MAT285 (FURTHER MATHEMATICS FOR ENGINEERS)

2020

2 VECTOR ALGEBRA

2.0 Introduction to Vector and Scalar

Many of the quantities of interest in physics and engineering can be classified as scalar
or vectors. A scalar is specified by a single numerical value. Scalar quantities posses
magnitude but not direction. Examples of scalar quantities are length, mass of a body,
temperature, electric charge, area, density, energy, pressure and many others. A vector
has a magnitude and a direction in space. The magnitude of a vector is a nonnegative
number with a unit of measure. The magnitude of a vector is therefore a scalar. Some
familiar vector quantities are force acting at a point, or displacement of an object along
straight path, velocity of a particle in motion and acceleration.

Most of this chapter is concerned with vector algebra, the study of how vector are
described mathematically and how vectors can be added, subtracted and multiplied.

2.1 Definition of Vectors

A vector can be represented as a directed line segment, which can be drawn as an

arrow. The length of the arrow represents distance or magnitude of the vector and the
arrowhead indicates the direction. (see Figure 2.1).

Figure 2.1 : An arrow representing a

vector.

A vector of zero length and indeterminate direction is known as zero vector, which is
denoted by 0.

NHJ2020/Vector Algebra
27
 MAT285 (FURTHER MATHEMATICS FOR ENGINEERS)
2020
Vector Notation

A vector from a point A (called the initial point) to a point B (called the terminal point)
→ → →
are denoted by symbols such as a, a , AB or AB . BA or BA denotes the vector of A
from B.

→
B AB or AB
A

B
→
BA or BA A

Vectors In Two and Three Dimensional Space

A vector may also be represented using a coordinate system.

y z

A(5,3) A(5,3,2)
→
OA
O x x y

Figure 2.3(a) : Figure 2.3(b) :

vector in 2 dimensional space vector in 3 dimensional space

The distance and direction are characterized by the length and direction of the line
segment from the origin O to A. We called such directed line segment as a position
→ →
vector and denote it as OA . O is called the initial point of OA and A is called the
terminal point. Thus, there are two ways of interpreting (5,3) or (5,3,2) : it defines the
→
location of a point in a plane and it also defines the position vector OA .

NHJ2020/Vector Algebra
28
 MAT285 (FURTHER MATHEMATICS FOR ENGINEERS)
2020
The magnitude of a vector represented by its length and is written as |a| or
→ →
| AB | = magnitude of AB .

Let u = (u1,…,un) be a vector in Rn. Then the magnitude of u is

|u| = u = u1 u1 +... +u n u n = u 21 +... +u 2n

Example 1
Let u = (-1,4,3) and v = (1,0 ,-2)be vectors in R3. Find the magnitude of u and v.

Exercise 2.1
Given that a = 3i – j – 4k, b = -2i + 4j – 3k and c = i +2j – k, find the magnitude of the
vectors a , b and c.

2.2 Operation on Vectors

A) Equality on Vectors

Two vectors are equal if and only if they have the same magnitude and direction. For
→ → → →
example, in the parallelogram ABCD below, AB = DC and AD = BC .

A B

Figure 2.4 : parallelogram ABCD

D C

→ → → → → → → →
Also AB = - BA , AD = - DA i.e AB + BA = 0 and AD + DA = 0 .

NHJ2020/Vector Algebra
29
 MAT285 (FURTHER MATHEMATICS FOR ENGINEERS)
2020
B) Vector Addition and Subtraction
→ →
The addition of two vectors AB and BC achieved by two laws :
i) The vector addition rule (triangle addition rule) illustrated in Figure 2.5.
→ → → → →
The vector AC = AB + BC is called the resultant of AB and BC .

B C Figure 2.5(a) : Adding displacement -

The vector addition rule
→ → →
A AB + BC = AC

a
b Figure 2.5 (b) : The vector addition rule
b for two arbitrary vectors.
c=a+b
a

ii) The parallelogram addition rule which is illustrated in Figure 2.6 is equivalent to
the triangle addition rule.

