19.9 Distributed parameter systems

Books on partial differential equations, such as the classic by Sommerfeld (1949) and John (1975), naturally tend to emphasise idealised situations leading to parabolic, elliptic or hyperbolic classical equations with known analytic solutions.

Readable literature on the modelling and control of less idealised distributed parameter systems is fairly rare. The best introductory reference is possibly Wang (1964). Other recommended references are Banks (1983), Jai and Pritchard (1988), and Omatu and Seinfeld (1989).