A New Technique to Reduce Vibration in Lightweight Floors

Abstract

Lightweight floor constructions often suffer from annoying vibration. Long span floor are especially vulnerable with dynamic properties that yield both springiness due to low stiffness and resonant vibration due to poor damping. A new method, that treats resonant vibration, applicable to floors with resilient ceiling, is presented in this study. By using a piece of strategically located visco-elastic material connected to the ceiling joists, which is designed using a finite element model for an optimal position and size, it is demonstrated that the damping of the floor is increased. The results show that the damper is extremely efficient to reduce vibration of the type where floor and ceiling are oscillating out of phase to each other. The device also affects in phase modes like the fundamental one, but to a lower extent.