Buckling analysis of carbon nanotube bundles under bending loading via a structural mechanics model

The effects of boundary conditions on the buckling behavior of CNT bundles of three SWCNTs are investigated using a structural mechanics model. Due to the application of carbon nanotubes in different fields such as NEMS, where they are subjected to different loading and boundary conditions, an investigation of buckling behavior of nanotubes with different boundary conditions is necessary. To evaluate the buckling torques of carbon nanotube bundles, the effects of Van-der Waals forces are further modeled using a nonlinear spring element in the CAE space of ABAQUS. The structural mechanicssimulations reveal that CNT bundles comprising longer SWCNTs will exhibit lower critical buckling moment.In addition, the critical buckling moments when torque is applied in the Y direction are less than the X direction for all lengths

Keywords:

Structural mechanics , Carbon nanotube bundles , Buckling , Bending load