The Control of Engine Vibration Using Squeeze Film Dampers

This paper describes the following roles of a squeeze-film damper when used in gas turbine applications as a means of reducing vibration and transmitted force due to unbalance: (a) as an element in parallel with a soft spring in a vibration isolator; and (b) as an element in series with the stiffness of the engine pedestal. The effects of cavitation on performance are elucidated, and the dangers of jump phenomena and subsynchronous response are discussed. Experimental work is described in which both roles of the squeeze-film damper are investigated and the results are compared with theoretical predictions.