Resonance and Resonance-Induced Degradation

Abstract

The time-to-failure models (developed in Chap. 14) for periodic stresses assumed that the periodic stresses were not associated with any resonant frequencies for the component/system. However, nearly every component/system has certain natural (or resonant) frequencies that must be avoided. If the applied time-dependent stress ξ(t) is periodic, with a frequency close to a system’s natural frequency υ, then this condition is referred to as resonance. Resonance can produce unexpectedly large-amplitude oscillations. This is true for both mechanical systems and electrical systems. Because of resonance, what might have been thought initially to be a rather benign stress condition can actually be a severe stress condition.