; Shen et al., 2004; Yang
et al., 2015; Zhang et al., 2008). However, for the iso-
tropic MREs, the dipole models are invalid since the
magnetizable particles distribute randomly in the
matrix. Based on the magneto-elastic theory, the

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Xin et al. 5

where b = FFT is the left Cauchy–Green deformation

tensor, and F is the deformation gradient, I denotes the
identity tensor, p is a Lagrange multiplier, and a1 and
a2 are functions of its principal invariants that are
defined by invariants I1 , I2 , and I3 . I1 , I2 , and I3 are
determined by
8
>
< I1 ðhbÞ = trb
 i
Figure 5. The model of a fan-shaped microelement of I2 ðbÞ = 12 ðtrbÞ2  tr b2 ð4Þ
>
:
isotropic MRE in cylindrical coordinate. I3 ðbÞ = detb = 1

For isotropic MREs, a1 and a2 can also be expressed

macroscopic phenomenological models have been as
developed by introducing magneto-elastic free energy
function to describe the constructive relations of MREs a1 = 2ðW1 + I1 W2 Þ ð5aÞ
(Bustamante et al., 2007; Castañeda and Galipeau, a2 =  2W2 ð5bÞ
2011; Danas et al., 2012; Dorfmann and Ogden, 2003;
2
Norouzi et al., 2015). In this study, the constitutive where W (I1 , I2 , jBj ) is a strain–energy function per unit
relations for the circular isotropic MRE are employed reference volume with an external magnetic field, and
to theoretically analyze the frequency-shift principle of W1 and W2 indicate partial differentiation with respect
the MRE under the activation of an external magnetic to the invariants I1 and I2 , respectively.
field. According to the working principle of the proposed
Figure 5 presents the model of a fan-shaped micro MRE DVA, the MRE works under an axial shear
element of isotropic MRE in cylindrical coordinate. As deformation and the deformation gradient F can be
shown in Figure 5, the black balls refer to the magne- expressed as
tizable particles and they distribute randomly in the 2 3
matrix. O–XYZ is the Cartesian coordinate and O– 1 0 0
RYZ is the cylindrical coordinate; r, u, and z are the F=40 1 05 ð6Þ
three directions of the cylindrical coordinates; dz, dr, g 0 1
rdu, and (r + dr)du are the side lengths of the microele- where g = e0 (r) and e(r) is the deformation of the MRE
ment; drdz, rdudr, (r + dr)dudr, and (r + (1=2)dr)drdu in axial direction. Then, I1 = I2 = 3 + g 2 can be
are the surface areas of the microelement. The MRE is obtained.
contained within the annular region a  r  b (a and b The strain–energy function W (I1 , I2 , jBj2 ) can be sim-
are the inner radius and outer radius of the MRE, plified as W (g, jBj2 ) (i.e. W (g, jBj2 ) = W (I1 , I2 , jBj2 )).
respectively). Equation (3) can be simplified as follows (Dorfmann
Assuming that the electric polarization is negligible and Ogden, 2003)
and there are no mechanical body forces, Maxwell’s
equations and mechanical balance equations for the s =  pI + 2W1 b + 2ðI1  3ÞW2 eu  eu ð7aÞ
MRE under the purely isothermal situation can be sim- 2 3
plified as (Castañeda and Galipeau, 2011) 1 0 g
b=40 1 0 5 ð7bÞ
divB = 0 ð2aÞ g 0 1 + g2
1 where eu is the unit basis vector in the u direction, and
divs + kgradðB  BÞ = 0 ð2bÞ
2  denotes the tensor product. Equation (2) can be sim-
plified as
where s is the Cauchy stress tensor, B is the magnetic
flux intensity, and k is a function of magnetic saturation dðrBr Þ
(Jolly et al., 1998). =0 ð8aÞ
dr
As a purely elastic incompressible material, based on
the Rivlin–Ericksen representation theorem, the d
ðrsrz Þ = 0 ð8bÞ
Cauchy stress tensor for MREs without external mag- dr
netic field can be expressed as (Castañeda and where Br is the radial component of B, and srz is the
Galipeau, 2011) component in axial of s.
For the MRE applied in the proposed MRE DVA,
s =  pI + a1 b + a2 b2 ð3Þ Br and srz can be calculated according to equation (8)

