Assessment of Predictor-Corrector strategy for the Burridge-Knopoff model

A Predictor-Corrector strategy is employed for the numerical simulation of the one-dimensional Burridge-Knopoff model of earthquakes. This approach is totally explicit and allows to reproduce the main features of the model. The results achieved are compared with those of several previous works available in the literature, in order to state the effectiveness of the novel numerical strategy. Simulations are performed starting from the simplest cases and are aimed at studying the qualitative trends of the phenomena under analysis. By increasing the size of the associated differential system, it is possible to examine data on the basis of the Gutenberg-Richter statistical law. Finally, some tests are conducted to investigate the continuum limit of the discrete Burridge-Knopoff model towards a macroscopic dynamics.