Performance evaluation of a smart damper device under cyclic loading for structural maintenance

Large-scale earthquakes have occurred frequently in South Korea in recent years with increasing magnitude and frequency. Vibration control technology is an effective seismic design strategy that mitigates earthquake-induced loads. However, conventional vibration control devices are often vulnerable to damage or failure owing to material yielding, making replacement inevitable and incurring additional maintenance costs. To address these limitations, this study developed and assessed a smart damper device fabricated from a superelastic shape memory alloy(SMA) and polyurethane, designed to maintain functionality even after exposure to strong seismic events. To investigate the resistance of the device to sustained loads such as seismic loads, structural experiments were conducted by applying repeated loads and evaluating the derived load–displacement curves. For comparison, structural experiments were also conducted on a conventional damper device made of structural steel. The smart damper device exhibited superior performance in terms of energy dissipation capacity and restoring force compared with the conventional damper device. The smart damper device was also flexibly responsive to cyclic loads such as seismic loads. Although conventional steel may be more economical considering the cost of superelastic SMAs, an optimized design method for the smart damper device can potentially serve as an efficient alternative for vibration control.