Analysis of vibrations of lightweight floor systems

Abstract: During the last four decades floor systems used in housing and office-buildings in the Netherlands were mostly made of stone-like materials, and can be characterized as heavy. In recent years, in light of sustainable building methods, the trend is to reduce the use of materials and thus build lighter. Lightweight floor structures are however often found to be more susceptible to vibrations than heavier floor structures. The vibrations are caused by dynamic actions such as walking persons or vibrating machines such as a washing machine. This represents the floor system as a beam supported by hinges with a rotational spring at both ends. The influence of the parameters involved are described. An analytical approach is used that results in an approximation formula to find the first natural frequency depending on several parameters and recommendations for practical use are given.