  We aim to study the standing fundamental kink mode of coronal loops in the
nonlinear regime, investigating the changes in energy evolution in the
cross-section and oscillation amplitude of the loop which are related to
nonlinear effects, in particular to the development of the Kelvin-Helmholtz
instability (KHI). We run idea, high-resolution three-dimensional (3D)
magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) simulations, studying the influence of the initial
velocity amplitude and the inhomogeneous layer thickness. We model the coronal
loop as a straight, homogeneous magnetic flux tube with an outer inhomogeneous
layer, embedded in a straight, homogeneous magnetic field. We find that, for
low amplitudes which do not allow for the KHI to develop during the simulated
time, the damping time agrees with the theory of resonant absorption. However,
for higher amplitudes, the presence of KHI around the oscillating loop can
alter the loop's evolution, resulting in a significantly faster damping than
predicted by the linear theory in some cases. This questions the accuracy of
seismological methods applied to observed damping profiles, based on linear
theory.
