Experimental investigation on novel laminated viscoelastomer-filled austenitic stainless steel tube dampers

Abstract

This study proposes a novel laminated viscoelastomer-filled austenitic stainless steel tube dampers to improve the low-cycle fatigue performance of laminated viscoelastomer-filled steel tube damper (LVSTD) and extend its applicability in corrosive environments. To this end, S304 austenitic stainless steel was employed to fabricate the LVSTD304 specimen, with normalizing grade 20 carbon steel specimen LVSTD20N serving as a comparative benchmark. Specifically, material property tests were conducted on S304 austenitic stainless steel and grade 20 carbon steel materials. Furthermore, cyclic loading tests were carried out on LVSTDs fabricated from the two materials. Theoretical derivations were also performed for the calculation of the initial stiffness and yield force of the LVSTDs made of stainless steel. The cyclic loading tests reveal that the LVSTD304 possesses excellent energy dissipation capacity with a maximum equivalent viscous damping ratio reaching up to 44 %. The LVSTD304 exhibits relatively more pronounced cyclic hardening with higher post-yield stiffness, average equivalent stiffnesses, ultimate force, and load capacity stability coefficient. The theoretical calculations agree well with experimental results, highlighting the efficacy of stainless steel LVSTDs in various mechanical aspects. The findings suggest that S304 austenitic stainless steel is a viable material for LVSTD fabrication, demonstrating excellent mechanical performance.