In this paper, an energy-based approach is developed to investigate damping characteristics of beams with enhanced self-sensing active constrained layer (ESACL) damping treatments. Analytical formulations for the active, passive, and total hybrid modal loss factors of the cantilever and simply-supported beams partially covered with the ESACL are derived. The analytical formulations are validated with the results in the literature and experimental data for the cantilever beam. Beams with other boundary conditions can also be solved and discussed using the presented approach. The results show that the edge elements in the ESACL can significantly improve the system damping performance as compared to the active constrained layer damping treatment. The effects of key parameters, such as control gain, edge element stiffness, location, and coverage of the ESACL patch on the system loss factors, have been investigated. It has also been shown that the boundary conditions play an important role on the damping characteristics of the beam structure with the ESACL treatment. With careful analysis on the location and coverage of the partially covered ESACL treatment, effective vibration control for beams under various boundary conditions for specific modes of interest would be achieved.