A A P A P
a a a
c c

O b B O b B O b B
(a) (b) (c)

Figure 2.6 : The parallelogram addition rule

(a) two vectors a and b with the same beginning point O.
(b) The resultant c = OP.
(c) The upper triangle OPA or the lower triangle OBP shows the
addition of a and b by the triangle rule to give the resultant c.

NHJ2020/Vector Algebra
30
 MAT285 (FURTHER MATHEMATICS FOR ENGINEERS)
2020
Vector subtraction is defined by a – b = a + (-b). This is illustrated in Figure 2.7.

b
a -b

-b a a-b

(a) a (b)
a-b b

Figure 2.7 : Vector subtraction

(a) To subtract b from a, add –b to a by the triangle rule.
(b) Alternatively, draw a and b from the same point; then a – b is the vector from
the end point of b to the end of a.

The Laws of Vectors Addition / Subtraction

If a, b and c are any vectors,
i) a+b=b+a
ii) a + (b + c) = (a + b) + c
iii) a + 0 = a where 0 is the zero vector
iv) For every vector a, there is –a because a + (-a) = 0
v) Vector a – b is defined by a + (-b)
Note : Vector addition is commutative, associative and distributive.

C) Scalar Multiplication

Now we introduce the simplest algebraic operation involving vectors, known as scaling
or multiplication of a vector by scalars. Figure 3.8 shows a vector a and some other
vectors lying on line parallel to a. Each of these vectors is related to a by the operation
known as scaling. The scaled vector denoted by writing α a where α is a number
specifying the scaling. Scaling changes the magnitude of the vector by a factor | α | , and
leaves the direction unchanged for α > 0 , or reverses the direction for α < 0. For α = 0,
0a = 0.

NHJ2020/Vector Algebra
31
 MAT285 (FURTHER MATHEMATICS FOR ENGINEERS)
2020
a -a 3a Figure 2.8 : Vector a and vector α a
-2a for α = -1, -2, 3.

The Laws of Vectors Scalar Multiplication

If a and b are any vectors and α , β are scalars,
i) α (a + b) = α b + α a
ii) ( α + β ) a = α a + β a

iii) α ( β a) = ( α β )a
iv) 1a = a

Any two vectors that are related by a scaling, such as a and α a, are said to be
collinear. Thus, vectors that lie on the same straight line are collinear vectors. Vectors
that lie on parallel straight lines are also collinear vectors. Two non-collinear vectors a
and b drawn from the same point define a plane called plane of a and b.
Vectors lying in the same plane are said to be coplanar. Vectors that lie in parallel
planes are also said to be coplanar.

e
Figure 2.9 : The plane of a and b.
c Vectors a, b and c are coplanar vectors, all
c in the plane of a and b. Vector e points out of
b a the plane and is not in the plane of a and b.

Let u = (u1,…,un) and v = (v1,…,vn) be two vectors in Rn.

Magnitude of a vector : |u| = u  u = u1 u1 +... +u n u n = u 21 +... +u 2n
Equality : u = v if u1 = v1, … , un = vn
Vector Addition : u + v = (u1+ v1, … ,un+ vn)
Vector Subtraction : u – v = (u1 – v1, … ,un – vn)
Scalar Multiplication : cu = c((u1,…,un) = (cu1,…,cun) , where c is a scalar.

NHJ2020/Vector Algebra
32
 MAT285 (FURTHER MATHEMATICS FOR ENGINEERS)
2020
Exercise 2.2
1. If r = (p + 2, q - 4) and s = (q, -p), and r = s , find p and q.

2. Given that v1 = 3i - j - 4k , v2 = -2i + 4 j – 2k and v3 = i - 7k. Find the magnitude of

the following vectors :
a) v1 + v2 + v3 b) v1 - 5 v2 + 2 v3

3. If 2 vectors v1 and v2 are given in terms of component

v1 = 3i - 7j + k , v2 = 4i + 5 j – 2k
and c = 3, where c is a scalar. Find
i) v1 + v2 ii) v1 - v2 iii) cv1 iv) |cv1|

2.3 Unit Vectors and Position Vectors

For any vector v there exists a parallel vector û of magnitude 1 unit. It is called a unit
vector in the direction of v.
v
û =
v

Note : If unit vectors â and b̂ in the same direction, then â = b̂ .

