AN EXISTENCE AND UNIQUENESS RESULT FOR A COAGULATION AND MULTIPLE-FRAGMENTATION EQUATION

Prior knowledge regarding the existence and uniqueness of nonnegative, mass-conserving solutions to a multiple-fragmentation equation is uti lized to study a combined coagulation and fragmentation model. The coa gulation and fragmentation equation is first recast as an abstract int egral equation involving the solution operator associated with the fra gmentation part. A contraction mapping argument is then used to prove the existence and uniqueness of a local solution: Detailed investigati on of the related iteration scheme yields nonnegativity and mass conse rvation. The solution is shown to be global.