Numerical algorithms with high spatial accuracy for the fourth-order fractional sub-diffusion equations with the first Dirichlet boundary conditions (Q2398477)

The majority of the works focused on the solution of fractional differential equations consider second-order equations requiring the discretisation of a second-order space derivative only. Such equations cannot describe ice formation, the behaviour of a fluid on the lungs, brain warping, and wave propagation in beams for instance, and as such fractional differential equations of a higher order are of interest. In this paper, a fourth-order fractional sub-diffusion equation with a non-homogeneous source term on the bounded domain, with the first Dirichlet boundary conditions is investigated. The fundamental goal of this article is to construct a high-order compact finite difference scheme and establish the corresponding error estimate. The \(L_1\) formula is applied as a means of approximating the temporal Caputo fractional derivative and combining the compact scheme for the spatial fourth-order derivative. The novelty is that a discretisation formula for the approximation of the first Dirichlet boundary conditions is derived, which ensures that the developed difference scheme is globally spatial fourth-order convergent.