AN APPLICATION OF A TUNED VIBRATION ABSORBER WITH FINITE ELEMENTS

摘要

Commercially available air compressors often exhibit known and predictable vibration characteristics which result in undesirable noise and motion. The primary mode of vibration contributing to this issue is well-defined, allowing for the implementation of a tuned vibration absorber (TVA). A TVA will be designed, developed, and tested in order to mitigate the primary mode of vibration exhibited by a commercial air compressor. Finite element analysis will be used to aide in the design and analysis of the system. Multiple materials and designs will be evaluated in order to meet both the size and performance constraints of the TVA. Tests will be conducted utilizing accelerometers and associative vibration analysis equipment to quantify the amount of vibration absorbed. In addition, video footage will be used to qualify the effectiveness of the designed TVA. This work will be integrated into a laboratory exercise for use in a senior-level undergraduate engineering course, Finite Element Analysis Applications Ⅱ, as part of the Mechanical Engineering Technology curriculum at Penn State Erie, The Behrend College. The application of finite elements during this exercise will not only allow the students to gain a working knowledge of tuned vibration absorbers, that of which they have little prior exposure to, but it will also allow them to recognize the benefits and limitations of implementing a TVA to mitigate adverse dynamics in mechanical systems. Additionally, it will expose them to a relevant engineering design problem during their undergraduate careers, which will prove useful as they transition into the professional engineering community upon graduation. This paper will focus on the simulation and analysis of the compressor, coupled with a simplified tuned vibration absorber using finite elements showing excellent absorption of the primary mode of vibration.