Dynamic behavior of thick magnetorheological elastomers

Abstract

This work is focused on the study of the dynamic behavior of thick magnetorheological elastomers at high frequencies. Experimental and theoretical studies are conducted to investigate the dynamic shear properties of magnetorheological elastomers which are affected by increasing the thickness, as well as the percentage of iron particles contained in magnetorheological elastomers. A double-shear test setup is designed and built to test the magnetorheological elastomer samples over a range of frequencies from 200 to 800 Hz. The results demonstrate that the thickness of magnetorheological elastomer significantly affects the material properties in the off-state, that is, when no magnetic field is applied. However, for the on-state, when the material is activated by a magnetic field, the thickness of the sample does not show a significant effect on the change in storage modulus induced by a magnetic field. The theoretical analysis includes a macro-mechanical model for the storage modulus and loss modulus of magnetorheological elastomer as a function of thickness, percentage of iron particles, and applied magnetic field. Comparisons between the theoretical and experimental results show that the model reasonably predicts the dynamic behavior of thick magnetorheological elastomers.