Motivated by the impact of worsening climate conditions on vegetation patches, we study dynamic instabilities in an idealised Ginzburg–Landau model. Our main results predict time instances of sudden drops in wavenumber and the resulting target states. The changes in wavenumber correspond to the annihilation of individual vegetation patches when resources are scarce and cannot support the original number of patches. Drops happen well after the primary pattern has destabilised at the Eckhaus boundary and key to distinguishing between the disappearance of 1,2 or more patches during the drop are complex spatio-temporal resonances in the linearisation at the unstable pattern. We support our results with numerical simulations and expect our results to be conceptually applicable universally near the Eckhaus boundary, in particular in more realistic models.

In this article, we consider diffusive transport of a reactive substance in a saturated porous medium including variable porosity. Thereby, the evolution of the microstructure is caused by precipitation of the transported substance. We are particularly interested in analysing the model when the equations degenerate due to clogging. Introducing an appropriate weighted function space, we are able to handle the degeneracy and obtain analytical results for the transport equation. Also the decay behaviour of this solution with respect to the porosity is investigated. There a restriction on the decay order is assumed, that is, besides low initial concentration also dense precipitation leads to possible high decay. We obtain nonnegativity and boundedness for the weak solution to the transport equation. Moreover, we study an ordinary differential equation (ODE) describing the change of porosity. Thereby, the control of an appropriate weighted norm of the gradient of the porosity is crucial for the analysis of the transport equation. In order to obtain global in time solutions to the overall coupled system, we apply a fixed point argument. The problem is solved for substantially degenerating hydrodynamic parameters.

A stationary phase method is developed for the asymptotic evaluation, as R → ∞, of oscillatory sums of the form

It is extended to multidimensional sums. Numerical comparisons demonstrate the accuracy of the asymptotic approximations. The results are applied to the practical estimation of the number of lattice points in large domains in ℝ2.

The basic constitutive relations for elastoplasticity and elastoviscoplasticity are shown to form a typical boundary layer-type stiff system of ordinary differential equations. Three numerical algorithms are discussed: (i) The singular perturbation method (O'Malley, 1971a, b; Hoppensteadt, 1971; Miranker, 1981; Smith, 1985), which yields accurate results for both the rate-independent and rate-dependent cases, where in the former case, the algorithm is explicit, whereas in the latter case, it is implicit and requires the solution of a nonlinear equation; therefore it is impractical as a constitutive algorithm for large-scale finite-element applications, where the constitutive algorithm is used a great number of times at each finite-element node. (ii) The new constitutive algorithm (Nemat-Nasser, 1991; Nemat-Nasser & Chung, 1989, 1992) which is explicit and accurate for both the rate-independent and rate-dependent cases; the underlying mathematical feature of this new method is investigated, and it is shown that it can be classified as a simplified perturbation method; computable error bounds for this algorithm are obtained, and when the flow rule is given by the commonly used power law, it is shown that the errors are very small, (iii) A modified outer-solution method, which combines the above two techniques, and is simple, explicit, and accurate.

The problem of maximization of the critical Mach number in a subsonic flow of an ideal gas is considered. The Chaplygin gas approximation and the integral representation of the solution of the inverse boundary-value problem of aerohydrodynamics are used to reduce the problem to a special minimax one. The exact solution of the latter is obtained on the basis of the Lindelöf principle. An upper estimate for the critical Mach number is obtained. The results are generalized for the case of airfoil cascades. Some open problems are described.

