Augmenting Heat Transfer from Fail-Safe Magneto-Rheological Fluid Dampers Using Fins

Abstract

This paper presents a lumped system model for predicting the heat transfer from fail-safe magneto-rheological fluid dampers. For this study, a fail-safe damper is defined as a damper which retains a moderate damping capacity in the event of a power systems failure. To evaluate the validity of the theoretical model, two automotive size dampers were constructed, one with fins to augment heat transfer and one without fins. The results show that the model slightly over predicts the temperature rise when compared to experimental data. Despite the error, both the experimental and theoretical results clearly demonstrate that the heat transfer can be considerably enhanced with the use of the fins. Finally, the results also indicate that both the mechanical and electrical power input contribute substantially to the temperature rise.