The approximate solution of a class of Fredholm integral equations with a weakly singular kernel

A method for finding the numerical solution of a weakly singular Fredholm integral equation of the second kind is presented. The Taylor series is used to remove singularity and Legendre polynomials are used as a basis. Furthermore, the Legendre function of the second kind is used to remove singularity in the Cauchy type integral equation. The integrals that appear in this method are computed in terms of gamma and beta functions and some of these integrals are computed in the Cauchy principal value sense without using numerical quadratures. Four examples are given to show the accuracy of the method. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.