The dynamic characterisation of disk geometry particle dampers

Particle dampers (PDs) have the advantages of being simple in geometry, small in volume and applicable in extreme temperature environments. Experimental studies have shown that PDs can offer considerable potential for suppressing structural resonant conditions over a wide frequency range. In this paper, the nonlinear characteristics of PDs are studied experimentally in a series of response-level-controlled tests. The effect of the geometry is studied and a method is developed to model the nonlinear damping of PDs as equivalent viscous dampers that can be applied directly to engineering structures at the design stage.