A maximum principle for mean-curvature type elliptic inequalities (Q2502561)

Summary: Consider the divergence structure elliptic inequality \[ \text{div}\,A(x,u,Du)+B(x,u,Du)\geq 0\tag{1} \] in a bounded domain \(\Omega\subset\mathbb R^n\). Here \[ A(x,z,\xi): K\to\mathbb R^n;\quad B(x,z,\xi): K\to\mathbb R,\quad K=\Omega\times\mathbb R^+\times\mathbb R^n, \] and \(A, B\) satisfy the following conditions \[ \langle A(\xi),\xi\rangle\geq |\xi|-c(x)z-a(x),\quad | A(x,z,\xi)|\leq \text{Const}.,\quad B(x,z,\xi)\leq b(x), \] for all \((x,z,\xi)\in K\), where \(a(x)\), \(b(x)\), \(c(x)\) are given non-negative functions. Our interest is in the validity of the maximum principle for solutions of (1), that is, the statement that ``any solution which satisfies \(u\leq 0\) on \(\partial\Omega\) must be a priori bounded above in \(\Omega\).'' This question arises, in particular, when one is interested in the mean curvature equation \[ \text{div}\,\frac{Du}{\sqrt{1+| Du|^2}}=nH(x). \]