Constrained layer damping for mitigating vibration of a rotating disk-drum coupled structure

Rotating disk-drum coupled structures are commonly employed in large rotating machines. They are prone to have vibration issues caused by their decreasing thickness to meet lightweight demands. Constrained layer damping (CLD) is a widely used technique to reduce vibrations, but no studies have yet investigated its application on rotating coupled structures. In this paper, a universal model is proposed and experiments are conducted to investigate the influence of CLD on a rotating cylindrical shell ended by an annular disk. This approach considers the rotating effects, and formulates the equations of motion using the Rayleigh-Ritz method with the help of the Sanders shell theory and Mindlin plate theory. Different sets of artificial springs are applied to model the coupling and boundary conditions. The proposed approach is validated by comparing the numerical results with those obtained from modal and rotor experiments. Then the modal parameters and vibration responses are evaluated for different rotational speeds, and the influences of the location and thickness ratio of the CLD patch and the coupling stiffness on the dynamic characteristics of the system are discussed.