Bisection Method


Major: All Engineering Majors

Authors: Autar Kaw, Jai Paul

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Transforming Numerical Methods Education for STEM
Undergraduates

02/08/10 http://numericalmethods.eng.usf.edu 1
 Bisection Method







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 Basis of Bisection Method
Theorem An equation f(x)=0, where f(x) is a real continuous function,
has at least one root between xl and xu if f(xl) f(xu) < 0.

Figure 1 At least one root exists between the two points if the function is
real, continuous, and changes sign.
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 Basis of Bisection Method

Figure 2 If function does not change sign between two

points, roots of the equation may still exist between the two
points. http://
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 Basis of Bisection Method

Figure 3 If the function does not change sign between two

points, there may not be any roots for the equation between
the two points.

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 Basis of Bisection Method

Figure 4 If the function changes sign between two points,

more than one root for the equation may exist between the two
points.
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 Algorithm for Bisection Method

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 Step 1
Choose xℓ and xu as two guesses for the root such that
f(xℓ) f(xu) < 0, or in other words, f(x) changes sign
between xℓ and xu. This was demonstrated in Figure 1.

Figure 1
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 Step 2
Estimate the root, xm of the equation f (x) = 0 as the mid
point between xℓ and xu as

Figure 5 Estimate of xm
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 Step 3
Now check the following

a) If , then the root lies between xℓ and

xm; then xℓ = xℓ ; xu = xm.

b) If , then the root lies between xm and

xu; then xℓ = xm; xu = xu.

c) If ; then the root is xm. Stop the

algorithm if this is true.
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 Step 4
Find the new estimate of the root

Find the absolute relative approximate error

where

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 Step 5
Compare the absolute relative approximate error with
the pre-specified error tolerance .
Go to Step 2 using new
Yes upper and lower
Is ? guesses.

No Stop the algorithm

Note one should also check whether the number of

iterations is more than the maximum number of iterations
allowed. If so, one needs to terminate the algorithm and
notify the user about it.
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 Example 1
You are working for ‘DOWN THE TOILET COMPANY’ that
makes floats for ABC commodes. The floating ball has a
specific gravity of 0.6 and has a radius of 5.5 cm. You
are asked to find the depth to which the ball is
submerged when floating in water.

Figure 6 Diagram of the floating ball http://

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 Example 1 Cont.
The equation that gives the depth x to which the ball is
submerged under water is given by

a) Use the bisection method of finding roots of equations

to find the depth x to which the ball is submerged under
water. Conduct three iterations to estimate the root of
the above equation.
b) Find the absolute relative approximate error at the end
of each iteration, and the number of significant digits at
least correct at the end of each iteration.
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 Example 1 Cont.
From the physics of the problem, the ball would be
submerged between x = 0 and x = 2R,
where R = radius of the ball,
that is

Figure 6 Diagram of the floating ball

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 Example 1 Cont.
Solution

To aid in the understanding

of how this method works to
find the root of an equation,
the graph of f(x) is shown to
the right,
where

Figure 7 Graph of the function f(x)

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 Example 1 Cont.
Let us assume

Check if the function changes sign between xℓ and xu .

Hence

So there is at least on root between xℓ and xu, that is between 0 and 0.11
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 Example 1 Cont.

Figure 8 Graph demonstrating sign change between initial limits

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 Example 1 Cont.
Iteration 1
The estimate of the root is

Hence the root is bracketed between xm and xu, that is, between 0.055
and 0.11. So, the lower and upper limits of the new bracket are

At this point, the absolute relative approximate error cannot be

calculated as we do not have a previous approximation.
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 Example 1 Cont.

Figure 9 Estimate of the root for Iteration 1

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 Example 1 Cont.
Iteration 2
The estimate of the root is

Hence the root is bracketed between xℓ and xm, that is, between 0.055
and 0.0825. So, the lower and upper limits of the new bracket are

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 Example 1 Cont.

