Vibration Absorbers

Tutorial
Reference
1. S. S. Rao, Mechanical Vibrations, 5th Edition,
Pearson, 2011.
 1
A reciprocating engine is installed on the first
floor of a building, which can be modeled as a
rigid rectangular plate resting on four elastic
columns. The equivalent mass of the engine and
the floor is 900 kg. At the rated speed of the
engine which is 600 rpm, the operators
experience large vibrations of the floor. It has
been decided to reduce these vibrations by
suspending a spring-mass system from the
bottom surface of floor. Assume that the spring
stiffness is 900 kN/m. Find the mass to be
attached to absorb the vibrations.
 1

600 rpm 62.831 rad/s

k2 9 x105
m2 2 227.97 kg
62.831 2
 2

When an undamped vibration absorber

having a mass 30 kg and a stiffnes k is added
to a spring mass system of mass 40 kg and
stiffness 0.1 MN/m, the main mass (40 kg) is
found to have zero amplitude during its
steady state operation under a harmonic
force of amplitude 300 N. Determine the
steady state amplitude of the absorber mass.
 2

k 105
50 rad/s
m 40
F0 F0 300
X2 4 mm
k2 m2 2
30 x50 2
 3

An electric motor of mass 20 kg is placed on a

fixed-fixed steel beam. The beam is observed to
vibrate with large amplitudes at an operating
speed of 1350 rpm of the motor. The motor has
a rotating unbalance of 0.1 kg m. The amplitude
of vibration of the beam under steady state
operation of the motor is suppressed by
attaching an undamped vibration absorber
underneath the motor. Determine the mass and
stiffness of the absorber such that the
amplitude of the absorber mass is 2 cm.
 3

1350 rpm 141.371 rad/s

F0 me 2 0.1x141.3712
k2 99.928 kN/m
X2 X2 0.02
F0 me 2
m2 2 k 2
X2 X2
me 0.1
m2 5 kg
X 2 0.02
 4
An electric motor having an unbalance of 2 kg-cm, is
mounted at the end of a steel cantilever beam. The
beam is observed to vibrate with large amplitudes at
the operating speed of 1500 rpm of the motor. It is
proposed to add a vibration absorber to reduce the
vibration of the beam. Determine the ratio of absorber
mass to the mass of the motor needed in order to have
the lower frequency of the resulting system equal to 75
percent of the operating speed of the motor. If the
mass of the motor is 300 kg, determine the stiffness
and mass of the absorber. Also find the amplitude of
vibration of absorber mass.
 4

k1 k2 m2
1 , 2 ,
m1 m2 m1
1 2
r1 , r2
2 2
1 157.08 rad/s, r1 0.75, m1 300 kg

2
r12 , r22 1 1 1
2 2
 4contd

r14 1
2 2 0.3403
r1
m2 0.3403m1 102.09 kg
k 2 22 m2 2.519106 N/m
Fo me 2
X2 0.1959 mm
k2 k2
 5
A reciprocating engine is installed on the first floor of
the building, which can be modeled as a rigid
rectangular plate resting on four columns. The
equivalent mass of the engine and floor is 900 kg. At
the rated speed of the engine, which is 600 rpm, the
operators experience large vibrations of the floor. It has
been decided to reduce these vibrations by suspending
a spring-mass system from the bottom surface of the
floor. Assume that the spring stiffness is k2=900 kN/m.
Find the mass to be attached to absorb the vibrations.
What will be the natural frequencies of the system after
the absorber is added?
 5

900x103
k2
m2 2 227.972 kg
2 62.832 2

m2 227.972
0.2533
m1 900
1 2
r1 , r2
2 2

2
r12 , r22 1 1 1
2 2
 5contd

r12 , r22 0.60767,1.64563

r1 , r2 0.779,1.282
1 r12 48.979 rad/s 467.719 rpm
2 r22 80.602 rad/s 769.693rpm