In this paper we construct formal large-time solutions of a model equation, with initial data possessing bounded support, describing transport of a reacting and decaying contaminant in a porous medium. This we do in one, two and three space dimensions where, depending on the reaction model used, the solution may or may not have bounded support for all time. In the former case, working with what we call the reduced equation, we prove convergence, in one space dimension, to an outer limit as t → ∞. The outer solution has to be supplemented by inner solutions valid near the edges of the support. These inner solutions take the form of decaying travelling waves which we analyse using phase plane methods. Using the travelling waves as sub- and super-solutions, we establish the large-time behaviour of the interfaces which we refine using asymptotic matching. These ideas can be formally extended to higher space dimensions where we deduce the shape of the support of the large-time profiles which turns out to be ellipsoidal. For reaction models where the support is unbounded we prove convergence of the solution of the reduced equation to a travelling and decaying fundamental solution of the linear heat equation with convection and absorption. Finally, we indicate how the results for the reduced equations can be formally embedded in an asymptotic analysis of the original model equation.

We consider a polymer melt in a domain Ω whereby each polymer chain is attached at one endpoint to a fixed surface S contained in ∂Ω. Denote by G(x, t;y) the normalized number density of all subchains from x to y of length t. Then, according to the selfconsistent mean field theory, G satisfies, for each y: Gt - Δ2G + σϕG = 0, where σ is a real parameter, and ϕ is a functional of G(·, ·; ·) both non-local and nonlinear. We establish the existence of G and C∞ regularity of ϕ, as a function of x.

Physical experiments indicate that when an expanding fluid flows through a porous rock then the boundary between the wet and the dry region can be very irregular (e.g. see [OMBAFJ] and the references therein). In fact, it has been conjectured that this boundary is a fractal with Hausdorff dimension about 2.5. The (one-phase) fluid flow in a porous medium can be modelled mathematically by a system of partial differential equations, which, under some simplifying assumptions, can be reduced to a family of semi-elliptic boundary value problems involving the (unknown) pressure p(x) of the fluid (at the point x and at t) and the (unknown) wet region Ut at time t. (See equations (1.5)–(1.7) below). This set of equations, called the moving boundary problem involves the permeability matrix K(x) of the medium at x. A question which has been debated is whether this relatively simple mathematical model can explain such a complicated fractal nature of ∂Ut. More precisely, does there exist a symmetric non-negative definite matrix K(x) such that the solution Ut of the corresponding (expanding) moving boundary problem has a fractal boundary? The purpose of this paper is to prove that this is indeed the case. More precisely, we show that a porous medium which produce fractal wet boundaries can be obtained by distorting a completely homogeneous medium by means of a quasiconformal map.

A moving boundary problem for one phase Hele-Shaw flow with surface tension is considered. The fluid domain is unbounded and its boundary has an infinite length, and a finite number of suction (or injection) points are given. This is a mathematical model of the ‘fingering phenomenon’. We prove the existence of a unique solution locally in time.

Steady incompressible inviscid flow past a three-dimensional multiconnected (toroidal) aerofoil with a sharp trailing edge TE is considered, adopting for simplicity a linearized analysis of the vortex sheets that collect the released vorticity and form the trailing wake. The main purpose of the paper is to discuss the uniqueness of the bounded flow solution and the role of the eigenfunction. A generic admissible flow velocity u has an unbounded singularity at TE; and the physical flow solution requires the removal of the divergent part of u (the Kutta condition). This process yields a linear functional equation along the trailing edge involving both the normal vorticity ω released into the wake, and the multiplicative factor of the eigenfunction, a1. Uniqueness is then shown to depend upon the topology of the trailing edge. If δTE=[empty ], as, for example, in an annular-aerofoil configuration, both ω and a1 are uniquely determined by the Kutta condition, and the bounded flow u is unique. If δTE≠[empty ], as, for example, in a connected-wing configuration, there is an infinity of bounded flows, parametrized by a1. Numerical results of relevance for these typical configurations are presented to show the different role of the eigenfunction in the two cases.

The superheating that usually occurs when a solid is melted by volumetric heating can produce irregular solid–liquid interfaces. Such interfaces can be visualised in ice, where they are sometimes known as Tyndall stars. This paper describes some of the experimental observations of Tyndall stars and a mathematical model for the early stages of their evolution. The modelling is complicated by the strong crystalline anisotropy, which results in an anisotropic kinetic undercooling at the interface; it leads to an interesting class of free boundary problems that treat the melt region as infinitesimally thin.