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6 Journal of Intelligent Material Systems and Structures

Bb b " 1=2 #1=2

Br = ð9aÞ t 4 t 2
r mðbÞ = +1  ð14cÞ
16 4
tb
srz = Wg = ð9bÞ
r By the same principle, when l =  1=2, the solution
is
where Bb is the value of Br on the boundary r = b, t is
the value of srz on the boundary r = b, and the sub-     
1 1 + nðbÞ 1 1 + nðaÞ
script g of W indicates partial differentiation with d = t nðbÞ  nðaÞ + log  log
2 1  nðbÞ 2 1  nðaÞ
respect to g.
Without any electromagnetic coupling, the axial ð15aÞ
shear of MRE can be described by the strain–energy " #1=2
pffiffiffi 1
function defined by Jiang and Ogden (2000) nð aÞ = 2 ð15bÞ
1=2
ð1 + 2t 2 h2 Þ + 1
G G " #1=2
W= ðI1  1Þ1l  ð10Þ pffiffiffi
21l ð1  lÞ 1l 1
nð bÞ = 2 1=2
ð15cÞ
ð1 + 2t 2 Þ + 1
where l(l  1=2) is a dimensionless material parameter,
and G is the shear storage modulus of the MRE. In this when l = 1=2 (i.e. the ultimate property), the solution
case, equation (9b) becomes is
 l tb h
pffiffiffi 
pffiffiffi i
srz = Wg = Gg 2 + g2 2l = ð11Þ d = t cosh1 2=t  cosh1 2=ht ð16Þ
r
According to equation (11), its solutions (i.e. the when l = 0 (i.e. the neo-Hookean strain energy prop-
relationship between t and g) depends on the value of erty), the solution is
l. In terms of the working principle of the MRE DVA,
the inner boundary of the MRE can be equivalent to d = t log h ð17Þ
being held fixed and the outer boundary being applied The stiffness of the MRE is defined as
by a preloaded deformation d. The boundary condi-
tions can be set as follows 2pbht
ka = ð18Þ
 d
e ð aÞ = 0
ð12Þ where h is the thickness of the MRE.
e ð bÞ = d
According to equations (14) to (18), it can be found
For illustration, l = 1=4 is taken, for example, and that when l = 0, d and t has a linear relationship, and
by utilizing equations (9) to (12), the solution is ka is a constant correspondingly. However, when l 6¼ 0,
     d has a nonlinear relationship with t . That is to say, ka
tb 1 + mðrÞ 1 + m ð aÞ 2 changes with d. To illustrate the relationship between ka
d= log  log 
2G 1  mðrÞ 1  mðaÞ mðrÞ and d and l, the dimensionless stiffness ka is defined by

2
ka = t logh
1 1
+  2tan mðrÞ + 2tan mðaÞ ð13aÞ ð19Þ
mðaÞ d
" 1=2 #1=2
t 4 b4 t 2 b2 Figure 6 presents the relationship between ka and d
mðrÞ = +1  2 2 ð13bÞ under different values of l. As can be seen from Figure 6,
16r4 G4 4r G
the whole plane is divided into three regions by l = 1=2
The dimensionless notations d = d=b, t = t=G, and and l = 0 (i.e. regions S1, S2, and S3), and ka increases
h = b=a are applied; then, equation (13) can be rewrit- with the decrease of l. Because l  1=2, the curve when
ten as follows l = 1=2 is the boundary that ka can achieve. Region S1 is
the unreachable region, which means, limited by the
     intrinsic material property, ka cannot get smaller than a
1 1 + m ð bÞ 1 + mðaÞ
d = t log  log specific value under a specific deformation. Region S2 is
2 1  mðbÞ 1  mðaÞ
corresponding to 0\l  1=2, ka decreases with the
2 2 increase of d in this region. For example, when l = 1=4,
 +  2tan1 mðbÞ + 2tan1 mðaÞ ð14aÞ
mðbÞ mðaÞ as can be seen from the pink dotted line, when d is
" 1=2 #1=2 around 0.28, ka decreases by 20% and the decrease speed
t 4 h4 t 2 h2 becomes faster with the increase of d. Region S3 is corre-
mðaÞ = +1  ð14bÞ
16 4 sponding to l  0, and ka increases with the increase of d

in this region. When l =  1=2, it can be seen from the

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Xin et al. 7

trends, and ka is lower than G.

