Ultra-wide low-frequency band gap in locally-resonant plates with tunable inerter-based resonators

A novel concept of locally-resonant inertant plate is presented. The key idea is that the plate is supported by a periodic array of fixed one-degree-of-freedom inerter-based resonators, where each resonator consists of an inerter and a spring acting in parallel, connected to the plate by a single spring. Further, the resonator is tunable by two rhombus trusses with telescopic rods, allowing changes of inertance and stiffness. The relevant result is that, because of local resonance and periodicity, a very large band gap can be opened at very low frequency, which is of remarkable interest for structural and mechanical engineering applications. Additionally, opening frequency and width of the band gap can be changed by appropriate selections of the diagonal ratios of the rhombus trusses. The wave propagation analysis is carried out by a finite-element model in ABAQUS. Dispersion curves and frequency response under various loading conditions substantiate the effectiveness of the novel concept of locally-resonant inertant plate.