International Journal of Engineering Science 161 (2021) 103465

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

International Journal of Engineering Science

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/ijengsci

Processing of viscoelastic data via a generalized fractional

model
Xianglong Su a,b, Donggang Yao b,∗, Wenxiang Xu a,∗
a
Institute of Structures and Materials Mechanics, College of Mechanics and Materials, Hohai University, Nanjing 211100, China
b
School of Materials Science and Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30332, USA

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: Data fitting and interconversion remain to be a difficult task in linear viscoelasticity. On
Received 12 October 2020 the basis of transfer function, a generalized fractional model is proposed to fit linear vis-
Revised 1 February 2021
coelastic data. The new model is modified from the fractional Maxwell model, and it is
Accepted 2 February 2021
abbreviated as the MFM model in this paper. Common fractional viscoelastic models, in-
cluding the fractional Kelvin and fractional Maxwell models, can be considered as special
Keywords: cases of the MFM model. Apart from inheriting the properties of the fractional Maxwell
Data fitting model, the MFM model is capable of adjusting the transient region between the power-
Data interconversion law and plateau regions. Case studies are provided to apply the MFM model in data fitting
Linear viscoelasticity of various kinds of viscoelastic data, and the results generally demonstrate improved fit-
Fractional viscoelastic models ting quality with fewer fitting modes compared with the generalized Maxwell model. In
Transfer function
addition, the MFM model is used as a venue to convert time-domain data (including creep
compliance data, creep data with ringing, and realistic relaxation data) to dynamic mod-
uli data. Compared with classical numerical methods for data interconversion, this method
appears to be more direct and convenient.
© 2021 Published by Elsevier Ltd.

1. Introduction

Data fitting and interconversion in linear viscoelasticity remain to be difficult in practice, although classical theory based
on the generalized Maxwell model is well established (Bae & Cho, 2015). The relaxation spectra obtained from data fitting
to the generalized Maxwell model are somewhat arbitrarily determined (Bae & Cho, 2015), which leads to ambiguity in data
interconversion. This can also cause data overfitting issues when the fitting model is used to fit data out of the testing range.
Recently, the authors proposed a new method for formulating linear viscoelastic model using transfer function (Su et al.,
2020). The transfer function, T(s), is defined as the ratio of the stress and strain after Laplace transform. Common viscoelastic
functions can be directly derived from the transfer function. Fig. 1 shows that the transfer function can essentially serve as
a kernel to bridge common viscoelastic functions. This makes it convenient to fit and interconvert viscoelastic data through
the transfer function.
For data fitting or interconversion, discrete experimental data are usually given. The transfer function can be obtained
by taking Laplace transform for time-domain data (e.g., creep, relaxation or transient viscosity) according to Fig. 1, which
theoretically demands for data in the entire time domain. Some assumptions may be set for the initial condition and long-

∗
Corresponding authors.
E-mail addresses: yao@gatech.edu (D. Yao), xuwenxiang@hhu.edu.cn (W. Xu).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijengsci.2021.103465
0020-7225/© 2021 Published by Elsevier Ltd.
X. Su, D. Yao and W. Xu International Journal of Engineering Science 161 (2021) 103465

Fig. 1. Relation between transfer function and common viscoelastic functions.

Fig. 2. Schematic diagram of typical transfer function for viscoelastic materials. I, III: power-law regions; II, IV: plateau-like regions.

term limiting behavior, as usually done by numerical methods for data interconversion (Evans et al., 2009; Kim et al., 2015;
Kwon et al., 2016; Tassieri et al., 2016). However, different assumptions bring about different results (Kwon et al., 2016).
Likewise, it is not easy either to obtain the transfer function from frequency-domain data, e.g., dynamic moduli data.
If the mathematical form of transfer function is given, desired time-domain data can be immediately obtained through
inverse Laplace transform. Similarly, frequency-domain data can be achieved by variable substitution. The key point is to
establish a generalized form for transfer function. The transfer function for viscoelastic materials is usually found to comprise
one or several power-law and plateau-like regions in a log-log plot, as illustrated in Fig. 2. Examples of such materials
include polymer (Evans et al., 2009; Kim et al., 2015; Lei et al., 2018; Jóźwiak et al., 2015; Jaishankar & Mckinley, 2013;
Su et al., 2020), gel (Aime et al., 2018; Lidon et al., 2017; Holder et al., 2018), sand (Ding et al., 2017), tissue (Shen et al.,
2013), and food (Faber et al., 2017). It is known that fractional viscoelastic models, especially the fractional Maxwell model
(Jaishankar & Mckinley, 2013), are suitable for describing this type of transfer function. The transfer function of the fractional
Maxwell model can be generally written as
α
E (λs )
T (s ) = α −β
, (1)
1 + (λs )

