A threshold-force model for adhesion and mode I fracture

We study the relation between a threshold-force based model at the microscopic scale and mode I fracture at the macroscopic scale in a system of discrete interacting springs. Specifically, we idealize the contact between two surfaces as that between a rigid surface and a collection of springs with long-range interaction and a constant tensile threshold force. We show that a particular scaling similar to that of crack-tip stress in Linear Elastic Fracture Mechanics leads to a macroscopic limit behavior. The model also reproduces the scaling behaviors of the JKR model of adhesive contact. We determine how the threshold force depends on the fracture energy and elastic properties of the material. The model can be used to study rough-surface adhesion.