Consider a three dimensional Cartesian coordinate system with a point P in space

specified by its Cartesian coordinates (x,y,z) (Figure 2.10) .

z-axis

P(x,y,z) Figure 2.10 : A three dimensional Cartesian

k system for specifying the
i j y-axis position of point P.
x-axis

Three unit vector i, j and k are directed parallel to the positive direction of the x, y and z
axes respectively are called Cartesian unit vectors.

NHJ2020/Vector Algebra
33
 MAT285 (FURTHER MATHEMATICS FOR ENGINEERS)
2020
The position vector r of a point P(x,y,z) is the displacement of the point P from origin
point O, written as r = xi + yj + zk. The numbers x, y and z are the cartesian
components of r. A vector expressed in this way is called a cartesian vector. The
vector xi , etc. are called the cartesian component vectors or resolutes of r.

z-axis
z
P(x,y,z) Figure 2.11 : The position vector r is a
k r zk linear combination of the
i j y y-axis Cartesian unit vectors.
xi
A x yj
x-axis

Consider the vector PQ in Figure 2.12, where the beginning and end points are
P(x1, y1, z1) and Q(x2, y2, z2).

z-axis
P
Figure 2.12 : The vector PQ.

O Q y-axis

x-axis

→
OP is called the position vector of the point P relative to origin O.
→
OQ is called the position vector of the point Q relative to origin O.

Notice that :
→ → → → →
PQ = OQ - OP , where OP and OQ are the position vectors of P and Q.
OQ = x2i + y2j + z2k and OP = x1i + y1j + z1k
Hence,
PQ = (x2 – x1)i + (y2 – y1)j + (z2 – z1)k.

NHJ2020/Vector Algebra
34
 MAT285 (FURTHER MATHEMATICS FOR ENGINEERS)
2020
We can express the vector PQ as
PQ = (x2 – x1 , y2 – y1 , z2 – z1)
where the Cartesian unit vector i, j and k are not shown. This ordered set of three
numbers is called a cartesian ordered triple.

In two dimensional space problems, if point P and Q are in the x-y plane with
coordinate (x1, y1) and (x2, y2), then a displacement PQ can be expressed as
PQ = (x2 – x1)i + (y2 – y1)j, or as an ordered pair, PQ = (x2 – x1 , y2 – y1).

In one-dimensional problems, where all vectors point in the positive or negative x

direction for example, the ordered triple notation (a0,0,0) is often abbreviated simply to
ax. Thus one-dimensional vectors can be represented by positive or negative
numbers.

Exercise 2.3
1. Given a = (2,-3,1) , b = (1,5,-2) and c = (3,-4,3). Find :
a) the magnitude of the vector a – 2b + 3c.
b) a unit vector in the direction of a – 2b + 3c.

2. Find the component of the unit vector parallel to each vectors :

a) p = (-3,4) b) q = (1,-2,-5)

3. If A and B have coordinates (-10,5) and (6,-4), respectively,

a) Write down the components of position vectors A and B
→
b) Find the components of AB .

2.4 Product of Two Vectors

There are two useful ways in which a product can be formed from two vectors. One is
called the scalar product because the product so formed is a scalar quantity ; the other
is called a vector product because the product is itself another vector. Both kinds of
product have wide applications in science and technology, as well as in mathematics.
We begin with the scalar product.

NHJ2020/Vector Algebra
35
 MAT285 (FURTHER MATHEMATICS FOR ENGINEERS)
2020
A. The Scalar Product (Dot Product)

Consider two vectors A and B and let θ be the angle between their direction.
A

θ Figure 2.13 : A.B = |A||B| cos θ

B

The scalar product or dot product of two vector is a scalar quantity defined by
A.B = |A||B| cos θ

where θ is the angle between the directions of A and B and 0  θ  180 o .

