Relaxation of a Maxwell Element
Relaxation of a Maxwell Element
This Demonstration aids in visualization of the roles of the two components of a Maxwell element in its response to a unit step stress. It depicts the relaxation curve resulting from changes in the relative magnitudes of the elastic component's modulus (represented by a spring) and the dissipating component's viscosity (represented by a dashpot). It also displays the element's relaxation time and the ratio between and the characteristic observation time (represented by the plot's time scale) referred to here as the Deborah number .
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