where E is the elastic modulus, λ is the relaxation time, and α and β are the orders of fractional derivatives. This model
can capture a power-law region T(s) ~ sα and a plateau-like region T(s) ~ sβ , where 0 ≤ β ≤ α < 1. A two-mode fractional
Maxwell model can be used to characterize the transfer function illustrated in Fig. 2. However, the transient region between
the power-law and plateau-like regions sometimes cannot be well captured by such modal superposition.
Since the transfer function contains all information for a linear viscoelastic material, small difference of transfer function
can bring about large deviation of the resultant viscoelastic functions. In order to better characterize the multistage power-
law behaviors shown in Fig. 2, a generalized fractional model is proposed in this paper by a modification of the fractional
Maxwell model to include an additional measure for adjusting the transitional behavior between power-law and plateau
regions. The resulting model is abbreviated as the MFM model. The rest of this paper is outlined as follows. In Section 2,
we present the details of the MFM model as well as its limiting cases and basic mechanical responses. In Section 3, the
proposed MFM model is adopted to fit viscoelastic data of several different materials. In Section 4, the MFM model is used,
with examples, to directly convert time-domain data to dynamic moduli data. In Section 5, discussion is made regarding
potential improvements of the MFM model for data fitting and interconversion.

2
X. Su, D. Yao and W. Xu International Journal of Engineering Science 161 (2021) 103465

Table 1
Limiting cases of the MFM model.

Limiting cases Transfer functions T(s) Conditions

α
E ( λs )
Fractional Maxwell model with two orders (Jaishankar & Mckinley, 2013)
1+ (λs )
α −β ϕ=α-β
α
E ( λs )
Fractional Maxwell model with one order (Aime et al., 2018) 1+ (λs )
α ϕ = α, β = 0
β
Fractional Kelvin model (Farno et al., 2018) E[1 + (λs ) ] α = 0, ϕ = β
E λs
Fractional dashpot (Yao, 2018)
(1+λs )1−β
ϕ = 1, α = 1
E λs
Mittag-Leffler relaxation model (Jaishankar & Mckinley, 2013)
1+ (λs )
1−β ϕ = 1 - β, α = 1
α
E ( λs )
Fractional Kelvin-Maxwell model (Su et al., 2020)
(1+λs )2α −1
ϕ = 1, β = 1 - α
E ( λs )
ab
Fractional Kelvin-fractional Maxwell model (Su et al., 2020) α ; b = α + β]
[a = α + ϕ=α+β
(1+(λs )b )
2a−1 β
Springpot E (λs )α β=α
E λs
Maxwell model 1+λs
α = ϕ = 1, β = 0
Kelvin model E (1 + λs ) α = 0, ϕ = β = 1

2. The modified fractional Maxwell (MFM) model

By introducing an additional parameter ϕ in the fractional Maxwell model in Eq. (1), a modified fractional Maxwell
(MFM) model is proposed:
α
E (λs )
T (s ) =  , (2)
ϕ
α −β
1 + (λs ) ϕ

