Special version of the collocation method for integral equations of the second kind with singularities in the kernel (Q901891)

The authors consider a linear Fredholm integral equation of the second kind \(x + Kx = y\) on a bounded interval. The integral operator \(K\) is defined by \[ Kx(t) = \int_a^b k(t,s) w_{\alpha, \beta}(s) \Pi_{j=1}^q (s-t_j)^{-m_j} x(s) ds, \] where \(k\) is at least continuous, \(w_{\alpha, \beta}\) is a Jacobi weight with parameters \(\alpha, \beta > 0\), \(t_j \in (a,b)\) and \(m_j \in \mathbb N\), so that the integral is strongly singular and must be interpreted in Hadamard's finite part sense. For the approximate solution of such equations, the authors propose a collocation method with a set of basis functions that are either polynomials or polynomials multiplied by a specially chosen function whose precise definition depends on the given data. It is then shown that, under suitable conditions, the approximation method is stable and consistent and hence convergent. An error estimate is provided as well.