MR damping system for mitigating wind-rain induced vibration on Dongting Lake cable-stayed bridge

The Dongting Lake Bridge is a cable-stayed bridge crossing the Dongting Lake where it meets the Yangtze River in southern central China. Several intensive wind-rain induced vibrations had been observed since its open to traffic in 1999. To investigate the possibility of using MR damping systems to reduce cable vibration, a series of field tests were conducted. Based on the promising research results, MR damping system was installed on the longest 156 stay cables of Dongting Lake Bridge in June 2002, making it the worlds first application of MR dampers on cable-stayed bridge to suppress the wind-rain induced cable vibration. As a visible and permanent aspect of the bridge, the MR damping system must be aesthetically pleasing, reliable, durable, easy to maintain, as well as effective in vibration mitigation. Substantial work was done to meet these requirements. This paper describes field tests and the implementation of MR damping systems for cable vibration reduction. Three-years reliable service of this system proves its durability.