When θ = 90o
A.B = 0 (ortogonality condition)
and when B = A,
A.A = |A|2

The scalar product is commutative ,

A.B = |A||B| cos θ = |B||A| cos θ = B.A.
and for any scalar λ ,
A. λ B = λ A.B = λ (A.B).
Moreover, the scalar product is distributive over vector addition, i.e.
(B + C) . A = B . A + C . A

For all vectors A,B,C in Vn and all scalars λ , we have the following properties :
a) A.B = B.A (commutative law)
b) A. (B + C) = A.B + A.C (distributive law)
c) λ (A.B) = λ A.B = A. λ B (homogeneity)

Example 2
Find the scalar product for vectors A and B when |A| = 4 units and |B| = 5 units for
a) θ = 45o b) θ = 90o

NHJ2020/Vector Algebra
36
 MAT285 (FURTHER MATHEMATICS FOR ENGINEERS)
2020
Component form of a scalar product

Let A = (a1, a2, a3) and B = (b1, b2, b3) be two vectors in R3.
The scalar product on R3 is defined as a number
A.B = a1b1 + a2b2 + a3b3.

Example 3
Find the scalar product of
u = (1,-2,4) and v = (3,0,2).

Norm of a vector in Rn

The norm (length or magnitude) of a vector A = (a1, a2,…, an) in Rn is denoted ||A|| and
defined by

||A|| = a 21 +a 22 +... +a 2n

The norm of a vector can also be written in term of the scalar product

||A|| = AA
We know that for any non-zero vector v, there exists a unit vector û in the direction of v
whose norm is 1.
v
û =
v

This procedure of constructing a unit vector in the same direction as a given vector is
called normalizing the vector.

Example 4
a) Find the norm of the vectors u = (1,3,5) in R3 and v = (3,0,1,4) in R4.
b) Find the norm of the vector (2,-1,3). Normalize this vector.

Angle between vectors

The scalar product may be used to find the angle between two non-zero vectors.
A.B = |A||B| cos θ

A.B
=> cos θ = , 0θπ
| A || B |

NHJ2020/Vector Algebra
37
 MAT285 (FURTHER MATHEMATICS FOR ENGINEERS)
2020
.
AB
θ = cos-1( )
| A || B |

where |A| = length or magnitude of A

= a 21 +a 22 +a 32

and |B| = length or magnitude of B

= b 21 +b 22 +b 32

Example 5
     
Calculate the angle between vector P = i + 2 j - 3 k and Q = i - 2 j +3 k .

Projection scalar and Projection vector

The projection of A onto B is the value of |A| cos θ where θ is the angle between the
directions of A and B. It is obtained formally by taking the scalar product of A with B, the
unit vector in the direction of A,
A.B = |A||B| cos θ = |B| cos θ

A.B
Hence, the projection scalar of A onto B is units and
|B|

A.B
the projection vector of of A onto B is (B).
| B|2

Direction Cosines and Direction Angles

y
A(a1,a2,a3) α = angle between vector A and x-axis
β β = angle between vector A and y-axis
γ α x γ = angle between vector A and z-axis

z Figure 3.14

  
If A = a1 i + a2 j + a3 k , then |A| = a 21 +a 22 +a 32 .

NHJ2020/Vector Algebra
38
 MAT285 (FURTHER MATHEMATICS FOR ENGINEERS)
2020
Thus the direction cosines of A are :
a1 a2 a3
cos α = , cos β = , cos γ =
|A| |A| |A|

The direction angles of A are :

a1 a2 a3
α = cos-1 β = cos-1 , γ = cos-1
|A| |A| |A|

Example 6
  
If A = 4 i - 2 j +3 k and |A| = 29 , find the direction cosines and the direction angles of
A.

