The design of high cycle fatigue resistant bladed disks requires the ability to predict the expected damping of the structure in order to evaluate the dynamic behavior and ensure structural integrity. Highly sophisticated software codes are available today for this nonlinear analysis, but their correct use requires a good understanding of the correct model generation and the input parameters involved to ensure a reliable prediction of the blade behavior. The aim of the work described in this paper is to determine the suitability of current modeling approaches and to enhance the quality of the nonlinear modeling of turbine blades with underplatform dampers. This includes an investigation of a choice of the required input parameters, an evaluation of their best use in nonlinear friction analysis, and an assessment of the sensitivity of the response to variations in these parameters. Part of the problem is that the input parameters come with varying degrees of uncertainty because some are experimentally determined, others are derived from analysis, and a final set are often based on estimates from previous experience. In this investigation the model of a commercial turbine bladed disk with an underplatform damper is studied, and its first flap, first torsion, and first edgewise modes are considered for 6 EO and 36 EO excitation. The influence of different contact interface meshes on the results is investigated, together with several distributions of the static normal contact loads, to enhance the model setup and, hence, increase accuracy in the response predictions of the blade with an underplatform damper. A parametric analysis is carried out on the friction contact parameters and the correct setup of the nonlinear contact model to determine their influence on the dynamic response and to define the required accuracy of the input parameters. [DOI: 10.1115/1.4004721]
