James Ron D.

Martinez Assignment 1

ME146-2 | C2 August 22, 2022

What is the importance of studying mechanical vibration?

As a student aspiring to be an Engineer someday, it is fundamental to study mechanical

vibration because the safety of the people regarding the construction of various structures,

machines, inventions, systems, and more relies on Engineers. Although the engineers' main

purpose is to create and produce things that will aid the world's problems and people's concerns,

engineers are still responsible for the harmful effects their inventions or creation inflicts. Engineers

are expected to be the reliable profession for these matters as they acquire the expertise regarding

the integrity or durability and reliability of these materials, structures, and more, whether

theoretically or in practice. Engineers should also be aware of the hazards that a machine or any

technology may impose. All of which are elaborated professional social responsibility in

engineering, which points to human safety and environmental protection (Bielefeldt, 2018)

In terms of the construction of structures, engineers are obliged to analyze the amount of

stress, displacement, forces, strain, loads, the strength of the material, elasticity, and other more

external factors to a structure. One of these factors is mechanical vibration. If so happens that an

engineer failed to study even just one factor, the structure may fail to support applied loads

(AUTODESK Help, n.d.). These are grave failures as they often result in devastating injuries or

death. The effects of mechanical vibration on a structure can be observed in the Tacoma Narrows

Bridge tragedy in the year 1940. The primary source and environmental factor which led to the

mechanical vibration is the wind since the suspension bridge is less rigid. The mechanical vibration

that can be experienced by a suspended bridge is in the form of resonance. Since energy is stored,

when considering phenomena such as vortex shedding, its periodic driving force from the
oscillation of vortices formed on the back side of a blunt object as fluid, such as wind, passes by

intensifies over time. The vibration amplifies when these vortices or alternating zones of low

pressure occur in synchronized frequency with the natural frequency. Another mechanical

vibration that a suspended bridge can experience is an aeroelastic flutter which was said to actually

be the cause of the incident. The aeroelastic flutter results from aerodynamic properties of the

structure wherein as the wind passes, areas of low pressure of vertices are created, which creates

torsional or twisting large vibration further amplified and continued by momentum. The aeroelastic

flutter, in this case, is different from vortex shedding as the aeroelastic shutter is self-induced. Due

to the aeroelastic flutter, the suspension cable exceeded the acceptable amount of stress, and the

bridge collapsed (Kilty, 2021; Practical Engineering, 2018).

In similar cases with the Tacoma Narrows Bridge, wherein failures are involved, the

Hippocratic Oath to "first, do no harm" is easily violated since bridges, buildings, or any structures

are used by groups of people and are exposed to the public. As for mechanical engineers, the

equivalent principle of the mentioned Hippocratic Oath is implied in a Failure Mode Effects

Analysis (FMEA). To properly conduct this analysis wherein the integrity of a design and its

possibility of being catastrophic are analyzed and considered. As much and early as possible,

engineers try to prevent disastrous incidents from happening (Kilty, 2021). Analysis after the

incidents are also done for safety reports, wherein determining the cause of an incident is as

important. Without understanding and studying mechanical vibration, engineers could not be able

to perform these analyses, eliminate or replace the reason, or minimize or overall avoid the failure

from happening (Vincoli, 2014). However, due to the application of mechanical vibration

principles and other field of studies, engineers managed to come up with designs such as helical

vanes to prevent and disrupt vortices in vortex shedding from accumulating, aerodynamic
structures to avoid aerodynamic flutters, invent dampers to suppress vibrations induced by the

wind, and more (Practical Engineering, 2018).

Delving into the applications of mechanical vibration in a technological or invention

aspect, engineers still hold responsibilities as mechanical vibration still imposes hazards and harm

to people. An example is the prolonged use of hand tools, equipment, and types of machinery that

inflict Hand Arm Vibration Syndrome. The blood vessels, nerves, and joints are all affected by the

painful and disabling HAVS condition. Long-term usage of hand-held power tools, such as

vibratory power tools and ground-working machinery, is typically the culprit. These tools include

chainsaws, drills, jackhammers, and more. These tools are very useful in construction, so we can't

just get rid of them. The user should perform equipment maintenance to mitigate the vibration and

use appropriate PPE. Operation of other power tools such as chainsaws, jackhammers, grinders,

and more imposes another hazard: noise. If we do not do something about the loud, repetitive, and

excessive noise, it can cause long-term hearing problems. It can also distract the worker and cause

accidents (Napoli Shkolnik PLLC, 2018). Noise or sound, in general, is a mechanical vibration

concern because it is a type of energy produced by vibrations. These working environment

conditions present hazards caused by vibration, proving that studying mechanical vibration is

essential. In order to invent an effective Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) such as Anti-

vibration Gloves or earmuffs that dampen or reduce the vibration or harmful effect of the tools,

we must understand how vibration propagates. Vibration or sound travels in a wave pattern

outwards in all directions from the source. This mode of travel relies on the medium; thus, using

different materials for the Anti-vibration Gloves or earmuffs would have a different effect. It is

also advised to work away from noisy areas since it can be observed that sound fades as we move

away from the source. The occurrence makes sense because the region that the sound waves cover
grows as one gets farther from the start of the sound. The intensity and loudness of the sound are

reduced because the same quantity of energy is dispersed over a larger region (ck-12, 2019).

