Online control of critical speed vibrations of a single-span rotor by a rotor dynamic vibration absorber at different installation positions

The serious vibration of rotors around the critical speed is a problem in rotor systems. To overcome this problem, a single-span two-disk rotor bench was built to simulate the starting process of a rotor. A new Rotor dynamic vibration absorber (RDVA) was designed and installed in the middle of the rotor. A on-off control method based on speed was applied to control the on-off position of the electromagnet in RDVA. Therefore, the natural frequencies between two selected values could be changed. The principles for the vibration control of the rotor system were studied. The vibration suppression performance of an RDVA is a function of its location. The location of the RDVA is subject to several constraints due to the compact structure of the rotor system. As a result, RDVA cannot always be installed at the optimal location of vibration suppression. Accordingly, a study was performed to observe the effect of RDVA location on the vibration suppression performance. Results showed that installing RDVA with on-off control between the two disks not only suppressed the violent vibrations of the rotor at critical speed during the starting process but also avoided the two resonance peaks generated by the traditional absorber. RDVA maintained the vibration of the rotor at a low level in the entire speed range. Furthermore, the vibrations of the rotor system decreased by 20 % when RDVA was installed near the rotor support.