Example 7    

Given that P = -3 i + 2 j - k and Q = - j + k . Find:
i) the angle between P and Q
ii) the projection of P onto Q
iii) the direction cosines and direction angles of vector P.

B. The Vector Product

Consider two vectors A and B and let θ be the angle between them. The vector
product, also called the cross product, is defined by
A  B = (|A||B| sin θ ) ê (0  θ  180o)
where θ is the smaller angle measure from A to B with common initial position and ê is
a unit vector perpendicular to the plane containing A and B. A, B and ê form a right-
handed system.

ê B
θ
AB B A
θ B A
A ê

Figure 2.15(a) : A  B = (|A||B| sin  ) ê Figure 2.15(b) : B  A = (|B||A| sin  ) ê

NHJ2020/Vector Algebra
39
 MAT285 (FURTHER MATHEMATICS FOR ENGINEERS)
2020
  
When the vector product is applied to the unit vectors i , j and k , one find that
        
i j =k j k = i k i = j
  
which can be remembered by cyclically permuting i , j and k , as

i

 
k j

Let A and B be two vectors in R3. To calculate A  B from the components of

     
A = a1 i + a2 j + a3 k and B = b1 i + b2 j + b3 k ,
we obtain
     
A  B = (a1 i + a2 j + a3 k )  (b1 i + b2 j + b3 k )
     
= a1b1 ( i  i ) + a1b2 ( i  j ) + a1b3( i  k ) +
     
a2b1 ( j  i ) + a2b2 ( j  j ) + a2b3( j  k ) +
     
a3b1 ( k  i ) + a3b2 ( k  j ) + a3b3( k  k )
   
= a1b1 (0) + a1b2 ( k ) + a1b3(- j ) + a2b1 (- k ) + a2b2 (0) + a2b3( i )+
 
a3b1 ( j ) + a3b2 (- i ) + a3b3(0)
  
= (a2b3 – a3b2) i + (a3b1 – a1b3) j + (a1b2 – a2b1) k
or can be conveniently calculated by expansion of the third order determinant
  
i j k
A  B = a1 a 2 a 3
b1 b 2 b 3

a2 a 3  a1 a 3  a a2 
= i– j + 1 k
b2 b3 b1 b 3 b1 b 2
  
= (a2b3 – a3b2) i – (a1b3 – a3b1) j + (a1b2 – a2b1) k

Example 8  
  
Compute the cross product of A = 2 i – 8 j + 3 k and B = 4 j + 3 k .

NHJ2020/Vector Algebra
40
 MAT285 (FURTHER MATHEMATICS FOR ENGINEERS)
2020
Properties of cross product
a) A  B = -B  A (anticommutative rule)
    
b) i j = − ji = k
    
j  k = −k  j = i
    
k  i = −i k = j
c) A  (B + C) = A  B + A  C (distributive rule)
(B + C)  A = B  A + C  A
d) A  ( λ B) = ( λ A)  B = λ (A  B) where λ is any scalar.
e) If A and B are parallel, then θ = 0o or θ = 180o so A  B = 0. The direction of A  B
cannot be determined since zero vector has no specific direction.
f) The vector product of any vector with itself :
A  A = 0.
The magnitude of the vector product A  B is the area of the parallelogram defined by
displacements A and B.
|A  B| = | |A||B| sin θ ê | = | |A||B| sin θ | (0  θ  180o)

D E Figure2.16 : DN =|A| sin θ and

A DE = OC = |B| and
so the area is
O B N C P DN  DE =|A||B| sin θ

Example 9   
    
If A = 2 i + 3 j – k , B = 4 i – k and C = – i + 4 j + k , find
a) A  B
b) B  C
c) (A  B)  C

The vector product is zero if any one of the two vectors is the zero vector, or whenever
the angle θ is 0 or 180o, i.e. whenever the two vectors are collinear (parallel or
antiparallel). This property provides us with the collinearity condition for non-zero
vectors
a  b=0 (for a and b collinear)

NHJ2020/Vector Algebra
41
 MAT285 (FURTHER MATHEMATICS FOR ENGINEERS)
2020
A special case is the vector product of any vector with itself :
a  a = 0.
The vector product is anti-commutative ; it changes sign when the order is changed
b  a = -a  b (anticommutative rule)
Other rules of algebra are
a  (b + c) = a  b + a  c (distributive rule)
a  ( λ b) = ( λ a)  b = λ (a  b)
where λ is any scalar.

Exercise 2.4        
1. a) For what values of λ are the vectors A = λ i − 2 j + k and B = 2λ i + λ j − 4k
perpendicular?
       
b) If A = 3 i + 2 j − 4k and B = i − j + 2k , find the direction cosines and the direction
 
angles of the vectors B x A .

           
2. Let A = i + 2 j + 2k , B = 4 i − 2 j + 4k and C = λ i + j + 4k .

a) find the direction angles of A .
     
b) Show that ( A - B )  ( A + B ) = 2( A  B ).

3. O, A and B are points in space with coordinates (0,0,0), (1,2,3) and (2,p,-1)
respectively. Find
a) the area of triangle OAB if p = 1.

b) the projection of AB onto OB if p = 2.

c) the value of p if the angle between the position vectors OA and OB is

2π
θ= .
3

NHJ2020/Vector Algebra
42
 MAT285 (FURTHER MATHEMATICS FOR ENGINEERS)
2020
2.5 Triple Product of Vectors

A. The triple scalar product

The dot and cross product can be combined to form the triple scalar product A. (B  C).
Since this is a dot product of two vectors, its value is scalar. We can compute this scalar
by means of determinants.

Write A = (a1, a2, a3), B = (b1, b2, b3), C = (c1, c2, c3) and express B  C as follows :
b2 b3  b3 b 1  b1 b 2 
BC = i– j+ k
c2 c3 c3 c1 c1 c 2

Forming the dot product with A , we obtain

b2 b3 b3 b1 b1 b 2
A. (B  C) = a1 – a2 + a3
c2 c3 c3 c1 c1 c 2

a1 a 2 a3
= b1 b 2 b3
c1 c 2 c3

= a1(b2c3 – b3c2) – a2 (b3c1 – b1c3) + a3(b1c2 – b2c1)

The triple scalar product is unchanged by any cyclic permutation of the three vectors or
by interchange of the dot and cross symbols.

Properties of triple scalar product

a) (A  B) . C = (B  C) . A = (C  A) . B
b) A . (C  B) = - A . (B  C)
c) A . (A  B) = 0
d) (A + D) . (B  C) = A . (B  C) + D . (B  C)

Three vectors A, B and C in V3 are linearly dependent if and only if

(A  B) . C = 0.
Since it is zero, then the three vectors are coplanar.

NHJ2020/Vector Algebra
43
 MAT285 (FURTHER MATHEMATICS FOR ENGINEERS)
2020
Example 10
Determine whether the three vectors (2,3,-1), (3,-7,5) and (1,-5,2) are linearly
dependent.

Triple scalar product can be used to find a volume of a parallelepiped box with edges A,
B and C by using the formula
Volume = |(A  B) . C|

B. The triple vector product

The triple product A  B  C, which can be expressed either as (A  B)  C or A  (B  C), is

a vector called a triple vector product. Since this is a vector product of two vectors, its
value is also a vector.

The triple vector products (A  B)  C and A  (B  C) are usually not equal and it can be
calculated easily by using
(A  B)  C = (A . C)B – (B . C)A
and A  (B  C) = (A . C)B – (A . B)C

Example 11
Given A = (1,2,3) , B = (0,4,1) and C = (5,-1,0) calculate
a) A  (B  C)
b) (A  B)  C

2.6 Applications of Scalar and Vector Products in simple Geometry Problems

A. Equation of Lines

Case 1 : Given a point and a vector

 
Suppose a line passes through a point A(x0, y0, z0) and parallel to a vector V = a i + b j +

c k . Let P(x,y,z) be any point on the line. AP is then parallel to the vector V. If t is any
scalar, the vector equation for the line is given by :

AP = tV

NHJ2020/Vector Algebra
44
 MAT285 (FURTHER MATHEMATICS FOR ENGINEERS)

     
2020
(x - x0) i + (y - y0) j + (z - z0) k = t (a i + b j + c k )
and
x - x0 = ta y - y0 = tb z - z0 = tc
or x = x0 + ta y = y0 + tb z = z0 + tc
are the parametric equation for the line.

Eliminating t from the parameter equations, we get the following equation as the
Cartesian equation (symmetrical equation) for the line.
x −x 0 y −y 0 z −z 0
t= = =
a b c

Example 12
Find the parametric equation of a line that passes through a point A(1,1,-1) and is
  
parallel to a vector V = i - 2 j + k .

Case 2 : Given two points

Suppose a line passes through two points A(x0, y0, z0) and B(x1, y1, z1) . Let P(x,y,z) be
any point on the line. AP is then parallel to AB. If t is any scalar, the equation for the line
is given by :

AP = tAB

Example 13
Find the cartesian equation of a line that passes through the points A(1,2,3) and
B(-1,2,-4).

Case 3 : Given a point and a line

x+p
Suppose a line passes through a point A(x0, y0, z0) and parallel to a line L : =
a
y+q z+r   
= . A vector V, which is parallel to L is given by V = a i + b j + c k . Let P(x,y,z)
b c
be any point on the line. AP is then parallel to the vector V. If t is any scalar, the
equation for the line is given by :

AP = tV

NHJ2020/Vector Algebra
45
 MAT285 (FURTHER MATHEMATICS FOR ENGINEERS)
2020
Example 14
Find the parametric and cartesian equation of a line that passes through the point
A(1,0,-2) and parallel to the line L: x= -1 +2t, y = 1 + 5t, z = 2 - t.

Case 4 : Given two lines

Suppose a line passes through L1 and parallel to L2. Let A = (a1, b1, c1) be any point lies
  
on L1. A vector V, which is parallel to L2 is given by V = a i + b j + c k . Let P(x,y,z) be
any point on the line. AP is then parallel to the vector V. If t is any scalar, the equation
for the line is given by :

AP = tV

Example 15
Given two lines:
L1 : (x − 2)i + (y − 1)j + (z + 3)k = t(2i − j − k )

L 2 : (x + 1)i + (y + 2)j + (z − 6)k = s(− 3i − 3 j + 9k )

Find the parametric equation of a line that passes through L1 and parallel to L2

Case 5 : Given a point and a plane

Suppose a line passes through a point A(x0, y0, z0) and perpendicular to a plane
  
S: ax + by + cz = d. A vector V, which is perpendicular to S is given by V = a i + b j + c k .
Let P(x,y,z) be any point on the line. AP is then parallel to the vector V. If t is any scalar,
the equation for the line is given by :

AP = tV

Example 16
Find the parametric equation of a line that passes through the point A(1,-2, 5) and
perpendicular to the plane S: 3x + 2y – z = 7.

NHJ2020/Vector Algebra
46
 MAT285 (FURTHER MATHEMATICS FOR ENGINEERS)
2020
B. Equation of Planes

Case 1 : Given a point and a vector

 
Suppose a plane contains a point A(x0, y0, z0) and perpendicular to a vector V = a i + b j

+c k . Let P(x,y,z) be any point that lies on the plane. The vector AP will be a vector on
the plane and

AP.V = 0

giving (x - x0)a + (y - y0)b + (z - z0)c = 0

as the equation of the plane that can be put in the form
ax + by + cz = d

Example 17  

Find a plane contains the point A(1,-3,2) and perpendicular to the vector V = 5 i - 3 j + k .
Solution
Let P(x,y,z) be any point that lies on the plane. Thus,
AP . V = 0
(x – 1, y + 3, z – 2)(5,-3,1) = 0
(x – 1)(5) + (y + 3)(-3) + (z – 2)(1) = 0
5x – 3y + z = 16

Case 2 : Given three points

Suppose a plane contains three points A(x1, y1, z1), B(x2, y2, z2) and C(x3, y3, z3). Let
P(x,y,z) be any point on the plane. Thus, the equation for the plane is given by :

AP.(AB x AC) = 0

Example 18
Find a plane contains the points A(1,-1,2), B(2,1,2) and C(-1,3,1).