Evolution of planar curves under a nonlocal geometric equation is investigated. It models the simultaneous contraction and growth of carbonate particles called ooids in geosciences. Using classical ODE results and a bijective mapping, we demonstrate that the steady parameters associated with the physical environment determine a unique, time-invariant, compact shape among smooth, convex curves embedded in ℝ2. It is also revealed that any time-invariant solution possesses D2 symmetry. The model predictions remarkably agree with ooid shapes observed in nature.

We study a free boundary problem of the form: ut = uxx + f(t, u) (g(t) < x < h(t)) with free boundary conditions h′(t) = −ux(t, h(t)) – α(t) and g′(t) = −ux(t, g(t)) + β(t), where β(t) and α(t) are positive T-periodic functions, f(t, u) is a Fisher–KPP type of nonlinearity and T-periodic in t. This problem can be used to describe the spreading of a biological or chemical species in time-periodic environment, where free boundaries represent the spreading fronts of the species. We study the asymptotic behaviour of bounded solutions. There are two T-periodic functions α0(t) and α*(t; β) with 0 < α0 < α* which play key roles in the dynamics. More precisely, (i) in case 0 < β< α0 and 0 < α < α*, we obtain a trichotomy result: (i-1) spreading, that is, h(t) – g(t) → +∞ and u(t, ⋅ + ct) → 1 with $c\in (-\overline{l},\overline{r})$, where $ \overline{l}:=\frac{1}{T}\int_{0}^{T}l(s)ds$, $\overline{r}:=\frac{1}{T}\int_{0}^{T}r(s)ds$, the T-periodic functions −l(t) and r(t) are the asymptotic spreading speeds of g(t) and h(t) respectively (furthermore, r(t) > 0 > −l(t) when 0 < β < α < α0; r(t) = 0 > −l(t) when 0 < β < α = α0; $0 \gt \overline{r} \gt -\overline{l}$ when 0 < β < α0 < α < α*); (i-2) vanishing, that is, $\lim\limits_{t \to \mathcal {T}}h(t) = \lim\limits_{t \to \mathcal {T}}g(t)$ and $\lim\limits_{t \to \mathcal {T}}\max\limits_{g(t)\leq x\leq h(t)} u(t,x)=0$, where $\mathcal {T}$ is some positive constant; (i-3) transition, that is, g(t) → −∞, h(t) → −∞, $0<\lim\limits_{t \to \infty}[h(t)-g(t)] \lt +\infty$ and u(t, ⋅) → V(t, ⋅), where V is a T-periodic solution with compact support. (ii) in case β ≥ α0 or α ≥ α*, vanishing happens for any solution.

Similar to how Hopf–Lax–Oleinik-type formula yield variational solutions for Hamilton–Jacobi equations on Euclidean space, optimal mass transportations can sometimes provide variational formulations for solutions of certain mean-field games. We investigate here the particular case of transports that maximize and minimize the following ‘ballistic’ cost functional on phase space TM, which propagates Brenier’s transport along a Lagrangian L,

$$b_T(v, x):=\inf\left\{\langle v, \gamma (0)\rangle +\int_0^TL(t, \gamma (t), {\dot \gamma}(t))\, dt; \gamma \in C^1([0, T], M); \gamma(T)=x\right\}\!,$$

$M = \mathbb{R}^d$

\begin{align*} \underline{B}_T^s(\mu,\nu):=\inf\left\{\mathbb{E}\left[\langle V,X_0\rangle +\int_0^T L(t, X,\beta(t,X))\,dt\right]\!; X\in \mathcal{A}, V\sim\mu,X_T\sim \nu\right\}\!, \end{align*}

$\mathcal{A}$

‘Parametric dependence of exponents and eigenvalues in focusing porous media flows’ by D. G. Aronson, J. B. Van den Berg and J. Hulshof, European Journal of Applied Mathematics, Vol. 14 No. 4 August 2003, pp. 485–512