where ϕ is positive and can be larger than 1. The so-defined MFM model is a more generalized fractional model. Different
viscoelastic behaviors may be modeled using Eq. (2) by varying the three fractional parameters, i.e., α , β and ϕ . Of a par-
ticular note, parameter α may be used as a tracer for viscoelastic solids and fluids; that is, α > 0 corresponds to viscoelastic
fluids, and α = 0 corresponds to viscoelastic solids. This α effect can be deduced from the final value theorem in conjunc-
tion with the framework for functional conversions as laid out in Fig. 1. In fact, many known fractional models, including
the fractional Kelvin model and the fractional Maxwell model, can be considered as the limiting cases of the MFM model,
as summarized in Table 1. The classical Blair-Rabotnov model may also be considered as a special case of the MFM model
(β = 0 and ϕ = α ) with addition of a baseline elastic modulus (Rossikhin & Shitikova, 2014), that is,
α
E2 (λs )
T ( s ) = E1 + α.
1 + (λs )
It is also worth mentioning the potential advantages of using a single constitutive equation over the classical Prony series
method (or the generalized Maxwell model). Although Prony series can well fit viscoelastic data with multiple/many modes,
it usually brings about overfitting issues. Some detailed comparisons of model fitting between the Prony series and the MFM
model are provided in the next section. The aim of this paper is to establish a parsimonious and generalized viscoelastic
model, which is inspired by the idea that fractional models can be regarded as a combination of many classical models
(Su et al., 2020) as well as by the importance of parsimoniousness for a rheological model (Winter et al., 1993).
By replacing s in Eq. (2) with iω, we can obtain the complex modulus of the MFM model
α
E (iωλ )
G∗ ( ω ) =  . (3)
ϕ
α −β
1 + (iωλ ) ϕ

Using complex algebra, we can derive the storage and loss moduli as
α  
E (ωλ ) cos απ − θ (αϕ−β )
G ( ω ) =
2
, (4)
 ϕ 2ϕ
 α −β
1 + 2(ωλ ) cos ϕπ + (ωλ )
2ϕ
2

α  
E (ωλ ) sin απ − θ (αϕ−β )
G (ω ) =
2
, (5)
 ϕ 2ϕ
 α −β
1 + 2(ωλ ) cos ϕπ + (ωλ )
2ϕ
2

with
 
(ωλ )ϕ sin ϕπ
θ = arctan ϕ
2
. (6)
1 + (ωλ ) cos ϕπ2

In addition, the creep, relaxation and transient viscosity of the MFM model can be easily obtained through the numerical
inverse Laplace transform (Li et al., 2016) according to Fig. 1, although corresponding analytical solutions are difficult to be
derived.

3
X. Su, D. Yao and W. Xu International Journal of Engineering Science 161 (2021) 103465

Fig. 3. Effect of ϕ on the shape changes of transfer function and resulting viscoelastic functions where α = 0.6, β = 0.1: (a) transfer function; (b) transient
viscosity; (c) creep compliance; (d) relaxation modulus; (e) storage modulus; (f) loss modulus.

Parameter ϕ is a key parameter in the MFM model. Fig. 3 presents the effect of ϕ on the shape changes of transfer
function and the resulting viscoelastic functions, i.e., transient viscosity, creep, relaxation and dynamic moduli. The results
show that the larger ϕ leads to the sharper shape of the transient region both for transfer function and for these common
viscoelastic functions.
In order to characterize the common two-relaxation process as shown in Fig. 2, two modes of the MFM model can be
used. For a viscoelastic fluid, this produces

 αk
Ek (λk s )
2
T (s ) = . (7)
 ϕk 
αk −βk
k=1 1 + (λk s ) ϕk

For a viscoelastic solid, a baseline modulus can be added, leading to

 αk
Ek (λk s )
2
T ( s ) = E0 + . (8)
 ϕk 
αk −βk
k=1 1 + (λk s ) ϕk

3. Data fitting by the MFM model

In this section, we fit several sets of linear viscoelastic data on the basis of the MFM model. First, dynamic moduli data of
two amorphous polymers, PMMA and PnOMA, taken from the literature (Lei et al., 2018) are fitted by the MFM model, and
the fitting results are shown in Fig. 4. It can be seen that these polymers exhibit two relaxation processes, so a two-mode
MFM model is adopted to fit the data. From Fig. 4 it can be seen that the fitting results agree well with the data for the
two polymers. The fitting parameters α , β , ϕ (summarized in Table A1) for each MFM model meet a condition α – β = ϕ ,
which indicates that a fractional Maxwell model (two orders) listed in Table 1 is reduced for the MFM model in this case.
Second, we use the MFM model to fit dynamic moduli of some monodisperse polystyrenes (mPS) and their blends sam-
ples (bPS, qbPS) taken from the literature (Bae & Cho, 2015), as shown in Fig. 5. For clarity, mPS110k, mPS79k, mPS62k
and qbPS are vertically shifted with shift factors of 10−1 , 10−2 , 10−3 , and 10−1 , respectively. These polymer melts exhibit

4
X. Su, D. Yao and W. Xu International Journal of Engineering Science 161 (2021) 103465

Fig. 4. Dynamic moduli data of (a) PMMA and (b) PnOMA fitted by the two-mode MFM model. Fitting parameters of the two-mode MFM model are listed
in Table A1. Experimental data are taken from the literature (Lei et al., 2018).