 In addition, the differ-
 
ence between ka and G increases with the increase of d. 

For the same reason, when l =  1=2, ka is greater
than G, and the difference increases with the increase of

d (not shown in the figure). That is to say, in the practi-
cal application, even though the material characteris-
tics, such as the changing trend of G with the external
magnetic field, can be tested by a rheometer or other
relevant equipment, the characteristics of ka is still unas-
certainable because l is unknown. In consequence, the
circular cylindrical MRE exhibits nonlinear stiffness
characteristics with the changing of the deformation,
which results in the nonlinear natural frequency charac-
teristics of the MRE DVA.
Figure 6. The relationship between ka and d under different
values of l.
Modeling of powertrain mount system
using MRE DVA
Based on the frequency-shift property of the proposed
MRE DVA, the dynamic model of powertrain mount
system with the MRE DVA is established to analyze
the vibration characteristics of the powertrain mount
system. During driving, the main external excitation of
the powertrain mount systems of automobiles is the
inertia force of the engines due to the reciprocating
movement of the pistons. The main vibration of power-
train mount system is the movement in vertical direc-
tion. Thence, the powertrain mount system with the
 under different proposed MRE DVA can be simplified to a 2-degree-
Figure 7. The comparison between ka and G
of-freedom vibration system. The dynamic model of
values of Br when l = 1=4.
the powertrain mount system is shown in Figure 8, and
the kinematical equation can be expressed as
green dot–dash line, ka increases by 20% when d is   ::  
ma 0 xa ca ca x_ a
around 0.16 and the increase speed becomes faster with :: +
 0 mp xp ca ca + cp x_ p
the increase of d.   
When the MRE is exposed to an external magnetic ka ka xa 0
+ = ð22Þ
field, G increases with the strengthening of the magnetic ka ka + kp xp F0 cos vt
flux intensity. G is simplified to have a simple constitu- where mp is the mass of the powertrain; xa and xp are
tive function given by (Dorfmann and Ogden, 2003) the displacement of the dynamic mass of the MRE
DVA and the displacement of the powertrain, respec-
G = G0 + G1 B2r ð20Þ tively; ca is the damping of the MRE; kp and cp are the
where G0 is the zero-field shear storage modulus, and stiffness and damping of the rubber spring of the MRE
 is
G1 is the MR effect factor of G. The dimensionless G DVA, respectively; F0 is the amplitude of the excitation
defined by force; and v is the excitation frequency of the power-
train. The displacement of powertrain mount system
can be obtained from equation (22)
 = G = 1 + m1 B2
G ð21Þ
r
G0  
xa F0 ka + jca v
= ð23Þ
where m1 = G1 =G0 is the relative MR effect factor of G. xp detZ ka  ma v2 + jca v
When l = 1=4, according to equations (19) and (21),
the values of 
ka and G under different values of Br can where detZ is determinant of matrix Z, and Z is the dis-
be calculated, and the comparison between ka and G  is placement impedance matrix of the powertrain mount
presented in Figure 7. system
As can be seen from Figure 7, both ka and G increase 
ka  ma v2 + jca v kp + jca v 
with Br , which indicates that the external magnetic field Z=
ka + jca v ka + kp  mp v2 + j ca + cp v
can strengthen the stiffness of the MRE. However, with
 ka and G
the increase of d,  exhibit different changing ð24Þ

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8 Journal of Intelligent Material Systems and Structures

