Fractional calculus application to visco-elastic solid

Abstract

It is widely known that fractional derivative is the best mathematical tool to describe visco-elastic constitutive law. In this paper it is shown that as soon as we assume the creep compliance function as power law type, as in the linearized version of the Nutting equation, then the fractional constitutive law appears in a natural way. Moreover, using Nutting equation for the creep function, the relaxation modulus is also of power law type whose coefficients (intensity and exponent) are strictly related to those of the creep compliance. It follows that by a simple creep test (or relaxation test) by means of a best fitting procedure we may easily evaluate the parameters of Nutting equation and then the fractional differential equation.