Wave Propagation Control in Beams Through Periodic Multi-Branch Shunts

Periodic, shunted piezoelectric patches are applied for the control of wave propagation in beams. The patches are shunted through resonant circuits featuring a single and multiple resonances. The periodic arrangement of shunted patches provides the beam with attenuation properties which depend on the resonant behavior of the shunts. This article specifically illustrates the effectiveness of periodic shunted patches for passive wave propagation control, and focuses on the application of multi-resonant circuits for the generation of multiple attenuation frequency ranges (bandgaps), which can be tuned to target several structural modes of the beam. A numerical model predicts the attenuation characteristics of the beam for different shunting configurations. The experimental implementation of the concept on a beam with five patches illustrates the effectiveness of the method in terms of its attenuation capabilities and its tunable characteristics.