Influence of transformation temperatures on damping and transient vibration response in shape memory alloy reinforced composites

Vibration control is a critical challenge in engineering systems such as aircraft wings, turbine blades, automobile components, and robotic arms, where resonance, noise, and fatigue can severely affect performance and safety. Shape Memory Alloys (SMA), owing to their pseudoelasticity and hysteresis behavior, offer significant potential for adaptive vibration attenuation when embedded in composites. This study investigates the transient vibration response of SMA-reinforced composites with emphasis on the influence of transformation temperatures. A MATLAB-based numerical model is developed to generate transient response curves, which are validated against experimental results from fabricated composite samples. The findings reveal that at the austenite transformation temperature, the damping factor increases by 41.9%, while peak time and settling time decrease by 40.7% and 33.3%, respectively, and the natural frequency rises by 69.8% compared to the natural frequency at the martensite transformation temperature. These observed trends are consistent with prior studies on SMA-reinforced composites, which report increased stiffness and damping at the austenitic phase due to pseudoelastic hysteresis and phase-dependent energy dissipation mechanisms. However, it is noted that the present experimental results are based on single-composite test measurements, without replicate specimens or statistical error bars, which limits the quantitative generalization of the findings. Despite this limitation, the results provide clear evidence that SMA transformation temperatures significantly influence transient vibration behavior. These insights suggest that SMA composites are highly suitable for applications requiring adaptive damping, such as in aerospace, automotive, and robotic systems, while highlighting the need for future studies that incorporate multiple specimens and uncertainty analysis for robust validation.