Nonclassical symmetries of a class of nonlinear partial differential equations with arbitrary order and compatibility

In this paper, we show that for a class of nonlinear partial differential equations with arbitrary order the determining equations for the nonclassical reduction can be obtained by requiring the compatibility between the original equation and the invariant surface condition. The nonlinear wave equation and the Boussinesq equation all serve as examples illustrating this fact.  2005 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved