Edgewise Bending Vibration Analysis of a Rotating Sandwich Beam with Magnetorheological Elastomer Core

The vibration of a rotating sandwich beam with magnetorheological elastomer (MRE) as a core between two elastic layers is theoretically analyzed in this paper. This study is focused on the bending vibration along the edgewise direction of a sandwich beam of rectangular cross-section, which, to the best of our knowledge, has not been addressed yet. The classical Euler–Bernoulli beam theory is used to model the dynamic behavior of the elastic layers. In the modeling, the effect of the MRE layer is considered by incorporating its shear strains and the inertia due to shear deformation and bending motion. The governing equations of motion of the rotating sandwich beam are derived by using the Ritz method and the Lagrange’s equations. The effects of the applied magnetic field, core layer thickness, rotational speed, setting angle and hub radius on the natural frequencies and the corresponding loss factors are investigated parametrically. The results show the significant effect of the magnetic field intensity and the MRE layer thickness on the modal characteristics of the MRE sandwich beam.