Coherent hybrid block method for approximating fourth-order ordinary differential equations

Abstract

Conventionally, the most used method of solving fourth-order initial value problems of ordinary differential is to first reduce to a system of first-order differential equations. This approach affects the effectiveness and convergence of the numerical method due to the transformation. This paper comprises the derivation, analysis, and implementation of a new hybrid block method for direct solution of fourth-order equations. The method is derived by collocation and interpolation of an assumed basis function. The basic properties of the block method, including zero stability, error constants, consistency, order, and convergence, were analyzed. From the analysis, the block method derived was found to be zero-stable, consistent, and convergent. Errors were computed for the proposed method, and they were proven to produce approximations that agree with exact solutions and as such this shows improvement with those of existing works.