Figure 10 Estimate of the root for Iteration 2

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 Example 1 Cont.
The absolute relative approximate error at the end of Iteration 2 is

None of the significant digits are at least correct in the estimate root of
xm = 0.0825 because the absolute relative approximate error is greater
than 5%.

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 Example 1 Cont.
Iteration 3
The estimate of the root is

Hence the root is bracketed between xℓ and xm, that is, between 0.055
and 0.06875. So, the lower and upper limits of the new bracket are

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 Example 1 Cont.

Figure 11 Estimate of the root for Iteration 3

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 Example 1 Cont.
The absolute relative approximate error at the end of Iteration 3 is

Still none of the significant digits are at least correct in the estimated
root of the equation as the absolute relative approximate error is
greater than 5%.
Seven more iterations were conducted and these iterations are shown in
Table 1.
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 Table 1 Cont.
Table 1 Root of f(x)=0 as function of number of iterations for
bisection method.

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 Advantages
n Always convergent
n The root bracket gets halved with each
iteration - guaranteed.

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 Drawbacks
n Slow convergence
n If one of the initial guesses is close to
the root, the convergence is slower

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 Drawbacks (continued)
n If a function f(x) is such that it just
touches the x-axis it will be unable to find
the lower and upper guesses.

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 Drawbacks (continued)
n Function changes sign but root does not
exist

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 Additional Resources
For all resources on this topic such as digital audiovisual
lectures, primers, textbook chapters, multiple-choice
tests, worksheets in MATLAB, MATHEMATICA, MathCad
and MAPLE, blogs, related physical problems, please
visit


http://numericalmethods.eng.usf.edu/topics/
bisection_method.html
THE END
 Newton-Raphson Method
Major: All Engineering Majors

Authors: Autar Kaw, Jai Paul

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Transforming Numerical Methods Education for STEM
Undergraduates

02/08/10 http://numericalmethods.eng.usf.edu 1
 Newton-Raphson Method







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 Newton-Raphson Method

Figure 1 Geometrical illustration of the Newton-Raphson method.

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 Algorithm for Newton-Raphson
Method

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 Step 1

Evaluate symbolically.

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 Step 2

Use an initial guess of the root, , to estimate the new

value of the root, , as

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 Step 3

Find the absolute relative approximate error as

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 Step 4
Compare the absolute relative approximate error
with the pre-specified relative error tolerance .

Go to Step 2 using new

Yes
estimate of the root.
Is ?

No Stop the algorithm

Also, check if the number of iterations has exceeded

the maximum number of iterations allowed. If so,
one needs to terminate the algorithm and notify the
user.
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 Example 1
You are working for ‘DOWN THE TOILET COMPANY’ that
makes floats for ABC commodes. The floating ball has a
specific gravity of 0.6 and has a radius of 5.5 cm. You
are asked to find the depth to which the ball is
submerged when floating in water.

Figure 3 Floating ball problem.

10 http://numericalmethods.eng.usf.edu
 Example 1 Cont.

The equation that gives the depth x in meters

to which the ball is submerged under water is
given by

Figure 3 Floating ball problem.

Use the Newton’s method of finding roots of equations to find

a)the depth ‘x’ to which the ball is submerged under water. Conduct three
iterations to estimate the root of the above equation.
b)The absolute relative approximate error at the end of each iteration, and
c)The number of significant digits at least correct at the end of each
iteration.
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 Example 1 Cont.
Solution
To aid in the understanding
of how this method works to
find the root of an equation,
the graph of f(x) is shown to
the right,
where

Figure 4 Graph of the function f(x)

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 Example 1 Cont.
Solve for

Let us assume the initial guess of the root of

is . This is a reasonable guess (discuss why
and are not good choices) as the
extreme values of the depth x would be 0 and the
diameter (0.11 m) of the ball.

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 Example 1 Cont.
Iteration 1
The estimate of the root is

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 Example 1 Cont.

Figure 5 Estimate of the root for the first iteration.

