Wave propagation in double-walled carbon nanotubes conveying fluid

Carbon nanotubes may hold scientific promise in nanotechnology as nanopipes conveying fluid. In this paper, the wave propagation in double-walled carbon nanotubes (DWCNTs) conveying fluid is studied based on the Euler-Bernoulli beam theory. The influences of internal moving fluids, such as flow velocity and mass density of fluids, on the sound wave propagation of DWCNTs or the DWCNTs embedded in an elastic matrix are investigated in detail. The DWCNTs are considered as a two-shell model coupled together through the van der Waals interaction between two adjacent nanotubes. According to the proposed theoretical approach, the results indicate that fluid flow through carbon nanotubes affects the wave speed and the critical frequency in the carbon nanotubes. The amplitude ratios of the inner to outer nanotubes are largely affected by the fluid velocity and density when the vibrational frequency in nanotubes is larger than 1.5 Hz. The theoretical investigation may give a useful reference for potential application and design of nanoelectronics and nanodevices. (C) 2008 American Institute of Physics.