A quasi-parallel method for the simulation of loosely coupled continuous subsystems

The concept of a quasi-parallel integration method is proposed as a potentially efficient way of handling the simulation of continuous systems that can be decomposed into a collection of loosely coupled sub-systems. Possible measures for evaluating the computational advantage of such an approach are formulated and then used to identify characteristics of the given system that would assure substantial gains if the method were applied. A particular implementation of such a quasi-parallel method is described and the results of a series of numerical experiments are given. These provide some insight into the question of trade-offs between accuracy and computational gain.