In order to investigate envelopes for singular surfaces, we introduce one- and two-parameter families of framed surfaces and the basic invariants, respectively. By using the basic invariants, the existence and uniqueness theorems of one- and two-parameter families of framed surfaces are given. Then we define envelopes of one- and two-parameter families of framed surfaces and give the existence conditions of envelopes which are called envelope theorems. As an application of the envelope theorems, we show that the projections of singular solutions of completely integrable first-order partial differential equations are envelopes.

We consider the following semilinear elliptic equation:

where B1 is the unit ball in ℝd, d ≥ 3, λ > 0 and p > 0. Firstly, following Merle and Peletier, we show that there exists an eigenvalue λp,∞ such that (*) has a solution (λp,∞,Wp) satisfying lim|x|→0Wp(x) = ∞. Secondly, we study a bifurcation diagram of regular solutions to (*). It follows from the result of Dancer that (*) has an unbounded bifurcation branch of regular solutions that emanates from (λ, u) = (0, 0). Here, using the singular solution, we show that the bifurcation branch has infinitely many turning points around λp,∞ when 3 ≤ d ≤ 9. We also investigate the Morse index of the singular solution in the d ≥ 11 case.