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 Example 1 Cont.
The absolute relative approximate error at the end of Iteration 1
is

The number of significant digits at least correct is 0, as you need an

absolute relative approximate error of 5% or less for at least one
significant digits to be correct in your result.

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 Example 1 Cont.
Iteration 2
The estimate of the root is

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 Example 1 Cont.

Figure 6 Estimate of the root for the Iteration 2.

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 Example 1 Cont.
The absolute relative approximate error at the end of Iteration 2
is

The maximum value of m for which is 2.844.

Hence, the number of significant digits at least correct in the
answer is 2.

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 Example 1 Cont.
Iteration 3
The estimate of the root is

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 Example 1 Cont.

Figure 7 Estimate of the root for the Iteration 3.

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 Example 1 Cont.
The absolute relative approximate error at the end of Iteration 3
is

The number of significant digits at least correct is 4, as only 4

significant digits are carried through all the calculations.

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 Advantages and Drawbacks
of Newton Raphson Method





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 Advantages
n Converges fast (quadratic convergence), if
it converges.
n Requires only one guess

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 Drawbacks
1. Divergence at inflection points
Selection of the initial guess or an iteration value of the root that
is close to the inflection point of the function may start
diverging away from the root in ther Newton-Raphson method.

For example, to find the root of the equation .

The Newton-Raphson method reduces to .

Table 1 shows the iterated values of the root of the equation.

The root starts to diverge at Iteration 6 because the previous estimate
of 0.92589 is close to the inflection point of .
Eventually after 12 more iterations the root converges to the exact
value of
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 Drawbacks – Inflection Points
Table 1 Divergence near inflection point.

Iteration xi
Number
0 5.0000
1 3.6560
2 2.7465
3 2.1084
4 1.6000
5 0.92589
6 −30.119
7 −19.746
... ... Figure 8 Divergence at inflection point for
18 0.2000
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 Drawbacks – Division by Zero
2. Division by zero
For the equation

the Newton-Raphson method

reduces to

For , the Figure 9 Pitfall of division by zero

denominator will equal zero. or near a zero number

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 Drawbacks – Oscillations near local
maximum and minimum

3. Oscillations near local maximum and minimum

Results obtained from the Newton-Raphson method may

oscillate about the local maximum or minimum without
converging on a root but converging on the local maximum or
minimum.
Eventually, it may lead to division by a number close to zero
and may diverge.
For example for the equation has no real
roots.

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 Drawbacks – Oscillations near local
maximum and minimum
Table 3 Oscillations near local maxima and
mimima in Newton-Raphson method.

Iteration
Number
–1.0000
0 0.5 3.00
1 –1.75 2.25 300.00
2 – 5.063 128.571
3 0.30357 2.092 476.47
4 3.1423 11.874 109.66
5 1.2529 3.570 150.80
6 – 2.029 829.88
7 0.17166 34.942 102.99 Figure 10 Oscillations around local
5.7395 minima for .
8 9.266 112.93
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 Drawbacks – Root Jumping
4. Root Jumping
In some cases where the function is oscillating and has a number
of roots, one may choose an initial guess close to a root. However, the
guesses may jump and converge to some other root.

For example

Choose

It will converge to

instead of
Figure 11 Root jumping from intended
location of root for .
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 Additional Resources
For all resources on this topic such as digital audiovisual
lectures, primers, textbook chapters, multiple-choice
tests, worksheets in MATLAB, MATHEMATICA, MathCad
and MAPLE, blogs, related physical problems, please
visit

http://numericalmethods.eng.usf.edu/topics/
newton_raphson.html
THE END
 Secant Method

Major: All Engineering Majors

Authors: Autar Kaw, Jai Paul

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Transforming Numerical Methods Education for STEM
Undergraduates

02/08/10 http://numericalmethods.eng.usf.edu 1
 Secant Method







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 Secant Method – Derivation
Newton’s Method
(1)

Approximate the derivative

(2)

Substituting Equation (2)

into Equation (1) gives the
Secant method
Figure 1 Geometrical illustration of
the Newton-Raphson method.

