Approximate model for the adhesive contact of viscoelastic spheres

We present a simple model for the adhesive contact of viscoelastic bodies relevant for soft solids. This approach couples the interaction zone creep and the contact zone stress relaxation through a transform of the interaction stressesg(a). We show thatg(a), which is proportional to the interaction stress intensity factor, can be extracted from experimentally determined contact variables and at the same time expressed as a function of the interfacial adhesive process. Therefore, the characteristic parameters for adhesion, such as adhesion energy and characteristic tensile stress, for example, can be derived from contact data of viscoelastic bodies. The model also emphasizes the role of stress relaxation within the contact zone in the viscoelastic adhesive contact.