Chapter 8: Solving Differential Equations

There are many ways to model real-world situations mathematically. Differential equations
describe how phenomena change. A differential equation is a mathematical model used to
measure the change of a quantity that is determined by another quantity. There are a variety of
solution techniques for these types of equations depending on the complexity of the equations
involved. Differential equations are composed of several terms, just as conventional algebraic
equations are.
Consider the example of Yellow fever in the body.

In vaccinology, scientists are interested in the changing of cells, molecules and virus
concentrations with respect to time. The following equation is one that represents a model of
the virus (V) for Yellow Fever.
dV
= π v ( V )H*-c v V -k v VA t
dt
Each of the variables represents a specific quantity that is being measured related to the Yellow
Fever antibody.

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 8.1 Solving Differential Equations Analytically

Warm Up

Consider:

What does mean?

Multiply both sides by

How can you solve for y?

Draw a possible graph of y.

Definition
An equation involving a derivative is called a differential equation.

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There is one differential equation that you probably know. It is Newton’s Second Law of
Motion. If an object of mass m is moving with acceleration a and being acted on with
force F then Newton’s Second Law tells us.

To see that this is in fact a differential equation we need to rewrite it. First, remember that
acceleration, a, can be written in one of two ways.

or

Where v is the velocity of the object and s is the position function of the object at any time t.
We should also remember at this point that the force, F may also be a function of time, velocity,
and/or position. Now Newton’s Second Law can be written as a differential equation in terms of
either the velocity, v, or the position, s, of the object as follows.

or

Example 1: Evaluate a Differential Equation by Separating the Variables

How to Do It What to Think About
How can you separate the variables so that
all x terms are on one side of the equation?

How can you solve for y?

Why is there no constant of integration on

the left side of the equation?

What does the constant of integration

determine about the behavior of y?

What do you need to know to find C?

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 Your Turn

Solve the differential equation

Example 2: Evaluate Differential Equations Implicitly to Solve for “y”

How to Do It What to Think About
a) How can you separate the variables so that
all x terms are on one side and all y terms are
on the other?

What do you need to do to remove the

differentials from the equation?

Why is there no constant of integration on

the left side of the equation?

What does C1 equal?

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 b) How can you separate the variables so that
all x terms are on one side and all y terms are
on the other?

Why do we not need to use the absolute

value sign anymore?

Your Turn

Solve each differential equation.

a) b)

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 Example 3: Interpret the Solution to a Differential Equation Graphically
If we go back to the differential equation , what does the solution mean graphically?

How to Do It What to Think About

What does the represent

What does the C represent?

How can you know which is the

The solution correct graph?
describes a
family of
curves. To find a particular solution, we would need
to know at least one point on the curve.

Your Turn
Graph the solutions to the differential equations and create at least two different curves.

a) b)

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 Example 4: Find the Particular Solution Given an Initial Value for the Function:
Suppose the slope of the tangent line to each point on the curve is x and the curve
passes through the point . Find the specific curve.
How to Do It What to Think About
How can you separate the variables?

How does the initial value help us find the

exact function y?

Your Turn

Given that and the solution curve passes through the point , what is y?

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 Practice

1. 5.

2. 6.

3. 7.

4. 8.

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9. A particle moves along a line with an acceleration of at a time t. When , its
velocity is 3 and its position . When , what is the position s.

10. An automobile accelerates from a standing start with a constant acceleration of

. How far does it travel in the first 10s?

11. Suppose that the acceleration a(t) of a particle at time t, is given by a(t) = 6t  3
and where s(t) is the position function. Find v(t) and s(t).

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 12. A tree farm sells a bush after 7 years of growth. The growth rate of the tree during the
first seven years is approximated by , where t is the time in years and h is

the height in cm. The seedlings are 10 cm tall when planted t = 0.

a. Find the height after t years

b. How tall are the bushes when they are sold?

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8.2 Solving Differential Equations Graphically

Warm up
Given that , find the slope at each point .

Use each point to calculate

At each of the points draw a short line through the point with slope .
y

Can you sketch a graph of y through the point ?

What does tell us
about the function y?

