:C14-0029
Finite Element Analysis of a Magnetorheological Fluid Damper
Zhong-Da Chao and Feng Tyan
Computational Dynamics and Control Lab
Dept. of Aerospace Engineering
Tamkang University
Tamshui, Taipei County, Taiwan 25147, R. O. C.
Abstract In this paper, a finite element analysis of
magnetorheological fluid (MR) damper is reviewed. A Finite
Element model was built to analyze and examine a 2-D
axisymmetric MR damper, RD-1005-3 Damper, fabricated
by Lord Corporation. The obtained results help designers
to create more efficient and reliable MR dampers, and to
predict the maximum damping force supplied by the damper.
keywords: Magnetorheological fluid (MRF) damper, finite
element analysis
I. I NTRODUCTION
Since the first patent was issued to inventor Jacob
Rabinow in the 1940s, magnetorheological (MR) fluids
have remained mostly a laboratory curiosity with little
practical use. In the late 1980s and 1990s, however,
researchers began to get serious about developing the
commercial viability of MR fluids, especially when other
technologies began to converge that made practical use a
real possibility [1].
Magnetorheological fluid is a functional material con-
sisting of a low viscosity carrier liquid, ferro-magnetic
particles in the order of tens of microns (20-50 microns) in
diameter, plus some additives, which are included to work
against particle-liquid separation and wear of sealings. The
particles will be formed into chain-like fibrous structures
in the presence of a high magnetic field (Figure 1). When
the magnetic field strength reaches a certain value, the
suspension will be solidified and has high yield stress;
conversely, the suspension can be liquified once more by
removal of the magnetic field. The process of change is
very quick, less than a few milliseconds, and can be easily
controlled. The energy consumption is also very small,
only several watts.
Fig. 1. Response of MR fluid to the applied magnetic field
The magneto-rheological damper is a shock absorber
that uses Magneto-Rheological (MR) fluid instead of oil.
Shun-Hsu Tu and Wes S. Jeng
Sky Leading Corporation
Chupei, Hsin Chu County, Taiwan 30204, R. O. C.
These fluids demonstrate dramatic changes in their rheo-
logical behaviors in response to a magnetic field. The MR
fluids have attracted considerable interest recently because
they can provide simple and rapid response interfaces
between electronic control and mechanical devices and
systems. MR fluid dampers are semiactive control devices
that are capable of generating the magnitude of force
sufficient for large-scale applications, for example,
1) vehicle suspension systems, vehicle seat suspension,
2) vibration control of railway bridges, seismic re-
sponse reduction,
3) washing machine
4) prosthetics
5) landing gear.
while requiring only batteries for power [2].
This paper is organized as follows. In section II, a
brief introduction about MR damper is given to illustrate
how a MR damper works. Then in the next section, a
simulation procedure, based on the flow chart of [3],
is given to demonstrate how the damper force vs input
current is generated. Finally, a few conclusions are drawn
in section IV.
II. W ORKING P RINCIPLE OF A MR DAMPER
Fig. 2. Function representation of a MR damper
A functional representation of an MR damper, with
schematics of the components necessary for operation, is
shown in Figure 2. The fluid that is transferred from above
the piston to below (and vice versa) must pass through the
MR valve. The MR valve is a fixed-size orifice with the
CSME-3145
ability to apply a magnetic field, using an electromagnet,
to the orifice volume. This magnetic field results in a
change in viscosity of the MR fluid, causing a pressure
differential for the flow of fluid in the orifice volume.
The pressure differential is directly proportional to the
force required to move the damper rod. As such, the
damping characteristic of the MR damper is a function
of the electrical current flowing into the electromagnet.
This relationship allows the damping of an MR damper
to be easily controlled in real time.
The accumulator is a pressurized volume of gas that
is physically separated from the MR fluid by a floating Fig. 4. Magneto Rheological Damper Piston Configuration
piston or bladder. The accumulator serves two purposes.
1) To provide a volume for the MR fluid to occupy TABLE I
when the shaft is inserted into the damper cylinder. G EOMETRY OF MR DAMPER
2) To provide a pressure offset so that the pressure
in the low-pressure side of the MR valve does not Area Code Element Dimensions
A10 Housing 2.692 26.72 mm
induce cavitation in the MR fluid by reducing the A15 MRF 0.495 26.72 mm
pressure below the vapor pressure of the MR fluid. A16 Engine 16.167 26.72 mm
A4 Coil 6.402 12.65 mm
Different configurations used for MR dampers are shear
mode, flow mode, mixed mode and squeeze mode. Usually
shear mode is used for low force applications. Hence MR
dampers for vehicle suspensions are designed using the limited coupling between the fields. The element has
mixed mode or flow mode configurations. nonlinear magnetic capability for modeling B H curves.
For a static (DC) current, ANSYS requires the current to
III. P ROCESS OF S IMULATING THE F ORCE -V ELOCITY be input in the form of current density (current over the
C HARACTERISTICS OF AN MR DAMPER area of the coil), that is
A. MR Damper Piston Configuration and Electrical Re- NI
quirements J= ,
A
1) Piston Dimension and Material: An axis-symmetric where
model in ANSYS is used in this study. The geometry,
J = current density,
specifications and materials are the same as the RD-1005-
N = numbers of turns of wires,
3 MR damper manufactured by the Lord Corporation.
I = current,
(Fig. 3). The piston dimensions of MR damper according
A = the electrical coil area.
to Fig. 4 are given in Table I.
We also assumes that there is no leakage through
boundary lines of model, which leads to a flux parallel
boundary condition, and no saturation of the material
occurs. To apply the current density, we can use the
command BFA to apply the current density on the coil
area. In the case of the MR fluids, we specify the B H
curve by creating our own curve. We can specify the
coordinates points of the MR fluid by choosing any point
on the B H curve, as shown in Fig. 5 [3].
B. Calculating the On-State Pressure Difference As a
Function of Fluid Stress
The on-state is defined as the response of the damper
when any current greater than zero is applied.
Fig. 3. Axis-symmetric model [4]
1) Calculating the Magnetic Inductance (B field) for
Each Voltage: The MR valve is a fixed-size orifice with
2) Element Description: We choose PLANE13 in AN- the ability to apply a magnetic field, using an electromag-
SYS as the element for our model, because PLANE13 net, to the orifice volume.
element is a 2-D quadrilateral Coupled-Field-Solid, which The ANSYS model provides the nodal solution of the
contains four nodes. PLANE13 has a 2-D magnetic, magnetic induction at the gap of the MR fluid, as shown
thermal, electrical and piezoelectric field capability with in Fig. 6. For each value of magnetic flux density, we

