Numerical and experimental study of tuned liquid damper effects on suppressing nonlinear vibration of elastic supporting structural platform

Dou, P, Xue, MA, Zheng, J, Zhang, C and Qian, L ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9716-2342 (2020) Numerical and experimental study of tuned liquid damper effects on suppressing nonlinear vibration of elastic supporting structural platform. Nonlinear Dynamics, 99 (4). pp. 2675-2691. ISSN 0924-090X

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Abstract

© 2020, Springer Nature B.V. A liquid storage container installed on the top of a fixed offshore platform is used as a tuned liquid damper (TLD) to suppress structural vibration through sloshing motion and viscous energy dissipation. To further optimize TLD capability on suppressing vibration and accurately predict nonlinear coupled processes between TLD and offshore platform, a two-way coupling numerical model was developed to investigate the nonlinear vibration of TLD and elastic supporting structural platform (SSP). Meanwhile, laboratory experiments of TLD interaction with the SSP were also conducted on a six-degree-of-freedom motion simulator to validate the developed model. The bottom plate of the SSP was fixed to the motion simulator and subjected to sinusoidal excitation in the horizontal direction. The natural frequency of bare SSP was obtained firstly by shaking table tests at a wide range of external excitation frequencies and finite element modal analysis. The developed numerical model was validated by using the present experimental data in terms of both the roof plate displacements of the SSP and the free surface elevation and waveforms in TLD. Effects of TLD in suppressing the nonlinear vibration of the elastic SSP were further investigated numerically by varying the mass and frequency ratio of TLD to the SSP. Wavelet transform was used to analyze the nonlinear interaction and energy distribution characteristics of the sloshing wave in TLD. It was shown that the peak displacement response of the roof plate had been significantly reduced, and at the same time a frequency shift occurred after TLD installed on the SSP. In addition, the sudden excitation breaks the balance of energy absorption and production in fluids, resulting in larger wave height. Finally, a mass ratio of 2% and a frequency ratio of 1 were found to be optimal by considering the frequency shift and energy dissipation.