Fp
c= ð26bÞ
F0

where xp0 is the displacement of the passive mount sys-

tem, that is, the displacement of the powertrain in the
condition of the rubber spring working alone; and Fp is
the force transmitting from the powertrain to the
ground. When the natural frequency of the MRE DVA
can track the engine’s excitation frequency accurately,
Figure 8. Schematic representation of a semi-active x and c can be expressed as
powertrain mount system with the MRE DVA. qffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi
 2ffi
ð2ja n2 Þ ð1  n2 Þ2 + 2njp
x = qffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi
2
From equations (22) to (24), the displacement of the
rn4 + 4ja jp n3 + ½2ja n2 ð1  rn2  n2 Þ2
powertrain can be expressed as follows
qffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi ð27aÞ
F0 ðv2 ma  ka Þ2 + v2 c2a qffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi
 2 ffi
xp = pffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi ð25aÞ ð2ja n2 Þ 1 + 2njp
C 2 + D2 c = qffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi
2
rn4 + 4ja jp n3 + ½2ja n2 ð1  rn2  n2 Þ2
C =  ka kp + v2 mp ka + v2 ca cp + v2 ma ka + v2 ma kp
ð27bÞ
v4 ma mp ð25bÞ
where n is the ratio of the natural frequency of the
D =  vka cp  vkp ca + v3 ca mp + v3 ca ma + v3 cp ma
MRE DVA va to the natural frequency of the passive
ð25cÞ mount system vp , r is the ratio of the dynamic mass of
According to equation (25a), when the natural fre- the MRE DVA to the mass of the powertrain, ja and
quency of the MRE DVA equals to the excitation fre- jp are the damping ratios of the MRE and the rubber
quency (ka = v2 ma ), the displacement of the powertrain spring, respectively, and n, vp , r, ja , and jp can be,
achieves the minimum. That is to say, the working prin- respectively, given by
ciple of the proposed MRE DVA is to tune its natural sffiffiffiffiffiffi
frequency to track the excitation frequency. ca has no va kp ma ca
n= , vp = ,r= , j = pffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi ,
influence on the frequency tracking process, and what vp mp mp a 2 m a ka
ca affects is the final vibration attenuation effectiveness cp
(i.e. the minimum displacement of the powertrain) and jp = pffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi ð28Þ
2 mp kp
when ka = v2 ma .
To evaluate the vibration attenuation characteristics where ja = 0:13, jp = 0:1 and ja = 0:26, jp = 0:1.
of the powertrain mount system based on the MRE According to equations (27) and (28), with the con-
DVA, the displacement transmissibility x and the dition of 0\r\0:3 and 0:5\n\2, the relationship
force transmissibility c are employed and, respectively, between x and n, r and ja and the relationship between
defined by c and n, r and ja are shown in Figure 9(a) and (b),
xp respectively. As it can be seen from Figure 9(a), x\1
x= ð26aÞ always holds, which indicates that the MRE DVA can
xp0
suppress the displacement transmissibility of the

Figure 9. Influence of parameters of the MRE DVA on the vibration attenuation performance: (a) the relationship between x and n,
r and ja and (b) the relationship between c and n, r and ja .