We consider the bifurcating solutions for the Ginzburg–Landau equations when the superconductor is a film of thickness 2d submitted to an external magnetic field. We refine some results obtained earlier [1] on the stability of bifurcating solutions starting from normal solutions. We prove, in particular, the existence of curves d [map ] κ0(d), defined for large d and tending to 2−1/2 when d [map ] +∞ and κ [map ] d1(κ), defined for small κ and tending to √5/2 when κ [map ] 0, which separate the sets of pairs (κ, d) corresponding to different behaviour of the symmetric bifurcating solutions. In this way, we give in particular a complete answer to the question of stability of symmetric bifurcating solutions in the asymptotics ‘κ fixed-d large’ or ‘d fixed-κ small’.

A vortex sheet is a surface across which the velocity field of incompressible and inviscid flows has a jump discontinuity. Mathematical and numerical studies reveal that a two-dimensional vortex sheet, which is governed by the Birkhoff–Rott equation, acquires a singularity in finite time without forming rolling-up spiral. On the other hand, numerical computation of a regularized Birkhoff–Rott equation shows that the vortex sheet evolves into a rolling-up doubly branched spiral. Because of the finite-time singularity, it is impossible to regard the rolling-up spiral as a solution of the Birkhoff–Rott equation as long as time is real. However, it may be possible to analytically continue the equation to the spiral along a path to get around the singularity in complex-time plane. In the present article, we consider singularities in complex-time plane for the regularized Birkhoff–Rott equation by numerical means. Distribution of the complex singularities and their limiting behaviour indicate that it is absolutely impossible to perform analytic continuation in complex-time domain to the spiral solution. Furthermore, we propose a simple model of a doubly branched spiral and investigate it mathematically. The model is successful in approximating the rolling-up motion of the vortex sheet. Comparing the vortex-sheet motion with the model indicate that the doubly branched spiral with infinite windings at the centre could be a solution of the Birkhoff–Rott equation beyond the singularity time.

Multi-compartment models described by systems of linear ordinary differential equations are considered. Catenary models are a particular class where the compartments are arranged in a chain. A unified methodology based on the Laplace transform is utilised to solve direct and inverse problems for multi-compartment models. Explicit formulas for the parameters in a catenary model are obtained in terms of the roots of elementary symmetric polynomials. A method to estimate parameters for a general multi-compartment model is also provided. Results of numerical simulations are presented to illustrate the effectiveness of the approach.

This paper describes the modelling of the toner behaviour in the development nip of the Océ Direct Imaging print process. The dynamic motion of and mechanical interactions between toner particles are explicitly modelled. The mechanical interactions are due to collisions, friction, adhesion, and electromagnetic forces. The discrete element method (DEM) is used as the simulation tool for a quantitative description of the system. The interaction rules are determined for the toner particles and the surfaces of the development rollers. The model is validated with print quality results. It is shown that it is possible to achieve quantitative agreement between DEM simulations and experimental print quality results.

One of the most remarkable aspects of human homoeostasis is bone remodelling. This term denotes the continuous renewal of bone that takes place at a microscopic scale and ensures that our skeleton preserves its full mechanical compliance during our lives. We propose here that a renewal process of this type can be represented at an algorithmic level as the interplay of two different but related mechanisms. The first of them is a preliminary screening process, by means of which the whole skeleton is thoroughly and continuously explored. This is followed by a renovation process, whereby regions previously marked for renewal are first destroyed and then rebuilt, in such a way that global mechanical compliance is never compromised. In this work, we pay attention to the first of these two stages. In particular, we show that an efficient screening mechanism may arise out of simple local rules, which at the biological level are inspired by the possibility that individual bone cells compute signals from their nearest local neighbours. This is shown to be enough to put in place a process which thoroughly explores the region where such mechanism operates.