Moreover, since sound waves are a form of energy, we can use this energy to become

something more useful or practical for a situation. One of the essentials of our modern life is

electricity. However, there are only a few ways to produce them sustainably and eco-friendly. A

method to produce electricity using renewable and sustainable energy is through the use of

Piezoelectric transduction, wherein the source of energy is mechanical vibration or sound. When

a piezoelectric material is applied with mechanical vibration or sound, it has the ability to produce

electric power. Crystalline ceramics or polymers are the materials utilized in piezoelectric energy

harvesting, which receive heat and then exposed to a magnetic field to align the electric dipoles.

Then, when the electric dipoles are aligned, and the piezoelectric material is applied to tension, an

electric charge is created. A study that aimed to investigate the possibility of harvesting energy

from road traffic using piezoelectric technology was successful since road traffic generates loud

noises thus confirming the truthfulness of the principle in the application (Papagiannakis et al.,

2016).

Aside from the danger that vibration may impose in the engineering workplace, disasters

such as earthquakes also impose a threat to the public. With the technology we have now, such as

vibration testers and seismometers, we can gauge, predict, and locate disasters such as earthquakes.

However, to effectively utilize this equipment, we must have the necessary knowledge on the

characterization of vibrations and how the plates underneath interacted to cause the earthquake.

Such information tells us how engineers may plan to design structures in the area. It can also tell

us what places to avoid altogether. It can also prepare us for aftershocks. The seismograph uses a

large, inert mass having a certain amount of resistance to movement (i.e. inertia) as a result of its
weight is suspended from a frame by a spring that enables movement, and this movement is used

to measure the activity of the earth's plates. We may leverage ourselves in such catastrophes by

having even a basic understanding of vibration fundamentals and the appropriate equipment

enough to distinguish normal and abnormal vibration levels (IRIS one-pager Fact Sheet, 2021).

Overall, mechanical vibration can either be beneficial or harmful. Unfortunately,

mechanical vibration tends to be more harmful naturally and easily. As discussed, its harmful

effects usually are not foreseen immediately due to natural disasters such as earthquakes, natural

phenomena such as wind flowing to structures, or consequences such as Hand Arm Vibration

Syndrome or impaired hearing that is only noticed after a long period of exposure to mechanical

vibration or noise, and more. These harmful effects are also grave and serious as they cause

casualties, injuries, overall quality of life, and financial burdens during accidents or incidents.

Moreover, utilizing mechanical vibration to become beneficial requires more technicalities as they

are revealed by having an understanding of theories such as the principle behind piezoelectric

transducers, vibration testers, sound energy, and seismometers. With these considered, it is

apparent that studying mechanical vibration is essential to maintain an acceptable level of safety

and yield favorable results from mechanical vibration.

References:

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https://help.autodesk.com/view/fusion360/ENU/?guid=GUID-FAEEEC3F-2E62-

4A42-AA45-E237D7A7B6F9

Bielefeldt, A. R. (2018). Professional Social Responsibility in Engineering. Social

Responsibility. https://doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.73785

ck-12. (2019, September 27). 12.3 Intensity and Loudness of Sound. Flexbooks.Ck12. Retrieved

August 22, 2022, from https://flexbooks.ck12.org/cbook/ck-12-physics-flexbook-

2.0/section/12.3/primary/lesson/intensity-and-loudness-of-sound-ms-ps/

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491–492. https://doi-org.mapua.idm.oclc.org/10.1119/5.0026060

Napoli Shkolnik PLLC. (2018, October 15). Most Common Risks and Hazards on a Construction

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Papagiannakis, A. T., Dessouky, S., Montoya, A., & Roshani, H. (2016). Energy harvesting from

roadways. Procedia Computer Science, 83, 758–765.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.procs.2016.04.164

Practical Engineering. (2018, August 28). Why the Tacoma Narrows Bridge Collapsed [Video].

YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mXTSnZgrfxM

Vincoli, J. W. (2014). Basic Guide to System Safety (3rd ed.). Wiley.