Active damping devices for aeroelastic models

The damping control of aeroelastic models for wind tunnel testing is a key feature influencing the quality of the obtained results. The paper presents two devices to actively control the damping parameter using piezoelectric actuators. The former allows to directly modify the structural damping of the aeroelastic model while the latter allows to modify the damping through an active tuned mass damper. The devices are specifically developed to perform an easy and fine modification of the damping parameter for vortex induced vibration investigations. The devices were initially characterised in lab and then used to perform wind tunnel tests on a bridge tower model.