This research will explore an approach to the engineering of structural composite materials with enhanced intrinsic passive damping, and to develop appropriate modeling techniques and design guidelines. The approach is based on the use of integrally-shunted piezoceramic rods as reinforcing elements of a composite material. Because of high electroelastic coupling, straining produces voltage gradients along the rods. By shunting the electroded rod ends through an integral resistor, current is allowed to flow and dissipate energy through joule heating, Very high peak damping loss factors are theoretically attainable even at low fiber volume fractions (20%) in epoxy.
