Chapter 10

Applications of
Differentiation, I

The remaining two chapters for this semester focus on applications

of differentiation. In this chapter we focus specifically on conse-
quences of the chain rule.
Recall the chain rule:

Theorem 1 (The Chain Rule). Let u = f (x) and y = g(u) where f and
g are differentiable functions. Then
dy dy du
=
dx du dx
The chain rule is a very powerful result which essentially says
that derivatives behave like fractions, even though they are not frac- This is one of the reasons for the
Leibniz notation.
tions, and in particular that derivatives can be ‘cancelled’ just like
fractions. One immediate consequence of this is that if y is a differ-
entiable function of x,
dy dx dx
= =1
dx dy dx
so
dy 1
= dx .
dx dy

1
 2 CHAPTER 10. APPLICATIONS OF DIFFERENTIATION, I

This result can be very useful, as it can occasionally be easier to find

dx dy
dy
than dx
.

Implicit Differentiation
So far, all of the functions we have differentiated have had explicit
representations. That is, we have been able to write our functions
y = g(x) in the form

y = something with only x terms

Not every function can be written this way. For example, consider
To see g is a function think about the function given by y = g(x) where
what the inverse would look like
(i.e. what happens if you swap the
x and y variables). y + ln(y) = x.

This equation defines a function, but it is written implicitly. In this

case it is not even possible to write it explicitly. In situations where
the function is written implicitly, or sometimes where we are dealing
with a well-behaved relation, we use implicit differentiation.
Implicit differentiation is a technique which uses the chain rule to
differentiate with respect to a different variable. For example, sup-
pose that ϕ = g(y), we cannot find the derivative
d
(ϕ)
dx
without knowing the explicit representation of y in terms of x. How-
ever, we can easily find the derivative
d
(ϕ) = g 0 (y)
dy
The trick, therefore, is to use the chain rule replace a differentiation
with respect to x with a differentiation with respect to y by multiply-
dy
ing by dx
. i.e.
d dy d dy 0
(ϕ) = (ϕ) = g (y)
dx dx dy dx
 3

You could write this as

dy dϕ dy dϕ
We then rearrange the result to get an expression for dx
. =
dx dx dy

which is the normal representation

Example 1. If y is a function of x satisfying of the chain rule.

y + ln(y) = x

dy
find dx
.

Solution: Since we want to find the derivative of y with respect to x

we start by differentiating both sides of the equation by x:

y + ln(y) = x
d d
⇒ (y + ln(y)) = (x)
dx dx

The Right hand side of this equation is easy, but the left hand only
involves y terms. So we need to use the chain rule and then proceed
as normal:

d d
(y + ln(y)) = (x)
dx dx
dy d
⇒ (y + ln(y)) = 1
dx dy
 
dy 1
⇒ 1+ =1
dx y
dy 1
⇒ =
dx 1 + y1

The chain rule is what makes implicit differentiation work, but

as we shall see in the next few examples, we may well need to use
other rules (or the chain rule again) in order to find the derivative.

dy
Example 2. Find if xy 2 + cos y = x.
dx
4 CHAPTER 10. APPLICATIONS OF DIFFERENTIATION, I

Solution: We start in the same way as previously, by differentiating

with respect to x.

xy 2 + cos y = x
d d
xy 2 + cos y =


⇒ (x)
dx dx
d d
xy 2 + (cos y) = 1


⇒
dx dx

The second derivative only involves y, so we are ready to use the

chain rule to change the variable of differentiation, but the first deriva-
tive still involves a mix of variables, so we still need to work on it.

d d
xy 2 +


(cos y) = 1
dx dx
d d
dy d
y 2 (x) + x y2 + (cos y) = 1 by the Product Rule
dx dx dx dy
dy d 2
dy
y2 + x y + (− sin(y)) =1
dx dy dx
dy dy
y 2 + 2xy − sin(y) =1
dx dx
dy
y2 + (2xy − sin(y)) = 1
dx
dy 1 − y2
=
dx 2xy − sin y

dy
Example 3. Find for the equation x6 + 2x2 y 3 + y 6 = 0.
dx
Solution: First we differentiate both sides of the given equation with
respect to x. We obtain

d 6 d d d
(x ) + (2x2 y 3 ) + (y 6 ) = (0).
dx dx dx dx

To differentiate 2x2 y 3 , we will need to use the product rule, with

u = 2x2 and v = y 3 :
 5

   
5 du dv dy
6x + ×v+u× + 6y 5 = 0.
dx dx dx
 
d d dy
⇒ 6x5 + (2x2 )y 3 + 2x2 (y 3 ) + 6y 5 = 0.
dx dx dx
 
dy dy
⇒ 6x5 + 4xy 3 + 2x2 3y 2 + 6y 5 = 0.
dx dx
dy dy
⇒ 6x5 + 4xy 3 + 6x2 y 2 + 6y 5 = 0.
dx dx

dy
Finally we need to rearrange to get by itself:
dx

dy dy
6x2 y 2+ 6y 5 = −6x5 − 4xy 3
dx dx
dy
6x2 y 2 + 6y 5 = −6x5 − 4xy 3


⇒
dx
dy −6x5 − 4xy 3
⇒ = .
dx 6x2 y 2 + 6y 5

A particular feature of implicit differentiation is that it can be

used to find derivatives for some (non-function) relations.

