Liquid carrier Mineral oil, synthetic hydrocarbon oil, silicone oil, water, glycols, Magneto Rheological Technology Magnetic

c particle Carbonyl iron, iron/cobalt alloys, nickel alloys 20-40% by volume Typical size: 1-10 micron Other additives Suspending agents, thixotropes, anti-wear and anti-corrosion additives, friction modifiers Formulation depends on the needs of the application!

MR Damper- A semi active damper

There are three broad classifications of suspension systems: passive, active, and Semi active. Each of these types of suspension has different advantages and disadvantages. Passive vibration control involves an inherent compromise between low-frequency and high-frequency vibration isolation. Passive suspension systems are subject to various tradeoffs when they are excited across a large frequency bandwidth. Compared with passive control, active control can improve the performance over a wide range of frequencies. However, active vibration control has the disadvantages of complexity and high-energy consumption. Semi-active control has shown many advantages in vehicle suspension systems due to its low energy consumption with similar vibration control performance to the active control methods. A semi-active control method maintains the reliability of passive control methods and, yet, includes the advantage of the adjustable parameter characteristics of active systems. Several semi-active dampers have been proposed. The devices include variable orifice dampers, adjustable tuned liquid dampers, and controllable fluid dampers (Dyke et al., 1998). However, these semi-active dampers have a relatively low response speed. From control theory, a large time delay makes the control system inefficient and even tends to make the system unstable. In recent years, magnetorheological (MR) dampers have received much attention as semi-active system actuators for their rapid response to the applied magnetic field and their compact size. The MR effect was first observed by Rabinow (1948) and was initially defined as the magnetically induced fibrillation of micrometer-sized magnetizable particles suspended in low viscosity fluid. Without the magnetic field effect, the MR fluid has the properties of a Newtonian fluid; however, when the MR fluid is under the effect of a magnetic field the particles align themselves with respect to the magnetic field and form into chains or columns, which makes the viscosity of the MR fluid change. The damping force of an MR damper is a hysteretic force that can be modeled by either the BoucWen model or by other hysteresis molds.

M. R. DAMPER TYPES There are three main types of MR dampers. These are the mono tube, the twin tube, and the double-ended MR damper. Of the three types, the mono tube is the most common since it can be installed in any orientation and is compact in size. A mono tube MR damper, shown in Fig.1, has only one reservoir for the MR fluid and an accumulator mechanism to accommodate the change in volume that results from piston rod movement. The accumulator piston provides a barrier between the MR fluid and a compressed gas (usually nitrogen) that is used to accommodate the volume changes that occur when the piston rod enters the housing.

Fig. 1 Monotube MR Damper section view

Advantages Mechanically uncomplicated(Valve has no moving parts) Simple, low voltage controls Force relatively independent of velocity Large forces (even at low or zero

velocity) Continuously variable Environmentally robust The twin tube MR damper is one that has two fluid reservoirs, one inside of the other, as shown in Fig. 2.

In this configuration, the damper has an inner and outer housing. The inner housing guides the piston rod assembly, in exactly the same manner as in a mono tube damper. The volume enclosed by the inner housing is referred to as the inner reservoir. Likewise, the volume that is defined by the space between the inner housing and the outer housing is referred to as the outer reservoir. The inner reservoir is filled with MR fluid so that no air pockets exist.

Fig. 2 Twin tube MR damper To accommodate changes in volume due to piston rod movement, an outer reservoir that is partially filled with MR fluid is used. Therefore, the outer tube in a twin tube damper serves the same purpose as the pneumatic accumulator mechanism in mono tube dampers. In practice, a valve assembly called a foot valve is attached to the bottom of the inner housing to regulate the flow of fluid between the two reservoirs. As the piston rod enters the damper, MR fluid flows from the inner reservoir into the outer reservoir through the compression valve, which is part of the foot valve assembly. The amount of fluid that flows from the inner reservoir into the outer reservoir is equal to the volume displaced by the piston rod as it enters the inner housing. As the piston rod is withdrawn from the damper, MR fluid flows from the outer reservoir into the inner reservoir through the return valve, which is also part of the foot valve assembly. The final type of MR damper is called a double-ended damper since a piston rod of equal diameter protrudes from both ends of the damper housing. Fig. 3 shows a section view of a typical double-ended MR damper. Since there is no change in volume as the piston rod moves relative to the damper body, the double-ended damper does not require an accumulator mechanism. Double-ended MR dampers have been used for bicycle applications, gun recoil applications, and commercial applications and for controlling building sway motion caused by wind gusts and earthquakes.

Fig.3 Double-ended MR damper The other type of MR damper is the MR piloted hydraulic damper. MR piloted hydraulic dampers are hybrid dampers in which a small MR damper controls a valve that, in turn, is used to regulate the flow of hydraulic fluid.

Figure 4. MR piloted hydraulic damper.

References: 1. Poyner, C. James (2001), Innovative designs for magneto-rheological dampers, MS Thesis, Advanced Vehicle Dynamics Lab, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, VA. 2. Ashfak, A. Saheed, K. K. Abdul Rasheed, and J. Abdul Jaleel, Design, Fabrication and Evaluation of MR Damper, World Academy of Science, Engineering and Technology 53, 2009. 3. "Designing with MR fluids", (1999) Lord Corporation Engineering note, Thomas Lord Research Center, Cary, NC.