Fig. 5. (a) Dynamic moduli data of mPSs and fitting curves of the two-mode MFM model; (b) dynamic moduli data of bPS and qbPS and fitting curves of
the two-mode MFM model. Fitting parameters are listed in Table A2. Experimental data are taken from the literature (Bae & Cho, 2015).

more than one relaxation process, and therefore a two-mode MFM model is adopted to fit these data. Results show that the
two-mode MFM model can well characterize all these PS samples. The fitting parameters summarized in Table A2 reveal
α 1 = α 2 = ϕ 1 = 1 and β 1 = 0 for all samples; this indicates that a six-parameter model is enough to capture the dynamic
responses for these PS samples. The resulting two-mode MFM model can be written as

E1 λ1 s E2 λ2 s
T (s ) = + . (9)
1 + λ1 s  ϕ
1−β

1 + (λ2 s ) ϕ

It is also worth mentioning that these experimental data are difficult to be fitted using generalized Maxwell models;
usually 5 modes or more are needed, and yet the data are often over-fitted.
Furthermore, the MFM model is used to simultaneously fit various kinds of viscoelastic data, including creep, relaxation,
complex modulus and phase angle, of asphalt concrete taken from the literature (Rahman & Tarefder, 2016), as shown in
Fig. 6. From Fig. 6(a) it can be seen that the data exhibits one relaxation process, and an equivalent modulus exists for the

5
X. Su, D. Yao and W. Xu International Journal of Engineering Science 161 (2021) 103465

Fig. 6. (a) Relaxation modulus, (b) creep compliance, (c) complex modulus, and (d) phase angle data of asphalt concrete and data fitting by Eq. (10). Fitting
parameters are summarized in Table A3. Experimental data are taken from the literature (Rahman & Tarefder, 2016).

Fig. 7. (a) Creep compliance data of PI and fitted by an MFM model; (b) dynamic moduli data of PI and predicted by the MFM model. Model parameters
of the MFM model are listed in Table A4.

long-term relaxation. A single-mode MFM model with an equivalent modulus is used to fit these data, that is,
α
E2 (λs )
T ( s ) = E1 +  . (10)
ϕ
α −β
1 + (λs ) ϕ

The fitting results in Fig. 6 are generally agreeable with the data. Some deviations may result from nonlinear material
behavior or from possibly low accuracy data obtained from the time-temperature equivalence principle. It should be noted
that 11 modes were used to fit these data by the generalized Maxwell model (Rahman & Tarefder, 2016), which yet brings
about overfitting issues.

4. Data interconversion by the MFM model

In this section, we demonstrate the use of the MFM model for converting time-domain data to dynamic moduli data.
Time-domain data contain creep compliance data, creep data with ringing, and realistic relaxation data.

4.1. Converting creep data to dynamic moduli data

Creep compliance data of polyimide (PI) taken from the literature (Evans et al., 2009) is fitted by an MFM model, as
shown in Fig. 7(a). The fitting result shows that the MFM model agrees well with the data. The fitting parameters are given
in Table A4. For this particular case, the MFM model can be simplified by setting α = 1 and ϕ = 1 - β , yet good fitting
accuracy can be achieved. The resulting model is essentially the Mittag-Leffler relaxation model as listed in Table 1.
The obtained MFM model is then used to predict the dynamic moduli of PI by using Eqs. (4) and (5), which is further
compared with the dynamic moduli data. The results in Fig. 7(b) show that the predicted curves from the MFM model are

6
X. Su, D. Yao and W. Xu International Journal of Engineering Science 161 (2021) 103465

Fig. 8. Creep strain data with ringing for four polymeric fluids and directly fitted by the MFM model (red solid line), which are compared with the original
predictions in the literature (Kim et al., 2015) (blue dotted line). Fitting parameters of the MFM model are listed in Table A5.

