Vibration control of civil structures using piezoceramic smart materials: A review

A review is presented for vibration suppression of civil structures. Special emphasis is laid upon smart structures with piezoelectric control actuation. The last decade has seen spiraling efforts going on around the world into development of the smart structures field. The success of these smart structures is orchestrated by the materials, such as piezoceramics, shape memory alloys, controllable fluids such as magneto-rheological fluids and electro-rheological fluids, fiber-optic sensors and various other materials. Piezoceramics have been known as low-cost, lightweight, and easy-to-implement materials for active control of structural vibration. Piezoceramics are available in various forms such as rigid patch, flexible patch, stack, Macro-Fiber Composite (MFC) actuator, and piezoceramic friction dampers. Piezoelectric patch actuators can be surface bonded to high strain areas of the structure with minimal modification of the original structure or they can be embedded into such as composites structures. On the other hand, stack type actuators can be incorporated into the structures, which require high control forces and micron level displacements, with slight modifications. This paper first presents basics about piezoceramic materials, various actuation methods and types of piezoceramic actuators. Then this paper reviews research into the application of piezoceramic actuators in various civil structures such as beams, trusses, steel frames and cable-stayed bridges.