Approximate inversion for Abel integral operators of variable exponent and applications to fractional Cauchy problems

Abstract

We investigate the variable-exponent Abel integral equations and corresponding fractional Cauchy problems. The main contributions of the work are enumerated as follows: (i) We develop an approximate inversion technique for variable-exponent Abel integral operators, based on which we analyze the corresponding integral and differential equations; (ii) We prove that the sensitive dependence of the well-posedness of classical Riemann-Liouville fractional differential equations on the initial value could be resolved by adjusting the initial value of the variable exponent; (iii) We prove that the singularity of the solutions to the Riemann-Liouville fractional differential equations could also be eliminated by adjusting the variable exponent and its derivatives at the initial time, which, together with (ii), demonstrates the advantages of introducing the variable exponent. The proposed approximate inversion technique provides a potential means to convert the intricate variable-exponent integral and differential problems to feasible forms, and the above findings suggest that the variable-exponent fractional problems may serve as a connection between integer-order and fractional models by adjusting the variable exponent at the initial time.