Abstract
The interaction potential between two heavy ions calculated in the energy-density formalism has been analysed. The elastic scattering angular distributions of a few systems have been calculated and compared with experimental data. The imaginary potential parameters were found by fitting. The evaluation of the general behaviour of the real potential was made by calculating the s-wave fusion barriers and by comparing the value of a proximity parametrisation of the potential at the critical radius with that obtained with a phenomenological Woods-Saxon potential for a wide range of reactions. In all the instances mentioned above the authors have also studied the influence of the Weizsacker correction to the kinetic energy density.