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 Slope Field
A slope field uses the idea of local linearity; that is, if a function is differentiable at a
point, then the tangent line approximates the function close to that point. By drawing a
slope field, we can graphically “see” the family of functions or the general solution to the
given differential equation. The slope field is like the wind blowing through a field of
grass. You can see the change behavior that the differential equation is describing. Then
by choosing a starting point, an initial value, one can “determine” the particular solution.
Some differential equations can only be solved by considering the slope field.

Example 1: Sketching a Slope Field

Consider the differential equation through the point . What does the
slope field look like? What curve passes through the initial value?
How to Do It What to Think About
What does tell us about the
Determine the slope at each point on the grid.
slope at each point?
Note: For any point the slope will be 2 less than the x-
value. Sketch the slope lines at each point for all x-
values in the domain. The result is shown below.

How can we use the slope field

to draw a curve through the
initial point?

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Your Turn

Sketch a graph of the slope field for

Example 2: Determine a Specific Solution to a Differential Equation.

Determine the slope field for . Sketch a solution function that passes through ?

Confirm algebraically the solution to the differential equation.

How to Do It What to Think About
a) Draw the graph of your solution through the given
What does tell us about the
point on the grid.
slope at each point?

How can we use the slope field to

draw a curve through the initial
point?

Why does the solution show only

“half” of the curve?

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 b) Solve the differential equation given the initial Why must we choose between
condition that the solution passes through the point. the positive and negative versions
of the y function

How do we decide which is the

solution?

Your Turn

a) What is the slope field for the differential equation ?

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b) Draw the solution to this differential equation that passes through the point ,
then solve the differential equation algebraically given this initial condition.

Example 3: Solving a Non-Separable Differential Equation Graphically:

Draw solution curves for the differential equation that pass through each of the

following points: , ,
How to Do It What to Think About
Where is the slope zero? Why?

Can you find an algebraic solution

to this differential equation?

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 Your Turn

Sketch the slope field for then sketch the curve through

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Practice
1. Draw slope fields for the following differential equations

a) b)

c) d)

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 2. a) Draw the slope field for the differential equation

b) Draw the unique curve that passes through the point (2, 1).

c) Solve the differential equation with this initial condition.

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3. Match the slope field (a – d) to one of the differential equations (i – iv).
a) b)

c) d)

i. ii. iii. iv.

4. Where would the slope field for the differential equation have vertical

segments?

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 5. Draw the solution of each differential equation. Then, determine the corresponding
differential equation below each function.
a. b.

c. d.

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6. Consider the differential equation

a. On the axis provided, sketch a graph of the slope field for the given differential
equation at the 6 points indicated.

b. Find in terms of x and y. Determine the concavity of all solution curves in

Quadrant I. Explain.

c. Let be the particular solution to the differential equation with the initial
condition . Does f have a relative minimum, relative maximum or neither.
Explain

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 8.3 Approximating Area Under a Curve Using Riemann Sums

Warm up
Consider a car travelling with the following velocity-time information.
a. How far has the car travelled between

b. How far has the car travelled between

Can you determine the

exact distance
travelled when the
function is a curve?

Definition
The process of evaluating a product in which one factor varies is called finding the
definite integral. The definite integral will give you the area under the curve. We can
approximate the definite integral in several ways.

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Example 1: Estimating the Area Under a Curve Geometrically.
Graph the function on the grid and calculate the area under the curve on .

How to Do It What to Think About

Can you determine an exact
answer in this case?

Is there another way other than

counting we can find the area
under the curve?

Method 1: Counting the squares under the curve from

gives us an area of
What shapes can we use to
determine the area?
Method 2: Using Triangles

What other shape can be used to

represent the area?

Method 3: Using a Trapezoid

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 Your Turn
Graph and calculate the area under the graph from to

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Example 2: Rectangular Approximation Methods to Determine the Area Under a Curve.
Graph the function and make a table of values. Approximate the area under
the curve from by using 4 quadrilaterals of equal width.

How to Do It What to Think About

How do you determine the width
Divide the region into 4 rectangles (4 subintervals) of each sub-interval?

Can you use the entire interval to

determine the width of each sub-
interval?

What does i represent?

Method 1: Left Rectangular Approximation What does n represent?

