The effect of structural damping on flow-induced vibration of a thin elliptical cylinder

This study experimentally investigates the influence of structural damping on the transverse flow-induced vibration (FIV) of an elastically mounted thin elliptical cylinder. The cylinder tested has an elliptical ratio of epsilon = b/a = 5, where a and b are the streamwise and cross-flow dimensions, respectively, and a mass ratio (i.e. the total oscillating mass/the displaced fluid mass) of 17.4. The FIV response was characterised over a reduced velocity range of 2.30 <= U* = U/(f(nw)b) <= 10.00 (corresponding to a Reynolds number range of 300 <= Re = (Ub)/nu <= 1300) and a structural damping ratio range of 3.62 x 10(-3) <= zeta <= 1.87 x 10(-1). Here, U is the free stream velocity, f(nw) is the natural frequency of the system in quiescent fluid (water) and. is the kinematic viscosity of the fluid. The FIV response was characterised by four wake-body synchronisation regimes (defined as the matching of the dominant fluid forcing and oscillation frequencies, and labelled regime I, regime II, regime III and the hyper branch) and a desynchronisation region, with the hyper branch representing a high amplitude regime not observed for a circular cylinder. Interestingly, the major vortex shedding mode was predominately two single opposite-signed vortices shed per body vibration cycle. Moreover, hydrogen-bubble-based flow visualisations revealed a secondary vortex street forming in the elongated shear layers associated with largest-scale vibration amplitudes (A* = A/b up to 7.7) in the hyper branch and regime II. As the structural damping ratio was increased beyond 1.92 x 10(-2), the hyper branch was found to be suppressed. The results have potential ramifications for the efficient extraction of energy from free-flowing water sources, which has become increasingly topical over the last decade.