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Xin et al.
Figure 10. The test rig for the vibration absorption unit.
Figure 11. The amplitude–frequency response of the vibration
absorption unit.
powertrain mount system effectively. When ja is fixed,
x decreases with the increase of r. It means that the
greater is the dynamic mass of the MRE DVA, the bet-
ter is the vibration attenuation. When r increases, the
changing of x starts to level off. In other words, when
the dynamic mass of the MRE DVA increases to a cer-
tain value, the dynamic mass has a weaker impact on
the vibration attenuation performance. From the
changes of x with n, it can be seen that the closer n
approaches to 1, the smaller x is, that is, when n = 1, x
gets a minimum value. It implies that when va equals
to vp , the MRE DVA has the optimal vibration
attenuation performance. From the surface contrast of
ja = 0:26 and ja = 0:13, the influence of the damping
ratio of the MRE on the vibration attenuation perfor-
mance can also be acquired, as shown in Figure 9(a).
When ja gets larger, x gets larger too. Moreover, espe-
cially when n is closer to 1 or r gets larger, the degree
of the increase of x increases. The increase of the damp-
ing ratio of the MRE would counteract the vibration
attenuation performance of MRE DVA. Therefore,
smaller damping ratio will enhance the vibration
attenuation performance. It should be noted that once
the MRE sample is fabricated, the damping ratio of the
MRE only varies within a small range with the change
of the external magnetic field and can be treated as a
contrast value (Hoang et al., 2013). Hence, when
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9
preparing the MRE sample, some treatment processes
such as vacuum treatment and surface decoration for
the magnetizable particles should be applied to ensure a
small damping ratio.
As shown in Figure 9(b), when ja is fixed, c
decreases with the increase in r. It means that the
greater is the dynamic mass of the MRE DVA, the
smaller is the force transmissibility. From the changes
of c with n, it can be seen that the closer n approaches
to 1, the bigger c is, that is, when n = 1, c gets a maxi-
mum value. It implies that when va equals to vp , the
force transmitted to the ground reaches the maximum
value. From the surface contrast of ja = 0:26 and
ja = 0:13, when ja gets larger, c gets larger too, which
means that the increase of the MRE damping would
increase the force transmitted to the ground. x and c
exhibit the similar relationship with n, r, and ja , both x
and c can evaluate the vibration attenuation perfor-
mance of the MRE DVA. In this study, the displace-
ment transmissibility x is selected as the criterion to
evaluate the vibration attenuation performance.
Experimental tests
In order to verify the frequency-shift property and the
vibration attenuation performance of the proposed
MRE DVA, the prototype of the MRE DVA is manu-
factured, and the frequency-shift property of the vibra-
tion absorption unit and the vibration attenuation
performance of the MRE DVA on the vertical direc-
tion of the powertrain are tested on the built test rigs,
at Hefei University of Technology.
Frequency-shift property of the vibration absorption
unit
Figure 10 presents the test rig for measuring the natural
frequency of the vibration absorption unit of the MRE
DVA. Observing Figure 10, the vibration absorption
unit is fixed to a linear shaker. An accelerometer (Type:
DYTRAN3035B) is set on the top surface of the mag-
netic conductor of the vibration absorption unit to
measure the vertical acceleration. The measured signals
are acquired by a data acquisition system (Type:
DEWE-501, not shown in the figure). The experimental
principle is based on the hammering method (Wada
and Sawa, 2012). The applied current ranges from 0 to
2 A with an increment of 0.4 A. The response of the
magnetic conductor in frequency domain can be
obtained by fast Fourier transform (FFT) algorithm.
The amplitude–frequency response of the vibration
absorption unit under various applied currents is
shown in Figure 11.
As shown in Figure 11, the natural frequency can be
obtained by the peak-to-peak value of the curve. The
natural frequency of the vibration absorption unit
10 Journal of Intelligent Material Systems and Structures

increases from about 22.7 Hz at 0 A to 31.9 Hz at 2 A,

and the relative frequency change is as high as 40.5%.
The vibration absorption unit exhibits good frequency-
shift property. It should be noted that as can be seen
from Figure 11, with the increase in the natural fre-
quency of the vibration absorption unit, the peak
amplitude of the curve decreases obviously. Actually,
the increase in the natural frequency means the increase
in the stiffness ka of the MRE and the decrease in the
peak amplitude indicates the increase in the damping ca
of the MRE. Based on the vibration theory, ja can be
calculated by the half-power bandwidth method
(Badsar et al., 2010)

f2  f1
ja = ð29Þ Figure 12. Comparison between the experiment results and
2fa the fitting results of the natural frequency of the vibration
absorption unit.
where fa = (1=2p)va , and f1 and f2 are the half-power
frequency points on either sides of fa . When the applied
current changes from 0 to 2 A, ja varies within a small
range from 0.168 to 0.177 and can be treated as a con-
stant with the increase of the applied current. The
results are also consistent with Hoang et al. (2013).
According to the experimental results, the natural
frequency at low applied current (\1 A) increases
faster than that with high applied current (.1 A)
because of the magnetic saturation. The relationship
between the natural frequency and applied currents can
be fitted by a quadratic polynomial

fa =  0:94Ia2 + 6:53Ia + 22:65 ð30Þ

where Ia is the applied current of the MRE DVA.

Figure 12 presents the comparison between the
experiment results and the fitting results calculated by
equation (30) of the natural frequency of the vibration
absorption unit when various currents are applied. It
can be seen from Figure 12 that the fitting results
obtained by equation (30) can describe the frequency-
shift property of the vibration absorption unit well and
can be applied to calculate the desired applied current
for an effective control of the MRE DVA.