compatible with the dynamic moduli data. It should be noted that the original predictions of dynamic moduli are oscillating
(Kwon et al., 2016), which results from the numerical difference for creep data in the conversion method in the literature
(Evans et al., 2009). Compared with the original conversion method, the current method using the MFM transfer function
model appears to be more direct and convenient.
On the other hand, due to the inertia effect of realistic creep test, oscillatory motion in strain data is usually found, called
creep ringing (Kim et al., 2015). Creep data with ringing are taken from the literature (Kim et al., 2015) for four polymeric
fluids: PSm, PEOs, CES, and XG. The fitting results are plotted in Fig. 8. Here, we adopt an MFM model to fit the creep data
with ringing. Considering the inertia effect, we present the relation of creep strain and transfer function as (Kim et al., 2015)

σ0
γ˜ (s ) = , (11)
sT (s ) + μs3

where σ 0 is the creep stress, μ is the inertia coefficient andγ˜ (s )is the Laplace transform of creep strain. Note that
μ = 0.47 Pa s2 for PSm, μ = 0.048 Pa s2 for PEOs, CES and XG; σ 0 = 100 Pa for PSm, σ 0 = 1 Pa for PEOs, σ 0 = 0.05 Pa for
CES, and σ 0 = 5 Pa for XG (Kim et al., 2015). In derivation of Eq. (11), the relation of transfer function and creep compliance
is considered. The realistic creep strain can be obtained by inserting the transfer function of the MFM model to Eq. (11) and
taking numerical inverse Laplace transform. The fitting results of the MFM model are compared with the original predictions
in the literature (Kim et al., 2015), as shown in Fig. 8.
From Fig. 8 it can be seen that the fitting curves of the MFM model agrees well with all four data sets and are similar
to the original predictions. Particularly, the MFM model behaves slightly better for the initial ringing of PSm. It should be
noted that some assumptions for the initial and long-term creep data are required for the original prediction method in the
literature (Kim et al., 2015) for taking numerical Laplace transform, which brings about unexpected error. Compared with
the original prediction method, the conversion method using the MFM model seems to be more direct and convenient. In
addition, the fitting parameter α given in Table A5 is equal to 1 for all four fluids, which indicates a four-parameter model
is enough to characterize these fluids:

E λs
T (s ) =  . (12)
ϕ
1−β

1 + (λs ) ϕ

Furthermore, we employ the obtained MFM model to predict dynamic moduli data of the four fluids, which are compared
with the predicted results in the literature (Kim et al., 2015), as shown in Fig. 9. It can be seen that the predicted dynamic
moduli by the MFM model agree well with that data and the prediction accuracy is generally similar to that of the original
method.

4.2. Converting relaxation data to dynamic moduli data

According to Fig. 1, relaxation modulus is related to transfer function directly by the inverse Laplace transform. However,
the ideal step strain for relaxation experiment cannot be achieved in practice; that is, a small region of increasing strain

7
X. Su, D. Yao and W. Xu International Journal of Engineering Science 161 (2021) 103465

Fig. 9. Dynamic moduli data of four fluids and predicted by the MFM model (red solid line), which is compared with the previous results (blue dotted
line) in the literature (Kim et al., 2015).

Fig. 10. (a) Strain data of realistic relaxation experiment for the three materials and fitted by the strain expression in Eq. (14), where fitting parameters
are listed in Table A6; (b) the corresponding relaxation stress data and fitted by a two-mode MFM model, where fitting parameters are listed in Table A7.

exists in the initial time. In this situation, the realistic relaxation stress can be obtained if viscoelastic materials can be char-
acterized by a model and the Laplace transform of realistic relaxation strain data can be approximated by a mathematical
expression.
Realistic relaxation strain and stress data are taken from Tassieri et al. (2016) for three materials, namely, linear polyiso-
prene melt, bimodal blend of linear polyisoprene melts, and styrene-butadiene rubber, as shown in Fig. 10. It can be seen
that the stain data display an approximate initial power-law increase and a following stable plateau in a log-log plot. Con-
sidering the final value theory of Laplace transform, we can use an approximate expression to fit the Laplace transform of
the strain data:
ε0
ε˜ (s ) =   , (13)
a b
s 1 + (λε s )