CSME-3146
 1 ANSYS 9.0
AUG 22 2007
14:20:00
NODAL SOLUTION
STEP=2
SUB =1
TIME=2
AZ
RSYS=0
SMX =.200E-04
.370E-06
.111E-05
.185E-05
.259E-05
.333E-05
.407E-05
.481E-05
.555E-05
.629E-05
.702E-05
.776E-05
.850E-05
.924E-05
.998E-05
.107E-04
.115E-04
.122E-04
.129E-04
.137E-04
.144E-04
.152E-04
.159E-04
.166E-04
.174E-04
.181E-04
.196E-04
Fig. 5. B-H curve for MR fluid [3]
Fig. 7. Magnetic Flux Line around the Electrical Coil

can then calculate the shear stress using the relationship

between shear stress and magnetic induction in (3.1). different currents is given in Table II. See also Fig. 8.
1
NODAL SOLUTION
TABLE II
STEP=2 AUG 22 2007
SUB =1 14:14:09 Bf FOR DIFFERENT CURRENTS
TIME=2
BSUM (AVG)
RSYS=0
SMN =.176E-03
SMX =.614767
I(Amp) Bf (T)
0.0 0
0.2 0.33528
0.4 0.382945
0.6 0.45747
MN
0.8 0.588335
1.0 0.75863
1.2 0.80847
MX 1.4 0.894395
1.6 0.958565
1.8 1.02144
Y
Z X

