The origin of damping behavior of dynamic-mechanical energies in rubber materials

Junk energy is usually harmful, causing damage and reducing the useful life of systems. Therefore, this vibrations are required to be absorbed or controlled. One important factor in the study of dynamic systems is damping energy or loss of energy. Damping of energy is defined as the capability of a material in absorbing energy and converting it into heat. Damping in a system consists of two parts: structural damping and material damping. Structural damping depends on the geometrical properties of the structure and its components, and the material damping is due to internal friction and is dependent on the intrinsic properties of the material. In general, rubber is considered as the best energy absorption due to viscoelastic behavior. The characteristic which that separates the special behavior of rubbers to the energy absorption from other polymers is their amorphous structure (with microscopic free volume for mobility) and flexible chains. Internal friction between polymer chains is an important mechanism in damping of rubber material, depending on the flexibility of the chain and the free volume. In this study, the role of the nature of material in damping energy is investigated.