Vibration attenuation performance

Figure 13 presents the test rig of the semi-active power-
train mount system based on the MRE DVA. As shown
in Figure 13, the test rig is composed of two fixed
plates, two guide rails, two linear bearings, and a mova-
ble mass. The two fixed plates are utilized to fix the two
guides, and the two linear bearings are installed on the
two guides. The movable mass representing the mass of
powertrain (50 kg) can move vertically along the two
guide rails. The MRE DVA is installed between the
movable mass and the linear shaker. The MRE DVA
can absorb the vibration energy of the movable mass as
well as support the movable mass. The working
Figure 13. The test rig of the semi-active powertrain mount
system based on the MRE DVA.
principle of the established 2-degree-of-freedom vibra-
tion system is as same as the real powertrain mount sys-
tem installed with the MRE DVA. The vibration
attenuation performance of the MRE DVA on the 2-
degree-of-freedom vibration system can also be
expanded to the real powertrain mount system.
An accelerometer is set on the top surface of the
movable mass to measure the vertical acceleration.
According to the test results in section ‘‘Frequency-shift

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Xin et al.
Figure 14. The time histories of the acceleration response of the semi-active powertrain mount system based on the MRE DVA
when the excitation frequency tunes from 22.7 to 31.9 Hz.
property of the vibration absorption unit,’’ the natural
frequency of the vibration absorption unit increases
from about 22.7 to 31.9 Hz when the applied current
increases from 0 to 2 A. The vibration attenuation per-
formance of the semi-active powertrain mount system
when the excitation frequency tunes from 22.7 to
31.9 Hz is tested, and the time histories of the accelera-
tion response are shown in Figure 14.
As can be seen from Figure 14, during the first 10 s,
the time histories of the acceleration response are mod-
erate. This is because the excitation frequency of
22.7 Hz approaches to the natural frequency of the
MRE DVA when the applied current is 0 A, and the
MRE DVA can attenuate the vibration of the movable
plate effectively. However, during the period of 10–
20 s, the excitation frequency jumps to 31.9 Hz, which
deviates from the present natural frequency of the
MRE DVA, so the movable plate vibrates violently
with amplified amplitude. During the last 10 s, the
applied current is tuned to 2 A, and the natural fre-
quency of the MRE DVA approaches to 31.9 Hz. Since
the natural frequency of the MRE DVA approaches
to the excitation frequency again, the vibration of
the powertrain is attenuated correspondingly. From
Figure 14, we could say, when the natural frequency of
the MRE DVA approaches to the excitation frequency,
the proposed MRE DVA can attenuate the vibration of
the powertrain effectively and can be applied for the
vibration attenuation of the powertrain mount systems.
Control algorithm
Optimal varied step algorithm
Based on the experimental tests in section ‘‘Experimental
tests,’’ with the increase in the applied current, the natu-
ral frequency of the vibration absorption unit increases
correspondingly, and the MRE DVA can attenuate the
vibration of the powertrain when its natural frequency
approaches to the excitation frequency. However,
according to the analysis in section ‘‘Frequency-shift
property,’’ the natural frequency of the MRE DVA also
depends on the deformation of the MRE, and with the
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11
increase of the deformation, the difference between the
actual natural frequency calculated by equation (30) and
the desired natural frequency (equals to excitation fre-
quency) increases. In other words, there is a certain error
between the excitation frequency and the actual natural
frequency of the MRE DVA, which results in that the
vibration attenuation performance is affected corre-
spondingly. Hence, if the traditional control algorithm is
directly applied for the control of the proposed MRE
DVA, the optimal vibration attenuation performance
cannot be achieved. Based on the nonlinear natural fre-
quency characteristics of the proposed MRE DVA, an
optimal variable step algorithm is proposed in this study
to improve the vibration attenuation performance.
Figure 15 presents the control flow chart of the opti-
mal variable step algorithm. As shown in Figure 15, the
whole control process can be divided into two phases,
