Full-Scale viscoelastically damped steel frame

A full-scale five-story steel-frame structure with added viscoelastic (VE) dampers is studied experimentally and analytically. The experimental program includes free-vibration and harmonic forced-vibration tests. Dynamic scaling relations between the full-scale and 2/5-scale models with VE dampers are presented. Test results confirm that damping in the full-scale structure can be significantly increased by incorporating relatively small VE dampers. The modal strain energy method used to estimate the structural damping for the 2/5-scale model structure is also applicable to the full-scale structure. The damper design procedure developed from the 2/5-scale model can also be used for the full-scale structure. This study provides an important base for utilizing the extensive data generated from the reduced scale-model tests for incorporating VE dampers into full-scale structures.