Consider each rectangle on sub-interval i, , to

have width equal to and

height equal to . This method uses a rectangle with What height should we choose
for each rectangle?
the height of the function at the left side of each
subinterval.

What does the ai represent in the

area equation?

How do you determine for

each rectangle?

Does the left rectangular

approximation method
overestimate or underestimate
the area in this example?

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 Method 2: Right Rectangular Approximation What height should we choose
Consider each rectangle on sub-interval i, , to for each rectangle?
have height equal to . This method uses a rectangle
with the height of the function at the right side of each
How do you determine for
subinterval.
each rectangle?

Does the right rectangular

approximation method
overestimate or underestimate
the area in this example?

Provide any counterexamples

where this is not always true

Method 3: Trapezoidal Approximation What do and represent?

Consider each trapezoid on sub-interval i, , to

have average height to equal to . This

method uses the average of the left rectangular height
and the right rectangular height of the function on each
side of each subinterval. This calculates the area of the Is the trapezoidal approximation
trapezoid under the curve in each subinterval. an overestimation or an
underestimation for this
function?

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 Method 4: Midpoint Rectangular Approximation Compared to the trapezoidal
Consider each rectangle on sub-interval i , , to approximation, what is different
about the average used in the
have height equal to . This method uses a midpoint approximation?
rectangle with the height of the function at the midpoint
of the subinterval.

Which is the most accurate

approximation, LRAM, RRAM,
Trapezoidal, or MRAM?

Formula
Rule
NOTE: These formulas work only for n equal sub-intervals.

Left Endpoint

Right Endpoint

Midpoint

Trapezoidal

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 Your Turn

A particle starts at and moves along the x-axis with velocity for time .
Where is the particle at ? Approximate the area under the curve using four quadrilaterals
of equal width.
a. Calculate the left-hand area (LRAM):

b. Calculate the right-hand area (RRAM):

c. Calculate the trapezoid area:

d. Calculate the midpoint area (MRAM):

e. Solve the differential equation that passes through the point .

Then, determine

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Example 3: Evaluate
A machine fills a milk carton with milk at a constant rate. The rates (in cases per hour) are
recorded at hourly intervals during a 11-hour period, from 6:00 am to 5:00 pm

Use the trapezoidal approximation method with n = 11 to determine approximately how many
cases of milk are filled by the machine over the 11-hour period.

How to Do It What to Think About

Time Rate (cases/h) Why is the value 17 used for 5:00
pm?

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 Your Turn
The economy is continuously changing, we can analyze it with certain
measurements. The following table records the annual inflation rate
as measured each month for 13 consecutive months. Use the
trapezoidal rule with n = 12 to find the overall inflation rate for the
year.

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Practice
1. The function f is continuous on the interval [2, 8] and has values that are given in the table.
Using the subintervals [2, 5], [5, 7] and [7, 8], what is the trapezoidal approximation of

x 2 5 7 8
f(x) 10 30 40 20

2. The following table shows the speedometer readings of a truck, taken at ten-minute
intervals during one hour of the trip. Use the table and the midpoint rule to estimate the
distance that the truck traveled in the hour. Watch your units!

Time (min) 0 10 20 30 40 50 60

Speed (km/h) 40 45 50 60 70 65 60

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 3. If three equal subdivisions of [4, 2] are used, what is the trapezoidal approximation of

4. Use the Midpoint Rule with n = 5 to approximate .

5. Use the Trapezoidal Rule with n = 2 to approximate the integral .

6. Use the Right Endpoint Rule with n = 4 to approximate the integral .

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7. The temperature, in degrees Celsius , of the water in a pond is a differentiable
function W of time t.

t
days

0 20
3 31
6 28
9 24
12 22
15 21

The table above shows the water temperature as recorded every 3 days over a 15-day period.

a) Use the data from the table to find an approximation for . Show the
computations that lead to your answer. Indicate units of measure.

b) Determine the LRAM over the time interval 0 ≤ 𝑡 ≤ 15 days with 5 subintervals .

c) Determine the RRAM over the time interval 0 ≤ 𝑡 ≤ 15 days with 5 subintervals.

d) Determine the MRAM over the time interval 0 ≤ 𝑡 ≤ 12 days with 2 subintervals .

