Numerical comparison by different methods (second order Runge Kutta methods, Heun method, fixed point method and Ralston method) to differential equations with initial condition

Abstract

This manuscript contains a detailed comparison between numerical solution methods of ordinary differential equations, which start from the Taylor series method of order 2, stating that this series hinders calculations for higher order derivatives of functions of several variables, so that the Runge Kutta methods of order 2 are implemented, which achieve the required purpose avoiding the cumbersome calculations of higher order derivatives. In this document, different variants of the Runge-Kutta methods of order 2 will be exposed from an introduction and demonstration of the connection of these with the Taylor series of order 2, these methods are: the method of Heun, the method of midpoint and the Ralston method. It will be observed from the solution of test differential equations its respective error with respect to the analytical solution, obtaining an error index dictated by the mean square error EMC. Through this document we will know the best numerical approximation to the analytical solution of the different PVI (initial value problems) raised, also fixing a solution pattern for certain problems, that is, the appropriate method for each type of problem will be stipulated. It was observed that the Ralston method presented greater accuracy followed by the midpoint method and the Heun method, in the other PVI it is observed that the midpoint method yields the best numerical solution since it has a very low EMC and difficult to reach by the other methods.