Viscous Fluid Damping Wall (VFW): High-Efficiency Seismic & Wind Damper for Buildings

A complete VFW unit consists of three core parts: inner steel plate, outer sealed steel box and high-viscosity fluid filled between plates.
When earthquakes or strong winds create horizontal relative displacement between upper and lower floors, the inner steel plate slides and shears the viscous liquid. Fluid velocity gradient generates stable damping force, converting seismic and wind vibration kinetic energy into heat for dissipation. This significantly raises structural damping ratio and reduces building seismic response effectively.

VFW outperforms traditional cylinder viscous dampers with multiple practical strengths:

1, Architectural Friendly & Slimmer Thickness
It looks like reinforced concrete shear walls and can be embedded in partition walls, elevator shafts and window bays without breaking interior layout. Under the same damping tonnage, VFW is thinner than cylinder dampers, optimizing architectural space design.

2, Simple Structure with Standard Materials
No complicated precision parts or special customized raw materials are required, cutting production and project costs.

3, Strong Energy Dissipation Capacity
Large shear contact area between steel plates and viscous fluid lifts structural damping ratio above 20%, absorbing massive seismic energy to protect main frame structures.

4, Wide Application Range
It fits all types of frame buildings, including low-rise, high-rise and supertall structures, and serves well for old building seismic reinforcement and post-earthquake repair works.

5, Excellent Cyclic Performance
Great fatigue resistance adapts to long-duration, multi-cycle seismic waves. It also suppresses high-rise wind-induced shaking to meet human comfort standards.

6, Ultra-Low Maintenance Cost
Only simple visual inspection is needed after earthquakes; no large-scale repair on main building structures is required.

7, Waterproof & Anti-Corrosion Viscous Medium
The internal damping fluid is durable and waterproof, preventing electrolytic corrosion of steel components. No extra anti-rust treatment is needed during service.

8, Zero High-Pressure Sealing & Low Leakage Risk
Unlike cylinder dampers relying on high-pressure dynamic sealing, VFW stores liquid in a zero-pressure fully welded cavity. Qualified welding avoids liquid leakage and external impurity contamination, delivering longer service life and more stable performance.

Quality Control

Laser positioning instruments are used to guarantee accurate installation of embedded plates. All raw materials and finished products must provide factory certificates and pass secondary on-site inspection before use. Key procedures including welding and concrete pouring are tracked fully.

Safety Management

We follow the policy of "Safety First, Prevention First". Protective railings are set around construction zones to prevent falling accidents. All flammables within 2 meters of welding areas are cleared with fire extinguishers on standby. Oxygen and acetylene cylinders are placed over 5 meters apart, and gas hoses keep 10 meters away from cylinders. Operators receive regular safety training and pre-work safety briefings.

Civilized Construction

The site is arranged neatly with classified material stacking. All workers wear unified uniforms and labeled safety helmets. Special waste collection zones, standardized office and dormitory prefab houses are built to maintain a tidy working environment.

Inspection & Long-Term Maintenance

Viscous fluid damping walls need regular inspection to sustain stable performance:

Routine visual inspection every 10 years or during secondary building renovation; sampling inspection is required when reaching the design service life.

Mandatory sampling test after earthquakes, strong winds or fire disasters.

Inspect wall surface, welding joints and connecting components for deformation, leakage and damage.

Metal dampers need no regular inspection under normal conditions, while viscous dampers require scheduled monitoring as above. No major renovation of the main building is needed after seismic events.

Application Scenarios

New multi-story, high-rise & supertall residential, office and commercial buildings

Key public buildings: hospitals, schools, exhibition halls and airport terminals

Seismic retrofitting of aged existing structures

Coastal high-rise projects with strict wind vibration comfort requirements

Frame and precast concrete building systems