The problem of thermal stress development in composite structures containing
one linear isotropic viscoelastic phase is considered. The time-temperature
superposition principle is assumed to be applicable to the viscoelastic media
under consideration. Two methods of solution based on the reduction of the
original viscoelastic problem to the corresponding elastic one are discussed.
It is argued that the use of a method based on the Laplace transform is
impractical for some problems, such as those involving viscoelastic asphalt
binders. However, the solution can be obtained by means of the second method
considered in the paper, the Volterra correspondence principle, in which the
integral operator corresponding to the master relaxation modulus is presented
in matrix form. The Volterra principle can be applied to the solution of
viscoelastic problems with complex geometry if the analytical solution for the
corresponding elastic problem is known. Numerical examples show that the proposed
method is simple and accurate. The approach is suitable to the solution
of problems involving viscoelastic materials, whose rheological properties
strongly depend on temperature. In particular, it can be found useful in the
analysis of the low-temperature thermal cracking of viscoelastic asphalt
binders.