Spring-Arrangement Effect on Flow-Induced Vibration of a Circular Cylinder

Purpose This study elucidated the effect of an inclined spring arrangement on the flow-induced vibration of a circular cylinder to understand if the effect enhances the harnessing of the energy of fluid flows. Method An experiment was conducted on a circulating water channel. A circular cylinder was partially submerged. It was elastically supported by two springs whose longitudinal directions were varied. With the speed of the water flow varied, the vibrations of the circular cylinder were measured. The measured vibrations were interpreted by la linear dynamic model. Results and discussion In a few cases, a jump in response amplitudes from zero to the maximum was observed with the spring inclination at reduced velocities of 6 to 7, whereas gradually increasing response amplitudes were observed in other cases. The inclined spring arrangement achieved greater velocity amplitudes than in cases without spring inclination. A theoretical evaluation of the measured responses indicates that the effect of the inclined springs was caused by geometric nonlinearity; the effect would be more prominent by employing a longer moment lever.