Highly Dissipative Materials for Damage Protection against Earthquake-Induced Structural Pounding.

It is a common situation that seismic excitations may lead to collisions between adjacent civil engineering structures. This phenomenon, called earthquake-induced structural pounding, may result in serious damage or even the total collapse of the colliding structures. Filling the gap between two buildings erected close to one another by using visco-elastic materials can be considered to be one of the most effective methods to avoid seismic pounding.

Experimental Study on the Effectiveness of Polyurethane Flexible Adhesive in Reduction of Structural Vibrations.

The aim of the present study is to consider the idea of using polyurethane flexible adhesive in to reduce the vibrations in structures exposed to dynamic loads and evaluate their damping properties in relation to large deformations. Firstly, two aluminium cantilever beams, simulating structural elements (without and with polyurethane layer in the form of tape), were analysed, in order to check the damping of the unconstrained polymer layer. In the second stage of the study, a composite beam consisting of two aluminium flat beams bonded with polymer adhesive was considered, so as to check the damping of the constrained polymer layer.