Free vibration of embedded double-walled carbon nanotubes considering nonlinear interlayer van der Waals forces

In this article, nonlinear free vibration of embedded double-walled carbon nanotubes (DWCNTs) duo to the nonlinear interlayer van der Waals (vdW) force is studied based on the nonlocal Euler-Bernoulli beam theory. The interlayer vdW force is modeled as a nonlinear function of inner and outer tubes deflections considering the variation of the interlayer distance along the circumference of DWCNTs. The harmonic balance method is applied to analyze the relationship between the deflection amplitudes and the frequencies of in-phase and out-of-phase free vibrations for DWCNTs. Finally, the influences of the nonlocal parameter, surrounding elastic medium, nanotube length, end condition and vibrational mode on the nonlinear free vibration properties of DWCNTs are discussed in detail. (C) 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.