Asymptotic properties of entropy solutions to fractal Burgers equation

We study properties of solutions of the initial value problem for the nonlinear and nonlocal equation u_t+(-\partial^2_x)^{\alpha/2} u+uu_x=0 with alpha in (0,1], supplemented with an initial datum approaching the constant states u+/u- (u_-smaller than u_+) as x goes to +/-infty, respectively. It was shown by Karch, Miao & Xu (SIAM J. Math. Anal. 39 (2008), 1536--1549) that, for alpha in (1,2), the large time asymptotics of solutions is described by rarefaction waves. The goal of this paper is to show that the asymptotic profile of solutions changes for alpha \leq 1. If alpha=1, there exists a self-similar solution to the equation which describes the large time asymptotics of other solutions. In the case alpha \in (0,1), we show that the nonlinearity of the equation is negligible in the large time asymptotic expansion of solutions.Comment: 23 pages. To appear to SIMA. This version contains details that are skipped in the published versio

On convergence of solutions of fractal Burgers equation toward rarefaction waves

In the paper, the large time behavior of solutions of the Cauchy problem for the one dimensional fractal Burgers equation $u_t+(-\partial^2_x)^{\alpha/2} u+uu_x=0$ with $\alpha\in (1,2)$ is studied. It is shown that if the nondecreasing initial datum approaches the constant states $u_\pm$ ($u_-<u_+$) as $x\to \pm\infty$, respectively, then the corresponding solution converges toward the rarefaction wave, {\it i.e.} the unique entropy solution of the Riemann problem for the nonviscous Burgers equation.Comment: 15 page

Asymptotic behaviour of solutions to fractional diffusion-convection equations

We consider a convection-diffusion model with linear fractional diffusion in the sub-critical range. We prove that the large time asymptotic behavior of the solution is given by the unique entropy solution of the convective part of the equation. The proof is based on suitable a-priori estimates, among which proving an Oleinik type inequality plays a key role.Comment: 24

Asymptotic stability of traveling wave solutions for nonlocal viscous conservation laws with explicit decay rates

We consider scalar conservation laws with nonlocal diffusion of Riesz-Feller type such as the fractal Burgers equation. The existence of traveling wave solutions with monotone decreasing profile has been established recently (in special cases). We show the local asymptotic stability of these traveling wave solutions in a Sobolev space setting by constructing a Lyapunov functional. Most importantly, we derive the algebraic-in-time decay of the norm of such perturbations with explicit algebraic-in-time decay rates

Continuous dependence estimates for nonlinear fractional convection-diffusion equations

We develop a general framework for finding error estimates for convection-diffusion equations with nonlocal, nonlinear, and possibly degenerate diffusion terms. The equations are nonlocal because they involve fractional diffusion operators that are generators of pure jump Levy processes (e.g. the fractional Laplacian). As an application, we derive continuous dependence estimates on the nonlinearities and on the Levy measure of the diffusion term. Estimates of the rates of convergence for general nonlinear nonlocal vanishing viscosity approximations of scalar conservation laws then follow as a corollary. Our results both cover, and extend to new equations, a large part of the known error estimates in the literature.Comment: In this version we have corrected Example 3.4 explaining the link with the results in [51,59

Numerical Methods for the Fractional Laplacian: a Finite Difference-quadrature Approach

The fractional Laplacian $(-\Delta)^{\alpha/2}$ is a non-local operator which depends on the parameter $\alpha$ and recovers the usual Laplacian as $\alpha \to 2$. A numerical method for the fractional Laplacian is proposed, based on the singular integral representation for the operator. The method combines finite difference with numerical quadrature, to obtain a discrete convolution operator with positive weights. The accuracy of the method is shown to be $O(h^{3-\alpha})$. Convergence of the method is proven. The treatment of far field boundary conditions using an asymptotic approximation to the integral is used to obtain an accurate method. Numerical experiments on known exact solutions validate the predicted convergence rates. Computational examples include exponentially and algebraically decaying solution with varying regularity. The generalization to nonlinear equations involving the operator is discussed: the obstacle problem for the fractional Laplacian is computed.Comment: 29 pages, 9 figure