that is, the coarse adjustment and the fine adjustment.
The algorithm constantly detects the engine’s excitation
frequency vf calculated by FFT algorithm and com-
pares it with the natural frequency va of the MRE
DVA. When jvf  va j.v0 is satisfied (v0 is a threshold
value), the algorithm coarsely tunes the applied current,
so as va can track vf . Subsequently, the algorithm
begins to sample and compute the root mean square
values (RMS1 ) of the displacement response of the
powertrain. Then, the coarse adjustment process
finishes and the fine adjustment process begins. The
algorithm begins to adjust the current by k0 (k0 is the
initial step size) and continues to sample and compute
the root mean square values (RMS2 ) of the displacement
response of the powertrain and compares it with RMS1 .
If RMS2 \RMS1 , the algorithm tunes the applied cur-
rent in the original direction by k0 . Otherwise, the step
size will be cut in half (k0 = k0 =2), and the algorithm
tunes the applied current in the reverse direction by the
new k0 and adds the reverse tuning times N by 1
(N = N + 1). The algorithm will keep on sampling and
computing RMS2 until N gets bigger than the maximum
of the reverse tuning times Num(N.Num). Then, the
whole current tuning process is done, and the applied
current is output to the MRE DVA.
12
Figure 15. Flow chart of the optimal variable step algorithm.
Simulation validation
MATLAB/Simulink model of the 2-degree-of-freedom
semi-active powertrain mount system based on the
MRE DVA is established to validate the vibration con-
trol performance of the optimal variable step algorithm
for the MRE DVA applied for powertrain mount sys-
tem. According to the operation characteristics of the
engine, the engine’s excitation is given by
 vp = 2p 3 25 rad s1 . Assuming that the natural fre-
F0 sinðv1 tÞ t  T1
f ðt Þ =
F0 sinðv2 tÞ t.T1
where F0 = 50 N; the engine’s initial excitation frequency
v1 = 2p 3 25 rad s1 ; and at time T1 = 5 s, the engine’s
excitation frequency tunes to v2 = 2p 3 30 rad s1 .
Figure 16 presents the structure of the optimal vari-
able step algorithm. As shown in Figure 16, the displa-
cement of the dynamic mass of the MRE DVA xp is
measured by a displacement sensor. The excitation fre-
quency vf is calculated by the FFT algorithm, and
then, the applied current can be calculated by equation
Figure 16. The structure of the optimal variable step
algorithm.
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Journal of Intelligent Material Systems and Structures
(30) during the coarse adjustment. Based on the
detected root mean square (RMS) of the displacement
of the powertrain, the applied current Ia is finally deter-
mined during the fine adjustment and output to the
MRE DVA to attenuate the vibration of the power-
train. During the simulation process, the parameters
are set as follows: the sample time Ts = 0:001 s; the ini-
tial step size k0 = 0:05 A; the maximum of the reverse
tuning times Num = 3; ma = 3:4 kg; mp = 50 kg; and
ð31Þ quency of the MRE DVA calculated by equation (30)
cannot track the passive mount system accurately for
the nonlinear stiffness characteristics of the MRE and
with a tracking error Dv = 2p 3 0:5 rad s1 . The vibra-
tion attenuation performance of the proposed control
algorithm on the MRE DVA-based powertrain mount
system is shown in Figure 17.
Figure 17(a) to (c) presents the tracking process of
the natural frequency of the MRE DVA to the engine’s
excitation frequency, the changing process of the RMS
of the displacement response of the powertrain, and the
displacement of powertrain when control on and off,
respectively. As shown in Figure 17(a), when the
engine’s excitation frequency changes, the natural fre-
quency of the MRE DVA follows subsequently. During
the process of the engine’s excitation frequency remain-
ing unchanged, the optimal variable step algorithm
checks the RMS of the displacement response of the
powertrain, as shown in Figure 17(b). Based on the
detected RMS, the optimal variable step algorithm
tunes the applied current continuously. When the con-
trol process completes, the error between the natural
frequency of the MRE DVA and the engine’s excitation
Xin et al. 13

Figure 17. Vibration attenuation performance of the proposed control on the MRE DVA-based powertrain mount system: (a)
tracking process of the natural frequency of the MRE DVA to the excitation frequency, (b) the RMS of powertrain with MRE DVA,
and (c) the displacement of powertrain when control on and off.

