Implicit dynamic analysis of VE‐damped structures using Maxwell parallel systems

A direct integration method for the dynamic analysis of structures equipped with viscoelastic dampers (VED) is presented in this paper. The constitutive model of the damper is set using a system of Maxwell elements composed in parallel (MPS); the evolutive behavior of the VE material is accounted for by introducing temperature‐dependent mechanical properties. The solution procedure follows an incremental approach of implicit type that, by means of a discrete‐time formulation of the problem, allows expression of the damping force discretization in a form suitable to be included in a standard integration scheme. The resulting algorithm is proved to be very effective and robust; the distinctive features of the proposed numerical method suggest the possibility of a successful implementation of an MPS procedure in the frame of a standard finite element code.