Any large solution of a non-linear heat conduction equation becomes monotonic in time

SynopsisIn this paper we prove a certain monotonicity in time of non-negative classical solutions of the Cauchy problem for the quasilinear uniformly parabolic equation u1 = (ϕ(u))xx + Q(u) in wT = (0, T] × R1 with bounded sufficiently smooth initial function u(0, x) = uo(x)≧0 in Rl. We assume that ϕ(u) and Q(u) are smooth functions in [0, +∞) and ϕ′(u) >0, Q(u) > 0 for u > 0. Under some additional hypothesis on the growth of Q(u)ϕ′(u) at infinity, it is proved that if u(to, xo) becomes sufficiently large at some point (to, xo) ∈ wT, then ut(t, x0) ≧0 for all t ∈ [t0, T]. The proof is based on the method of intersection comparison of the solution with the set of the stationary solutions of the same equation. Some generalisations of this property for a quasilinear degenerate parabolic equation are discussed.