frequency is less than 0.05 Hz. It can be seen from Conclusion

Figure 17(c) that while controlling the MRE DVA with
The principle of a new MRE DVA for powertrain mount
the optimal variable step algorithm, the displacement of
systems of automobiles and an optimal variable step
the powertrain mount system decreases obviously as
algorithm for the MRE DVA-based system were pro-
compared to the results without control. When the
posed and investigated in this article. The proposed
engine’s excitation frequency changes, the vibration of
MRE DVA not only can support the powertrain mount
the powertrain mount system appears to increase
system but also can absorb the vibration energy. The
slightly. This is because it needs a certain period of time
finite element method was employed to validate the elec-
for FFT algorithm to detect the change of the excitation
tromagnetic circuit. Employing the established constitu-
frequency. During this process, the natural frequency of
tive equations for the circular cylindrical MRE, the
the MRE DVA could not track the engine’s excitation
frequency-shift principle was theoretically analyzed based
frequency, and the MRE DVA cannot attenuate the
on the magneto-elastic theory. The proposed MRE
vibration effectively. When the FFT algorithm detects
DVA was employed in the powertrain mount system,
the change of the excitation frequency, the optimal vari-
and the dynamic model for the semi-active powertrain
able step algorithm tunes the applied current to track
mount system was established correspondingly. The
the engine’s excitation frequency immediately. When
frequency-shift property of the vibration absorption unit
the excitation frequency does not change anymore, the
and the vibration attenuation performance of the MRE
displacement response achieves the optimal state after
DVA on the vertical direction of the powertrain mount
several times of slight adjustment. In consequence, with
system were experimentally investigated employing
the control of the proposed optimal variable step algo-
passive-on control. Furthermore, numerical experiments
rithm, the MRE DVA can track the engine’s excitation
were also carried out to validate the vibration attenua-
frequency accurately and absorb the vibration of the
tion performance of the proposed optimal variable step
powertrain mount system effectively.

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14
algorithm. The research results of this article can be con-
cluded as follows: (1) The natural frequency of the pro-
posed and developed MRE DVA can be tuned from
22.7 Hz at 0 A to 31.9 Hz at 2 A with a 40.5% increase
in frequency shift, and the vibration of the powertrain
can be attenuated correspondingly when the natural fre-
quency of the MRE DVA approaches to the excitation
frequency; (2) as a purely elastic incompressible smart
material, the circular cylindrical MRE exhibits nonlinear
stiffness characteristics with the changing of the deforma-
tion according to the established constitutive equations;
and (3) under the control of the optimal variable step
algorithm for the proposed MRE DVA, the natural fre-
quency of the MRE DVA can be tuned rapidly and
accurately to track the engine’s excitation frequency, and
the vibration of the powertrain mount system can be
attenuated effectively.
Acknowledgements
The authors would also like to thank Mr Peng Chen and Mr
Peng Jiang, graduate students from Hefei University of
Technology, China, for their assistance in experimental tests.
Declaration of Conflicting Interests
The authors declared no potential conflicts of interest with
respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this
article.
Funding
The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial sup-
port for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this
article: This study was supported by the National Natural
Science Foundation of China (grant no. 51305114), Anhui
Provincial Natural Science Foundation (grant no.
1408085QE91), and Fundamental Research Funds for the
Central Universities (no. 2014HGCH0008).
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5966. MRE (m)
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based control algorithm for magnetorheological elastomer F deformation gradient (–)
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ing systems: a review. International Journal of Vehicle ka stiffness of the MRE of the MRE DVA (N/m)
Design 49(4): 237–258. kp stiffness of the rubber spring of the MRE DVA
Shen Y, Golnaraghi MF and Heppler GR (2004) Experimen- (N/m)
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m1 relative MR effect factor of G (–)
deoff between the damping force and the sensed relative

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16 Journal of Intelligent Material Systems and Structures

ja damping ratio of the MRE of the MRE t value of s on the outer radius of the MRE
DVA (–) (MPa)
jp damping ratio of the rubber spring of the MRE x displacement transmissibility (–)
DVA (–) va natural frequency of the MRE DVA (rad/s)
s Cauchy stress tensor (MPa) vf excitation frequency (rad/s)
srz component in axial of s (MPa)

Downloaded from jim.sagepub.com at University of Otago Library on November 3, 2016