dy
Example 4. Find for the equation x2 + y 2 = 1.
dx

Solution: First we need to differentiate both sides of the given equa-

tion with respect to x:

d 2 d
(x + y 2 ) = (1)
dx dx
d 2 d
⇒ (x ) + (y 2 ) = 0
dx dx
d 2 dy
⇒ 2x + (y ) = 0.
dy dx
dy
Thus 2x + 2y = 0.
dx
 6 CHAPTER 10. APPLICATIONS OF DIFFERENTIATION, I

dy
Next we need to rearrange to get by itself:
dx
dy
2y = −2x
dx
dy −2x
⇒ =
dx 2y
x
= − .
y

dy
Implicit differentiation requires that the derivative dx
exists in or-
der to work, which in turn means that y is either a differentiable
function of x or, at the least, consists of differentiable ‘function like’
segments like the circle in example 4. It cannot be used to determine
whether the derivative exists, and it is possible for the method of
implicit differentiation to give an expression for the derivative that
The practice booklet has an exam- cannot be used for all points where the derivative exists. Despite
ple of a function which is differen-
tiable at a particular point, but dif- this, it remains an extremely useful tool.
ferentating implicitly does not find
the derivative.

Rates of Change
Recall that the average rate of change of a function f over an interval
(a, b) is calculated by
f (b) − f (a)
b−a
If we let b = x + h, and a = x, another way of writing this is

f (x + h) − f (x)
h

So an average rate of change of (a, b) is exactly the same thing as the

slop of a secant of that interval. As a result, one interpretation of the
derivative is as the rate of change of the function at a point. That is,
dy
dx
is the (instantaneous) rate of change of y with respect to x. For
 7

example, if V is a function of r the rate of change of V with respect

dV
to r is given by dr
.
Rates of change with respect to time are used so frequently that
we shall often leave out the phrase “with respect to time”. Whenever
we see a question in which we are not told what the rate of change is
with respect to, then we should assume that the rate is with respect
to time. This should also agree with context.

Example 5. A spherical balloon is being inflated with air. Find the

rate of change of the volume of the balloon with respect to its radius,
when the radius is 4 cm.

Solution: Let r and V denote the radius and volume of the balloon
dV
respectively. We want to find when r = 4 cm.
dr
Recall that the volume of a sphere is given by V = 34 πr3 . Thus

dV 4
= π3r2
dr 3
= 4πr2

So when r = 4 cm, we have

dV
= 4π42
dr
= 64π.

That is, when r = 4 cm, the rate of change of the volume with respect
to the radius is 64π cm3 ·cm−1 .

A couple of things to note in the previous solution:

1. It is vital that variables are not assigned values until after the
differentiation is completed. Otherwise you will be treating
something which is variable as a constant and you will not get
the correct derivative.
 8 CHAPTER 10. APPLICATIONS OF DIFFERENTIATION, I

2. Since this is an application, the solution is always interpreted

in the context of the model. We don’t leave the answer as just
64π.

Related Rates of Change

If you have two variables or functions which are related, (One could
be a function of the other, or they could depend on the same argu-
ment, for example) then the rates of change of will also be related.
In these cases you can often use knowledge of one rate of change to
find the other by employing the chain rule.

Example 6. A spherical balloon is being inflated so that its radius

is increasing at the constant rate of 3 cm · min−1 . At what rate is its
volume increasing when the radius of the balloon is 5 cm?

It’s always important to define your Solution: Let V be the balloon’s volume in cm3 , and let r be the
variables.
balloon’s radius in cm. Then we know the following:

4
V = πr3 (Since the balloon as spherical)
3
dr
= 3 (given by the question)
dt
dV
and we are trying to find dt
when r = 5.
By the chain rule,

dV dV dr
=
dt dr dt
= 4πr2 × 3

= 12πr2 .

Thus when r = 5 cm we have

dV
= 12π × 52 = 300π.
dt
 9

That is, when r = 5 cm, the volume is increasing at a rate of

300π cm3 · min−1 . We know that V is increasing since
the rate of change is positive.

