Title: A new Hysteretic Nonlinear Energy Sink (HNES),
Abstract: The behavior of a new Hysteretic Nonlinear Energy Sink (HNES) coupled to a
linear primary oscillator is investigated in shock mitigation. Apart from a
small mass and a nonlinear elastic spring of the Duffing oscillator, the HNES
is also comprised of a purely hysteretic and a linear elastic spring of
potentially negative stiffness, connected in parallel. The Bouc-Wen model is
used to describe the force produced by both the purely hysteretic and linear
elastic springs. Coupling the primary oscillator with the HNES three nonlinear
equations of motion are derived, in terms of the two displacements and the
dimensionless hysteretic variable, which are integrated numerically using the
analog equation method. The performance of the HNES is examined by quantifying
the percentage of the initially induced energy in the primary system that is
passively transferred and dissipated by the HNES. Remarkable results are
achieved for a wide range of initial input energies. The great performance of
the HNES is mostly evidenced when the linear spring stiffness takes on negative
values.