Two different control methods, namely, adaptive sliding mode control and impulse damper, are used to control the chaotic vibration of a block on a belt system due to the rate-dependent friction. In the first method, using the sliding mode control technique and based on the Lyapunov stability theory, a sliding surface is determined, and an adaptive control law is established which stabilizes the chaotic response of the system. In the second control method, the vibration of this system is controlled by an impulse damper. In this method, an impulsive force is applied to the system by expanding and contracting the PZT stack according to efficient control law. Numerical simulations demonstrate the effectiveness of both methods in controlling the chaotic vibration of the system. It is shown that the settling time of the controlled system using impulse damper is less than that one controlled by adaptive sliding mode control; however, it needs more control effort.