Example 7. A 10 m long ladder has its upper end against a vertical

wall, and its lower end on the horizontal ground. The lower end is
slipping away from the wall at a constant rate of 4 m · s−1 . Find the
rate at which the upper end of the ladder is slipping down the wall
when the lower end is 6 m from the wall.

Solution:

ladder (10m)
h
4m · s−1
ground
x

Let x = distance between the lower end of the ladder and the wall
(in m), and let h = height of the ladder (in m).
dx
So we know that dt
= 4 and by the chain rule,

dh dh dx dh
= = × 4.
dt dx dt dx
dh
To find , we need to find a relationship between h and x.
dx
By Pythagoras’ Theorem,

h2 + x2 = 100
1
⇒ h = (100 − x2 ) 2
dh 1 1
⇒ = (100 − x2 )− 2 × (−2x)
dx 2
−x
=√ .
100 − x2
10 CHAPTER 10. APPLICATIONS OF DIFFERENTIATION, I

So
dh dh −x
= ×4= √ × 4.
dt dx 100 − x2
So when x = 6,

dh −6 −6 −24
=√ ×4= √ ×4= = −3.
dt x=6 100 − 36 64 8
dh
Since < 0, we know that h is decreasing, so when x = 6 m, the
dt
top end of the ladder is slipping down the wall at 3 m·s−1 .

You can also approach related rates of change questions using

implicit differentiation. The solutions are essentially the same, but
with a slightly different presentation:

Example 8. Solution of Example 7 using implicit differentiation

dx
Solution: Let x and h be as they were in example 7. Then dt
= 4 and
by Pythagoras’ Theorem,

x2 + h2 = 100

Differentiating this with respect to t gives

d d d
100 = (x2 ) + (h2 )
dt dt dt
dx d 2 dh
⇒0= (x ) + (h2 )
dt dx dt
d 2 dh 2
⇒ 0 = 4 (x ) + (h )
dx dt
dx dh
⇒ 0 = 4 · 2x + 2h
dt dt
dh −4x
⇒ =
dt h
dh −4x
⇒ =√
dt 100 − x2

as we found before. We would finish this calculation in the same

way as the previous example.
 11

Before we can find a derivative, we need to have know how all

the variables in an equation are related. As an example, suppose A
is the area of a circle. Then

A = πr2 .

Since A and r are the only two variables in this equation, we can find
dA dA
dr
immediately. (We obtain dr
= 2πr.)
In contrast, however, suppose A is the surface area of a cylinder.
Then
A = 2πr2 + 2πrh.

This equation contains h, as well as A and r. In this case, we can only

dA
find if we have additional knowledge about h. If h happened to
dr
also depend on r, we would need to consider that as part of our
calculations. In our subject a situation like this would fall in to one
of two categories:

1. we know that h is constant, or

2. we can eliminate h from our equation using information given

in the problem.

Example 9.
Consider an inverted right circular cone which
2
has base radius 2 m and height 5 m. Suppose
the cone contains some water, and suppose the
water is leaking from the apex of the cone at the
constant rate of 0.2 m3 · min−1 . Find the rate
5
at which the water level is dropping when the
depth of the water is 4 m. (Write your answer to
3 decimal places.)
12 CHAPTER 10. APPLICATIONS OF DIFFERENTIATION, I

Solution: Let h be the depth of the water in metres, let r be the radius
of the water’s surface in metres, and let V be the volume of the water
contained in the cone in m3 . We are told that

dV
= −0.2.
dt

dh
and we want to find dt
when h = 4.

By the Chain Rule,

dh dh dV
= (10.1)
dt dV dt
dh
= × −0.2 (10.2)
dV

dh
Before we can find , we need an equation containing h and V .
dV
The volume of the water in the cone is given by

1
V = πr2 h.
3

But we cannot use this formula contains is at stands because it

contains an r as well as an h and a V , and we have no information
dh
about the rate of change of r. Hence before we can find we need
dV
to eliminate the r:
2
Using similar triangles, we find
that
r r 2
5 =
h 5
2
h ∴r= h
5
 13

Now

1
V = πr2 h
3
 2
1 2
= π h h
3 5
1 4π 3
= × h
3 25
4π 3
= h
75

So

dV 4πh2
=
dh 25
dh 25
∴ =
dV 4πh2

Substituting this into equation (10.2) gives

dh 25
= × (−0.2)
dt 4πh2
−5
=
4πh2

When h = 4 we obtain

dh −5
=
dt h=4 4π42
−5
=
64π
= −0.025 (3 decimal places.)

When the depth is 4 m, the water level is dropping by 0.025 m·min−1 .