What Is a Vibration Damping Steel Plate?
Vibration-damping steel plates are designed to reduce noise and vibration in machinery. These plates include composite types where vibration-damping materials, such as visco-elastic adhesives, butyl rubber, non-woven fabrics, paints, or alloys, are bonded to or sandwiched between steel plates. These materials suppress steel plate resonance and convert vibration energy into heat. Vibration-damping alloys, like zinc alloys, which absorb vibration energy, are also used in these applications.
The steel plates utilized in these applications can vary, including hot-rolled, cold-rolled, electroplated, hot-dip galvanized, alloy-plated, and alloy steel plates. The selection is based on the specific requirements of the application while maintaining the inherent advantages of steel plates.
Uses of Vibration Damping Steel Plates
Vibration damping steel plates are widely used in industries like automotive, where they are found in oil pans, motorcycle chain covers, dashboards, door panels, hood roofs, and cam covers. In home appliances, they are used in washing machine bodies, refrigerator bodies, air conditioner panels, and speaker frames. In construction, these plates are utilized in roofing materials to reduce rain noise and improve thermal insulation, and they are also employed in curtain rails in hospitals.
Principle of Vibration Damping Steel Plates
There are two types of vibration damping steel plates: restrained and unconstrained. Restrained types, where the damping material is held between steel plates, convert vibration energy into heat through bending deformation, thus reducing vibration. These plates maintain the inherent properties of steel, such as strength, toughness, workability, and weldability, and are commonly used in automobiles, home appliances, and construction. Unconstrained types absorb vibration energy through expansion and contraction deformation.
Vibration-damping alloys are materials with inherent vibration absorption properties. Examples include graphite cast iron used in machine tool foundations and aluminum-zinc alloys used in computer peripherals. These alloys, when subjected to vibration, experience twinning activity within their structure, converting vibration energy into heat, thus dampening the effect. They offer tensile strength and workability comparable to mild steel and exhibit increased damping effectiveness with greater vibration amplitude within their elastic limit.