where ε 0 represents the stable relaxation strain, e.g., ε 0 = 0.1 for linear polyisoprene melt in Fig. 10(a), and parameters λε ,
a and b should be fitted from data. The fitting results for strain data of three materials by Eq. (13) are shown in Fig. 10(a).
It can be seen that the fitting curves agree well with all strain data. On the other hand, assuming these three materials can
be characterized by a two-mode MFM model, we directly fit the stress data, as shown in Fig. 10(b). It can be seen that the
fitting curves are agreeable with all stress data.
Using the two-mode MFM model with obtained parameters, we can predict the dynamic moduli of these materials
according to Eqs. (4) and (5). The predicted results are compared with corresponding experimental data, as shown in
Fig. 11. It can be seen that the predicted values of the two-mode MFM model agree well with all three dynamic moduli
data. It should be mentioned that the original predictions in the literature (Tassieri et al., 2016) are oscillating, which re-
sults from the numerical difference for relaxation data. Compared with the previous conversion method in the literature
(Tassieri et al., 2016), the current method appears to be more direct and convenient.

8
X. Su, D. Yao and W. Xu International Journal of Engineering Science 161 (2021) 103465

Fig. 11. Dynamic moduli data and predictions from the two-mode MFM model for (a) linear polyisoprene melt, (b) bimodal blend of linear polyisoprene
melts, and (c) styrene-butadiene rubber.

5. Discussion

The MFM model not only has extended the property from the fractional Maxwell model, but it can also be reduced to
many common viscoelastic models (as summarized in Table 1). This feature is useful for fitting linear viscoelastic data. Com-
pared with the generalized Maxwell model, the MFM model achieves fewer fitting modes and prevents overfitting issues.
This advantage is demonstrated well in the data fitting case studies for the PS data and the asphalt concrete data. In some
cases, the fitting results show that the MFM model can degenerate to some simpler models, e.g., a six-parameter model
in Eq. (9); these simplified models are more concise and suitable for characterizing these particular data sets. It should be
mentioned that the number of modes of the MFM model should be chosen to represent the number of relaxation pro-
cesses existing in the data. For example, for typical polymer melts, two modes would generally be adequate, one for Rouse
relaxation and the other for reptation.

9
X. Su, D. Yao and W. Xu International Journal of Engineering Science 161 (2021) 103465

On one hand, taking advantages of the close relations between transfer function and viscoelastic functions as illustrated
in Fig. 1, the MFM model is capable of fitting various kinds of data simultaneously without knowing the specific forms
of viscoelastic functions. On the other hand, the central position of the transfer function makes it convenient to convert
different data from one to another as long as they are associated with the same linear viscoelastic material. Compared with
typical numerical Laplace transform or Fourier transform methods for data interconversion, the current method prevents
data oscillation and seems to be more direct and convenient.
Data fitting and interconversion are convenient with a given form of transfer function. This paper proposes a general-
ized fractional model to represent as many viscoelastic behaviors as possible. However, the MFM model, even written in a
general form, cannot be all inclusive. From theoretical perspectives, interconversion of linear viscoelastic data without as-
suming a specific form of transfer function is of fundamental significance, and such an approach would be suitable for all
viscoelastic behaviors. However, this is practically difficult because Laplace transform needs data in the entire time domain
while realistic data are incomplete. There may be some combination between the two approaches to mitigate the difficulty
of the overall problem. Interesting future work is anticipated in this direction.

6. Conclusions

A generalized fractional model (abbreviated as MFM model) has been established for data fitting and interconversion in
linear viscoelasticity. In addition to inheriting the properties of the fractional Maxwell model, the MFM model is capable
of adjusting the transient region both for the transfer function and for common viscoelastic material functions. The MFM
model can be viewed as a general fractional model; many known fractional models, including the fractional Kelvin and
fractional Maxwell models, can be considered as the limiting cases of the MFM model. Furthermore, the dynamic moduli
of the MFM model can be analytically solved and other time-domain viscoelastic functions can be numerically obtained. In
data fitting, compared with the generalized Maxwell model, the MFM model employs fewer fitting modes, and it prevents
the overfitting issues. In data interconversion, the MFM transfer function essentially serves as a kernel to a bridge between
common viscoelastic functions. Compared with classical data conversion methods, the proposed method appears to be more
direct and convenient.

Declaration of Competing Interest

None.

Acknowledgements

This work was partly supported by the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities [grant numbers:
B200202127, 2019B65614], the Postgraduate Research & Practice Innovation Program of Jiangsu Province [grant number:
SJKY19_0418], and the China Scholarship Council (CSC) [grant number: 201906710124].

Appendix A: Fitting parameters

Tables A1–A7

Table A1
Fitting parameters for the dynamic moduli of PMMA and PnOMA by the two-mode MFM model.