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 Algorithm for Secant Method

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 Step 1
Calculate the next estimate of the root from two initial guesses

Find the absolute relative approximate error

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 Step 2
Find if the absolute relative approximate error is greater
than the prespecified relative error tolerance.

If so, replace xi with the newly calculated value xi+1, go

back to step 1, else stop the algorithm.

Also check if the number of iterations has exceeded the

maximum number of iterations.

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 Example 1
You are working for ‘DOWN THE TOILET COMPANY’ that
makes floats for ABC commodes. The floating ball has a
specific gravity of 0.6 and has a radius of 5.5 cm. You
are asked to find the depth to which the ball is
submerged when floating in water.

Figure 3 Floating Ball Problem. http://

8 numericalmethods.eng.usf.edu
 Example 1 Cont.
The equation that gives the depth x to which the ball
is submerged under water is given by

Use the Secant method of finding roots of equations to

find the depth x to which the ball is submerged under
water.
• Conduct three iterations to estimate the root of the
above equation.
• Find the absolute relative approximate error and the
number of significant digits at least correct at the end
of each iteration. http://
9 numericalmethods.eng.usf.edu
 Example 1 Cont.
Solution
To aid in the understanding
of how this method works to
find the root of an equation,
the graph of f(x) is shown to
the right,
where

Figure 4 Graph of the function f(x).

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 Example 1 Cont.
Let us assume the initial guesses of the root of
as and

Iteration 1
The estimate of the root is

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 Example 1 Cont.
The absolute relative approximate error at the end of
Iteration 1 is

The number of significant digits at least correct is 0, as you

need an absolute relative approximate error of 5% or less
for one significant digits to be correct in your result.
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 Example 1 Cont.

Figure 5 Graph of results of Iteration 1.

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 Example 1 Cont.
Iteration 2
The estimate of the root is

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 Example 1 Cont.
The absolute relative approximate error at the end of
Iteration 2 is

The number of significant digits at least correct is 1, as you

need an absolute relative approximate error of 5% or less.

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 Example 1 Cont.

Figure 6 Graph of results of Iteration 2.

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 Example 1 Cont.
Iteration 3
The estimate of the root is

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 Example 1 Cont.
The absolute relative approximate error at the end of
Iteration 3 is

The number of significant digits at least correct is 5, as you

need an absolute relative approximate error of 0.5% or
less.
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 Iteration #3

Figure 7 Graph of results of Iteration 3.

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 Advantages

n Converges fast, if it converges

n Requires two guesses that do not need to
bracket the root

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 Drawbacks

Division by zero
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 Drawbacks (continued)

Root Jumping
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 Additional Resources
For all resources on this topic such as digital audiovisual
lectures, primers, textbook chapters, multiple-choice
tests, worksheets in MATLAB, MATHEMATICA, MathCad
and MAPLE, blogs, related physical problems, please
visit

http://numericalmethods.eng.usf.edu/topics/
secant_method.html
THE END
 Regula Falsi
(False Postion Method)

• similar to secant method (linear approximation)

• keeps the point xi of prior estimate to estimate the
new value with opposite sign (secant method: uses
newly evaluted xi+1)
• brackets the root

02/08/10 1
 Regula Falsi
(False Postion)

Secant Method Regula falsi

02/08/10
 Algorithm for Regula Falsi
Method

Step 0
choose two inital guesses x-1 and x0 bracketing the root
assume
f(x-1) < f(x0)

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 Step 1
Calculate the next estimate of the root from two initial guesses

if f(xi+1) > 0 then xi = xi+1

else replace appropriete limits

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 Step 2
Find the absolute relative approximate error

If the absolute relative approximate error is greater than

the prespecified relative error tolerance go back to step 1
else stop.

Also check if the number of iterations has exceeded the

maximum number of iterations.
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 Advantages

n always converges (unlike secant method)

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 Disvantages

n root must be bracketed in the initial guess

n converges slower than Secant method

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