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 8.4 Calculating Area Under Functions Graphically

Warm up

Graph the function and make a table of values. Find the area under

the curve from .

What happens when part of the graph is below the x-axis?

What is the difference between net area, and total area?

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Example 1 Determining the Area Under Piece-Wise Functions Geometrically

Evaluate the following integral given the graph of below

How to Do It What to Think About

Where should you start?

Do we need to find the equation

of each linear section?

What happens when some of the

area is below the ?

Geometrically we can divide the graph up into

convenient intervals and find the area of each using
geometric shapes.

Net area Does the integral ask you to

determine the net area or the
total area?

Total Area
What is the difference between
the net area and the total area?

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 Your Turn
Given the piece-wise function below, write an integral statement and evaluate.

a. Find the net area on [0,7].

b. Find the total area on [0,7].

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 Example 2 Finding the Area Under a Curve of Known Shape:

Evaluate

How to Do It What to Think About

What shape is the curve of the
function?

Since we know
this creates a
semi-circle of What formula can be used to
radius 3 determine the area under the
centered at the curve over the interval [-3,3]?
origin. The area
can be
calculated using
the area of a
semi-circle
equation

Your Turn
Using the graph calculate the following integral.

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 Example 3 Solving Real-World Integration Problems using Geometry.
A car moves along the highway at a constant rate of 65 miles per hour from 6:00 am to 8:00
am. Express the total distance travelled as an integral and evaluate.
What to Think About
Under which type of function will
the shape under the curve be a
rectangle?

Consider the units that determine

the area function, why is the result
in miles?

Your Turn
Find the output from a pump producing 30 gallons per minute during the first 2 hours of
operation. Express your answer using correct units.

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 Example 4 Evaluating Definite Integrals using a TI Calculator:

Evaluate

How to Do It What to Think About

Using your calculator, we can calculate the integral Which buttons on your calculator
should you press to evaluate a
definite integral?

Your Turn
Use your calculator to evaluate the following integral.

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 Example 5 Solving Real-World Problems using a Calculator:
The rate of consumption of oil in Canada during the 1990’s (in billions of barrels per year) is
modeled by the function , where t is the number of years after January 1, 1990.
Find the Total consumption of oil in Canada from January 1, 1990 to January 1, 2000.

How to Do It What to Think About

The total amount consumed from is Why are the constants of
integration 0 and 10?

Could you use different constants

to get the same result?

What are the units obtained after

integrating?

Your Turn
The rate at which our homes consume electricity is measured in kilowatts. Most homes
consume electricity at a rate of 1 kilowatt for 1 hour. Suppose that the average consumption
æ πt ö
rate of your home is modeled by the function C ( t ) = 3.6 -2.4sinç ÷ , where is measured
è 12 ø
in kilowatts and t is measured in hours past midnight. Find the average daily consumption for
your home, measured in kilowatt hours.

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Practice
1. Determine the area under each graph

2. Evaluate the integral using geometrical shapes.

a.

b.

c.

d.

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 3. Sketch the region whose area is given by the definite integral. Then use a geometric
formula to evaluate the integral.

a.

b.

c.

d.

e.

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4. The graph of f below consists of a line segment and a semicircle. Evaluate each definite
integral using geometric formulas

a.

b.

c.

d.

e.

f.

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 8.5 Chapter Review
1. Consider the curve given by

a) Show that

b) Find all points on the curve whose y-coordinate is 1. Write an equation for the line
tangent to the curve at each of the points.

2. Consider the differential equation . Find the solution to the differential

equation

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3. A function is differentiable for all real numbers. The point is on the graph of

and the slope at each point is given by .

a. Find the second derivative and evaluate it at the point .

b. Find by solving using the initial condition .

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 4. Consider the differential equation

a. On the axis provided, sketch a possible slope field.

b. Find the solution given the initial condition

5. For the following use the LRAM, RRAM, Trapezoidal, and MRAM to approximate the
definite integral for the stated value of n.

a.

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 b.

c.

6. Evaluate the definite integral using geometrical shapes.

a.

b.

c.

d.

7. Given and find:

a. c.

b.

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 8. The graph of is below. Evaluate each definite integral by using geometric formulas.

a.

b.

c.

d.

e.

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