Abstract: Lie symmetry method is applied to analyze a nonlinear elastic wave equation for longitudinal deformations with third-order anharmonic corrections to the elastic energy. Symmetry algebra is found and reductions to second-order ordinary differential equations (ODEs) are obtained through invariance under different symmetries. The reduced ODEs are further analyzed to obtain several exact solutions in an explicit form. It was observed in the literature that anharmonic corrections generally lead to solutions with time-dependent singularities in finite times. Along with solutions with time-dependent singularities, we also obtain solutions which do not exhibit time-dependent singularities.

Key words: group invariant solutions, Lie symmetries, nonlinear elasticity equations,partial differential equations