.176E-03 .136752 .273327 .409903 .546479

.068464 .205039 .341615 .478191 .614767
Magnetic Induction vs. Current
1.4

Fig. 6. Magnetic flux Density 1.2

Magnetic Induction (Tesla)

For a given current, we can determine the magnetic flux

0.8

density at the Engine, MR Fluid, Coil and the Damper

Housing. A wound coil of 900 windings, provides the 0.6

magnetic flux field that is necessary for energizing the 0.4

MR fluid. The electrical current through the coil can be

0.2
varied to change the magnetic flux density [3].
Fig. 7, which represents the magnetic flux vector, in- 0
0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1 1.2 1.4 1.6 1.8
Current (Amp)
dicates that the more we move away from the coil the
smaller magnetic flux density becomes. The higher flux
density in the MR gap that was observed in Fig. 6 is also Fig. 8. Magnetic Induction vs Current Obtained from ANSYS
shown in this Fig. 7 [3].
Zooming in to the gap area, we can get the magnetic
2) Calculating the Fluid Shear Stress: The effect of
induction at the MR fluid gap. Using the numbers gener-
magnetic induction on the shear stress of some MR fluids
ated from nodal solution, we can find the average value
can be characterized by a 4th order polynomial in the form
of the magnetic flux density by using the following:
of [3]
1
(Bf max + Bf min ).
Bf = y = 6.298Bf4 25.824Bf3 + 26.639Bf2 0.438Bf .
2
The magnetic flux density, through the fluid gap for (3.1)

CSME-3147
Figure 9 sketches the curve of y vs. Bf . Note that as the 2) Calculating the Plastic Viscosity: It is also impor-
magnetic fields strength increases, the resistance to fluid tant to model the viscosity as a function of the shear rate.
flow at the activation regions increases until the saturation The plastic viscosity () is a function of the shear rate
current has been reached. (),
was characterized by an exponential equation of the
form [3]:
4
x 10
Shear Stress vs. Magnetic Induction
5
= 6895 0.0006 0.6091 . (3.5)
4.5

4
Fig. 9 sketches the curve of viscosity vs. the shear rate
3.5
defined by (3.5).
Shear Stress (Pa)

2.5

2 Plastic Viscosity vs. Shear Rate

4.5

1.5
4

1
3.5

0.5
3

Viscosity (Pa-sec)
0
0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8 0.9 1 1.1
Magnetic Induction (Tesla) 2.5

1.5
Fig. 9. Shear Stress vs. Magnetic Induction [3]
1

0.5

3) Calculating the On-State Pressure Difference: The 0

0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200

change in shear stress of the MR fluid causes a pressure Shear Rate (1/sec)

differential for the flow of fluid in the orifice volume.

cy L Fig. 10. Viscosity vs Shear Rate
P = , (3.2)
g
A = 2bL, (3.3)
3) Calculating the Off-State Pressure Difference: The
where off-state pressure difference is determined based on the
L = length of fluid flow orifice, follow equation,
g = annular gap, 12QL
c = constant depending on P /P ratio (c = P = , (3.6)
g3 w
2.016),
Dp2
y = field dependent yield stress, A = , (3.7)
A = the active fluid area 4
b = outer radius of the piston. where
The parameter c has a value ranging from a minimum = plastic viscosity,
value of 2 (for P /P 1) to a maximum value of 3 Q = A v = the volumetric flow rate,
(for P /P 100). v = the fluid velocity,
L = length of fluid flow orifice,
C. Calculating the Off-State Pressure Difference As a
w = width of fluid flow orifice,
Function of Plastic Viscosity, Flow Rate
A = the area of piston,
The off-state is defined as the response of the damper Dp = diameter of the piston.
when no current is applied.
The active fluid area is Lw, if the annular gap is much
1) Calculating the Shear Rate as a Function of Veloc-
smaller than the diameter ( Dgp  1), then the width w
ity: Because magneto-rheological fluids behave as non-
can be approximated by w = Dp .
Newtonian fluids, the viscosity is not constant with vary-
ing fluid velocity. Therefore, it is important to define the
D. Calculate MR Damper Force Response
shear rate as a function of the fluid velocity. Shear rate is
defined as [3]: The pressure differential is directly proportional to the
v force required to move the damper rod. To calculate the
= , (3.4) force that is developed along the MR fluid gap, we simply
2g
multiply each delta pressure with the associated areas.
where We multiply the off-state pressure with the area of the
v = relative fluid velocity, piston, and the on-state pressure with the active fluid area.
g = annular gap. The total force developed is the sum of a viscous shear

CSME-3148
force component and magnetic field dependent shear force R EFERENCES
component [3],
[1] M. R. Jolly, J. W. Bender, and J. D. Carlson, Prop-
F = P A + P A , (3.8) erties and applications of commercial magnetorheo-
logical fluids, in Proc. SPIE Smart Structures and
where Materials 1998: Passive Damping and Isolation, L. P.
Davis, Ed., vol. 3327, 1998, pp. 262275.
F = the damping force of MR damper, [2] D. H. Wang and W. H. Liao, Semiactive controllers
P = the off-state pressure component, for magnetorheological fluid dampers, Journal of In-
P = the on-state pressure component. telligent Material Systems and Structures, vol. 16, pp.
F represents the force that is developed along the MR 983993, November/December 2005.
fluid gap. The relation between the damper force and the [3] W. H. El-Aouar, Finite element analysis based mod-
velocity of piston for different currents is shown in Fig. 11. eling of magneto rheological dampers, Master of
Science, Blacksburg, Virginia, September 2002.
[4] N. Yasrebi, A. Ghazavi, M. M.Mashhadi, and
Original Design
5000 A. Yousefi-Koma, Magneto-rheological fluid dampers
4000 modeling: Numerical and experimental, in Proceed-
3000
ings of the 17th IASTED International Conference,
2000
May 2006, pp. 321325.
1000
Force (N)

0
0.0Amp
0.2Amp
-1000 0.4Amp

-2000
0.6Amp
0.8Amp
1.0Amp

1.2Amp
1.4Amp
-3000
1.6Amp
1.8Amp
-4000


-5000
-0.8 -0.6 -0.4 -0.2 0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8
Velocity (m/sec)

Fig. 11. Force vs. Velocity Diagram for Different Current

ANSYS
Looking at the Fig. 11 and Table II, we can conclude
,
that the fluid reached saturation at approximately 1.6 to
,
1.8 Amps. The maximum force, results from 1.6 Amps,
,
is nearly the same as the one at 1.8 Amps (i.e., 4109
,
N). Beyond 1.8 Amps, the damper would not provide a

much higher force than 4109 N, because it has reached
its rheological saturation point. :

IV. C ONCLUSIONS

This study provided an axisymmetric model of a MR

damper using ANSYS. Owing to the high cost of MR
dampers prototyping, the simulation methodology can be
a critical alternative. Since a numerical model making us
capable of changing parameters at our wish in seconds to
improve the performance. In this axisymmetric model of
a MR damper, we generated the magnetic flux density
along the MR fluid gap. The allows us to obtain the
force-velocity characteristics that we are after. So that we
are able to predict the maximum damping force that can
be generated by the damper. In the coming future, this
FEM model can be integrated with a multibody dynamic
simulation program to perform a complete (e.g. vehicle
suspensions system) closed-loop system simulation.

CSME-3149