Sources of torsional vibration[edit]

Torsional vibration can be introduced into a drive train by the power source. But even a drive train with a very smooth
rotational input can develop torsional vibrations through internal components. Common sources are:

Internal combustion engine: The torsional vibrations of the not continuous combustion and the crank shaft
geometry itself cause torsional vibrations[1]
Reciprocating compressor: The pistons experience discontinuous forces from the compression.[2]
Universal joint: The geometry of this joint causes torsional vibrations if the shafts are not parallel.
Stick slip: During the engagement of a friction element, stick slip situations create torsional vibrations.
Lash: Lash in a drive train can cause torsional vibrations if the direction of rotation is changed.

Crankshaft torsional vibration[edit]

Torsional vibration is a concern in the crankshafts of internal combustion engines because it could break the
crankshaft itself; shear-off the flywheel; or cause driven belts, gears and attached components to fail, especially when
the frequency of the vibration matches the torsional resonant frequency of the crankshaft. Causes of the torsional
vibration are attributed to several factors.

Alternating torques are generated by the slider-crank mechanism of the crankshaft, connecting rod, and piston.
The cylinder pressure due to combustion is not constant through the combustion cycle.
The slider-crank mechanism does not output a smooth torque even if the pressure is constant (e.g., at top
dead centre there is no torque generated)
The motion of the piston mass and connecting rod mass generate alternating torques often referred to as
"inertia" torques
Engines with six or more cylinders in a straight line configuration can have very flexible crankshafts due to their
long length.
2 Stroke Engines generally have smaller bearing overlap between the main and the pin bearings due to the
larger stroke length, hence increasing the flexibility of the Crankshaft due to decreased stiffness.
There is inherently little damping in a crankshaft to reduce the vibration except for the shearing resistance of oil
film in the main and conrod bearings.
If torsional vibration is not controlled in a crankshaft it can cause failure of the crankshaft or any accessories that are
being driven by the crankshaft (typically at the front of the engine; the inertia of the flywheel normally reduces the
motion at the rear of the engine).
This potentially damaging vibration is often controlled by a torsional damper that is located at the front nose of the
crankshaft (in automobiles it is often integrated into the front pulley). There are two main types of torsional dampers.

Viscous dampers consist of an inertia ring in a viscous fluid. The torsional vibration of the crankshaft forces the
fluid through narrow passages that dissipates the vibration as heat. The viscous torsional damper is analogous
to the hydraulic shock absorber in a car's suspension.
Tuned absorber type of "dampers" often referred to as a harmonic dampers or harmonic balancers (even though
it technically does not dampen or balance the crankshaft). This damper uses a spring element (often rubber in
automobile engines) and an inertia ring that is typically tuned to the first torsional natural frequency of the
crankshaft. This type of damper reduces the vibration at specific engine speeds when an excitation torque
excites the first natural frequency of the crankshaft, but not at other speeds. This type of damper is analogous to
the tuned mass dampers used in skyscrapers to reduce the building motion during an earthquake.

Torsional vibrations in electromechanical drive systems[edit]

Torsional vibrations of drive systems usually result in a significant fluctuation of the rotational speed of the rotor of the
driving electric motor. Such oscillations of the angular speed superimposed on the average rotor rotational speed
cause more or less severe perturbation of the electromagnetic flux and thus additional oscillations of the electric
currents in the motor windings. Then, the generated electromagnetic torque is also characterized by additional
variable in time components which induce torsional vibrations of the drive system. According to the above,
mechanical vibrations of the drive system become coupled with the electrical vibrations of currents in the motor
windings. Such a coupling is often complicated in character and thus computationally troublesome. Because of this
reason, till present majority of authors used to simplify the matter regarding mechanical vibrations of drive systems
and electric current vibrations in the motor windings as mutually uncoupled. Then, the mechanical engineers applied
the electromagnetic torques generated by the electric motors as a priori assumed excitation functions of time or of
the rotor-to-stator slip, e.g. in paper [3][4][5] usually basing on numerous experimental measurements carried out for the
given electric motor dynamic behaviours. For this purpose, by means of measurement results, proper approximate
formulas have been developed, which describe respective electromagnetic external excitations produced by the
electric motor,.[6] However, the electricians thoroughly modelled electric current flows in the electric motor windings,
but they usually reduced the mechanical drive system to one or seldom to at most a few rotating rigid bodies, as e.g.
in [7] In many cases, such simplifications yield sufficiently useful results for engineering applications, but very often
they can lead to remarkable inaccuracies, since many qualitative dynamic properties of the mechanical systems, e.g.
their mass distribution, torsional flexibility and damping effects, are being neglected. Thus, an influence of drive
system vibratory behaviour on the electric machine rotor angular speed fluctuation, and in this way on the electric
current oscillations in the rotor and stator windings, can not be investigated with a satisfactory precision.
Mechanical vibrations and deformations are phenomena associated with an operation of majority of railway vehicle
drivetrain structures. The knowledge about torsional vibrations in transmission systems of railway vehicles is of a
great importance in the fields dynamics of mechanical systems.[8] Torsional vibrations in the railway vehicle drive train
are generated by several phenomena. Generally, these phenomena are very complex and they can be divided into
two main parts.