PMMA E1 [Pa] λ1 [s] α1 β1 ϕ1

1 × 109 5 × 10−9 0.8572 0.0257 0.8315
E2 [Pa] λ2 [s] α2 β2 ϕ2
2 × 105 0.1922 0.9765 0.052 0.9245
PnOMA E1 [Pa] λ1 [s] α1 β1 ϕ1
3 × 108 1 × 10−10 0.684 0.0356 0.6484
E2 [Pa] λ2 [s] α2 β2 ϕ2
2.557 × 104 9.424 0.6767 0.0747 0.602

Table A2
Fitting parameters for the dynamic moduli of PSs by the two-mode MFM model.

E1 [Pa] λ1 [s] α1 β1 ϕ1 E2 [Pa] λ2 [s] α2 β2 ϕ2

−6 −3
mPS62k 2 × 10 6
5 × 10 1 0 1 9 × 104
9 × 10 1 0. 3 1
mPS79k 2 × 106 5 × 10−6 1 0 1 7 × 104 3 × 10−2 1 0. 29 1
mPS110k 2.3 × 106 5 × 10−6 1 0 1 7 × 104 1 × 10−1 1 0. 23 1
mPS179k 3 × 106 5 × 10−6 1 0 1 7 × 104 8 × 10−1 1 0. 18 1
bPS 2.5 × 106 5 × 10−6 1 0 1 9 × 104 4 × 10−2 1 0. 22 0.85
qbPS 2.5 × 106 5 × 10−6 1 0 1 8 × 104 8 × 10−2 1 0. 22 0.7

10
X. Su, D. Yao and W. Xu International Journal of Engineering Science 161 (2021) 103465

Table A3
Fitting parameters for various kinds of data of asphalt concrete by Eq. (10).

E1 [ksi] E2 [ksi] λ [s] α β ϕ

−5
21.01 4.2 × 10 3
7.131 × 10 0.3332 0.0136 0.2587

Table A4
Fitting parameters for the creep compliance of PI by the MFM model.

E [Pa] λ [s] α β ϕ
1.656 × 105 6.828 1 0.09495 0.9051

Table A5
Fitting parameters for the creep data with ringing of four polymeric fluids by the MFM model.

E [Pa] λ [s] α ϕ β
PSm 7 × 10 4
1 1 0.45 0.17
PEOs 18 2 1 0.8 0.4
XG 58 150 1 1.1 0.138
CES 0.77 30 1 0.9 0.21

Table A6
Fitting parameters for the realistic relaxation strain data of the three materials by Eq. (13).

ε0 λε [s] a b

Linear Polyisoprene melt 0.1 0.01 1 2.6

Bimodal blend of linear Polyisoprene melts 0.3 0.007 1 3.5
Styrene-butadiene rubber 0.05 0.005 1 3.2

Table A7
Fitting parameters for the realistic relaxation stress data of the three materials by the two-mode MFM model.

Linear Polyisoprene melts E1 [Pa] λ1 [s] α1 β1 ϕ1

5 × 105 1 × 10−2 1 0.1 1
E2 [Pa] λ2 [s] α2 β2 ϕ2
1.8 × 105 8 × 102 1 0.095 0.87
Bimodal blend of linear Polyisoprene melts E1 [Pa] λ1 [s] α1 β1 ϕ1
6 × 104 5 × 10−1 1 0.3 1
E2 [Pa] λ2 [s] α2 β2 ϕ2
1.7 × 104 1 × 102 1 0.3 1.01
Styrene-butadiene rubber E1 [Pa] λ1 [s] α1 β1 ϕ1
2.3 × 108 9 × 10−5 0.73 0 0.7
E2 [Pa] λ2 [s] α2 β2 ϕ2
3.5 × 105 1.5 × 104 0.85 0.08 0.85

