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2.4: Separable Differential Equations

  • Page ID
    383
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    A differential equation is called separable if it can be written as

    \[ f(y)\,dy = g(x)\,dx. \]

    Steps To Solve a Separable Differential Equation

    To solve a separable differential equation

    1. Get all the \(y\)'s on the left hand side of the equation and all of the \(x\)'s on the right hand side.
    2. Integrate both sides.
    3. Plug in the boundary conditions (e.g. given initial values) to find the constant of integration (\(C\)).
    4. Solve for \(y\).
    Example \(\PageIndex{1}\)

    Solve \( \dfrac{dy}{dx} = y(3 - x) \) with \( y(0 )= 5 \).

    Solution

    \[\begin{align*} \dfrac{dy}{y} &= (3 - x) dx \\[4pt] \int \dfrac{dy}{y} &= \int (3-x) dx \\[4pt] \ln\; y &= 3x - \dfrac{x^2}{2} + C \\[4pt] \ln 5 &= 0 + 0 + C \\[4pt] C &= \ln\; 5 \\[4pt] y &= e^{3x-\frac{x^2}{2} + \ln \; 5} \\[4pt] y &= e^{3x-\frac{x^2}{2}} \; e^{\ln \; 5} \\[4pt] &= 5e^{3x-\frac{x^2}{2}} \end{align*}\]

    Exercise \(\PageIndex{1}\)
    1. \( \dfrac{dy}{dx} = \dfrac{x}{y} \) with \( y(0) = 1 \)
    2. \( \dfrac{dy}{dx} = x(x+1) \) with \( y(1) = 1 \)
    3. \( 2xy + \dfrac{dy}{dx} = x \) with \( y(0) = 2 \)

    Contributors and Attributions


    This page titled 2.4: Separable Differential Equations is shared under a not declared license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by Larry Green.