A unified nonlocal strain gradient model for nanobeams and the importance of higher order terms

In present paper, a unified size-dependent high-order beam model which contains various higher-order shear deformation beam models as well as Euler-Bernoulli and Timoshenko beam models is developed to study the simultaneous effects of nonlocal stress and strain gradient on the bending and buckling behaviors of nanobeams by using the nonlocal strain gradient theory. For this objective, a nonlocal parameter is introduced to capture the nonlocal effect and a material length scale parameter is involved to evaluate the strain gradient effect. The governing equations and the associated boundary conditions are formulated by using Hamilton's principle. Navier's method is utilized to obtain the analytical solutions for bending and buckling of a simply supported nanobeam. The present model is validated by comparing the obtained results with those available in literature. The influences of nonlocal parameter, material length scale parameter, slenderness ratio and shear deformation on the bending and buckling behaviors of the nanobeam are examined in detail. Results reveal that within the framework of nonlocal strain gradient theory, results predicted by Timoshenko beam model and various higher-order beam models are almost same with some negligible differences. Moreover, it is found that the nanobeam could exhibit either stiffness-softening effect or stiffness-hardening effect, which depends on the relative magnitude of the nonlocal parameter and the material length scale parameter.