References

Bae, J-E, & Cho, KS. (2015). Logarithmic method for continuous relaxation spectrum and comparison with previous methods. Journal of Rheology, 59(4),
1081–1112.
Su, X, Yao, D, & Xu, W. (2020). A new method for formulating linear viscoelastic models. International Journal of Engineering Science, 156, Article 103375.
Evans, R, Tassieri, M, Auhl, D, & Waigh, TA. (2009). Direct conversion of rheological compliance measurements into storage and loss moduli. Physical Review
E, 80(1), Article 012501.
Kim, M, Bae, J-E, Kang, N, & Cho, KS. (2015). Extraction of viscoelastic functions from creep data with ringing. Journal of Rheology, 59(1), 237–252.
Kwon, MK, Lee, SH, Lee, SG, & Cho, KS. (2016). Direct conversion of creep data to dynamic moduli. Journal of Rheology, 60(6), 1181–1197.
Tassieri, M, Laurati, M, Curtis, DJ, Auhl, DW, Coppola, S, Scalfati, A, et al. (2016). i-Rheo: Measuring the materials’ linear viscoelastic properties “in a step.
Journal of Rheology, 60(4), 649–660.
Lei, D, Liang, Y, & Xiao, R. (2018). A fractional model with parallel fractional Maxwell elements for amorphous thermoplastics. Physica A, 490, 465–475.
Jóźwiak, B, Orczykowska, M, & Dziubiński, M. (2015). Fractional generalizations of maxwell and Kelvin-Voigt models for biopolymer characterization. PLoS
One, 10(11), Article e0143090.
Jaishankar, A, & Mckinley, GH. (2013). Power-law rheology in the bulk and at the interface: Quasi-properties and fractional constitutive equations. Proceed-
ings of the Royal Society A, 469, Article 20120284.
Su, X, Xu, W, Chen, W, & Yang, H. (2020). Fractional creep and relaxation models of viscoelastic materials via a non-Newtonian time-varying viscosity:
physical interpretation. Mechanics of Materials, 140, Article 103222.
Aime, S, Cipelletti, L, & Ramos, L. (2018). Power law viscoelasticity of a fractal colloidal gel. Journal of Rheology, 62, 1429–1441.
Lidon, P, Villa, L, & Manneville, S. (2017). Power-law creep and residual stresses in a carbopol gel. Rheologica Acta, 56(3), 307–323.
Holder, A, Badiei, N, Hawkins, K, Wright, C, Williams, P, & Curtis, D. (2018). Control of collagen gel mechanical properties through manipulation of gelation
conditions near the sol–gel transition. Soft Matter, 14(4), 574–580.
Ding, X, Zhang, G, Zhao, B, & Wang, Y. (2017). Unexpected viscoelastic deformation of tight sandstone: Insights and predictions from the fractional Maxwell
model. Scientific Reports, 7(1), 1–11.

11
X. Su, D. Yao and W. Xu International Journal of Engineering Science 161 (2021) 103465

Shen, JJ, Li, CG, Wu, HT, & Kalantari, M. (2013). Fractional order viscoelasticity in characterization for atrial tissue. Korea-Australia Rheology Journal, 25(2),
87–93.
Faber, T, Jaishankar, A, & McKinley, G. (2017). Describing the firmness, springiness and rubberiness of food gels using fractional calculus. Part II: Measure-
ments on semi-hard cheese. Food Hydrocolloids, 62, 325–339.
Rossikhin, YA, & Shitikova, MV. (2014). The simplest models of viscoelasticity involving fractional derivatives and their connectedness with the Rabotnov
fractional order operators. International Journal of Mechanics, 8, 326–331.
Winter, H, Baumgaertel, M, & Soskey, P. (1993). A parsimonious model for viscoelastic liquids and solids. In Techniques in rheological measurement
(pp. 123–160). Springer.
Farno, E, Baudez, JC, & Eshtiaghi, N. (2018). Comparison between classical Kelvin-Voigt and fractional derivative Kelvin-Voigt models in prediction of linear
viscoelastic behaviour of waste activated sludge. The Science of the Total Environment, 613-614, 1031–1036.
Yao, D. (2018). A fractional dashpot for nonlinear viscoelastic fluids. Journal of Rheology, 62(2), 619–629.
Li, J, Farquharson, CG, & Hu, X. (2016). Three effective inverse Laplace transform algorithms for computing time-domain electromagnetic responsesInverse
Laplace transform algorithms. Geophysics, 81(2), E113–EE28.
Rahman, AA, & Tarefder, RA. (2016). Interconversion of frequency domain complex modulus to time domain modulus and compliance of asphalt con-
crete: Numerical modeling and laboratory validation. ASME international mechanical engineering congress and exposition. American Society of Mechanical
Engineers V009T12A74.

12