NHJ2020/Vector Algebra
47
 MAT285 (FURTHER MATHEMATICS FOR ENGINEERS)
2020
Case 3: Given a point and a line
x+p
Suppose a plane contains a point A(x0, y0, z0) and perpendicular to a line L : =
a
y+q z+r   
= . A vector V, which is parallel to L is given by V = a i + b j + c k . Let P(x,y,z)
b c
be any point that lies on the plane. Thus, the equation for the plane is given by :

AP.V = 0

Example 19
Given a line L : x = 2t – 1 , y = – t + 2, z = 4t. Find the equation of plane which consists
a point (1,2,-1) and perpendicular to the line L.

Case 4: Given a point and a plane

Suppose a plane contains a point A(x0, y0, z0) and parallel to a plane S: ax + by + cz =
  
d. A vector V, which is perpendicular to S is given by V = a i + b j + c k . Let P(x,y,z)
be any point on the plane. AP is then perpendicular to the vector V. Thus, the equation
for the plane is given by :

AP.V = 0

Example 20
Let P(1,1,1) be a point and S be the plane with the equation 5 x − 3 y + 4z = 8 . Find an
equation of plane that consists of P and parallel to the plane S.

Case 5: Given two lines

Suppose a plane contains 2 lines, L1 and L2. Obtain three points from the two lines :
A(x1, y1, z1), B(x2, y2, z2) and C(x3, y3, z3). Let P(x,y,z) be any point on the plane. Thus,
the equation for the plane is given by :

AP.(AB x AC) = 0

NHJ2020/Vector Algebra
48
 MAT285 (FURTHER MATHEMATICS FOR ENGINEERS)
2020
Example 21
Given
L1: x = 5 – t, y = 3 + 2t, z =4 + 7t
L2: x = 3 + 4s, y = 2 + s, z = 3 – s
Find the equation of the plane determined by the L1 and L2.

C. Intersection points

Example 22
Given two lines in space
L1 : x = 2t – 1 , y = – t + 2, z = 3t – 1,
L2 : x = s + 2, y = s – 2, z = 3s + 1.
Find
i) the point in which the line L1 meets the xz-plane.
ii) the point of intersection of L1 and L2.

Example 23
Given a line L and a plane P in a space
x −1 y z + 6
L: = = , P : 2x – 3y + z = 6
4 2 3
Find the point of intersection of L and P.

Exercise 2.6

1. Given that the position vectors of the points X and Y are:

     
3 i + j + 2k and i − 2 j − 4k .
Find
i) the equation of the line through the points X and Y in Cartesian form and
determine the point where the line crosses the zy-plane.
ii) the equation of the plane passing through Y and perpendicular to the line XY.

NHJ2020/Vector Algebra
49
 MAT285 (FURTHER MATHEMATICS FOR ENGINEERS)
2020
2. Given the parametric equation of the straight line L2: x = 2t – 1, y = 2t – 1, z = 1,
does L1 intersect with L2? Also find the point of intersection if L1 intersects L2.

   
3. A line through the point P (1,1,1) is parallel to A = i + 2 j + 3k . Another line through
   
Q(2,1,0) is parallel to the vector B = 3 i + 8 j + 13k . Using product of vectors, prove
that the two lines are not parallel and determine the point of intersection, if it exist.

y−2 y−3 z−4

4. Given two lines x − 2 = = z − 3 and x − 2 = = .
3 4 2
i) show that the lines intersect and find the coordinates of the point.
ii) find the Cartesian equation of the plane determined by these two lines.

NHJ2020/Vector Algebra
50