Unsolvable Linear First-Order ODEs with Boundary Conditions

In summary, the conversation discusses three first-order differential equations with boundary conditions that the speaker was unable to solve. They attempted various methods such as substitution and using exact differential equations, but were unable to find solutions for the equations. Mathematica was able to solve the second equation and provided a solution involving Bessel functions, while the first and third equations could not be solved with elementary functions. The conversation ends with the mention of a method called exact differential equations, but it is not applicable to these equations.
  • #1
lol_nl
41
0

Homework Statement


Out of a set of differential equations with boundary conditions, there are three (first order) equations I couldn't solve. These are:

Homework Equations


1. [tex]
\frac {dy} {dx} = \sqrt{x + y}, y(1) = 0.
[/tex]
2. [tex]
\frac {dy} {dx} = 2y(x \sqrt{y} - 1), y(0) = 1.
[/tex]
3. [tex]
2x^2 \frac {dy} {dx} = x^2 + y^2, y(2) = 4.
[/tex]

The Attempt at a Solution


The first two can probably be solved with a nice substitution. I tried u = x + y for the first one, but this gave me the equation [tex]\frac {du} {dx} = 1 + \sqrt{u}[/tex], which can be solved for u to get, after resubstituting, [tex]2 \sqrt{x+y} - 2 log[1+\sqrt{x+y} - 2 + 2 log[2] = x[/tex], which doesn't seem solvable for y[x].
For the second one I tried substituting [tex]u = x \sqrt{y} [/tex] and [tex]u = x \sqrt{y} - 1 [/tex], but neither gave an equation that could be written in terms of u only (without x or y).
For the third one I only noticed that y=x is a general solution, but it doesn't agree with the initial condition y(2) = 4, and neither does any manipulation such as y=2x or y=x+2.
 
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  • #2
By the way, Mathematica could only solve for (2.) and gave the solution:
[tex] y[x] = \frac {1}{(1+x+e^{x} C[1])^{2}} [/tex].

For the first one it couldn't find a solution and for the third one it gave an output of a couple of dozen of lines of amongst other Bessel functions.

Another method I tried was writing the equation in the form
[tex] a(x,y) + b(x,y) \frac{dy}{dx} = 0[/tex] and then trying to find a constant E(x,y) such that [tex] \frac{\partial E}{\partial x} = a(x,y), \frac{\partial E}{\partial y} = b(x,y) [/tex]. However, this requires equality of mixed second-order derivatives, and this is not the case for either of the equations. Neither could I easily see a constant [tex] \phi(x,y) [/tex] to multiply the above equation with such that [tex] \phi a(x,y) [/tex] and [tex] \phi b(x,y) [/tex] do satisfy.
(I'm not sure what this method is called in English; it was mentioned in my Dutch textbook)
 
  • #3
The first one can't be solved for y with elementary functions, so that's about as far as you can go.

Apparently the second one can be written as a Bernoulli equation according to WolframAlpha, and that's how you would get the solution that Mathematica gave you.

For the third one, y = ux will turn it into a separable equation.
I think it's interesting how x works in the differential equation, but you can't get it from the general solution...

The method you're talking about is exact differential equations I think; it doesn't look like that method will be helpful for this one.
 

1. What is a linear first-order ODE?

A linear first-order ordinary differential equation (ODE) is an equation that involves a single independent variable, its derivatives, and coefficients that are linear functions of the dependent variable. In other words, the equation can be written in the form of y' + p(x)y = q(x), where y' is the derivative of y with respect to x, p(x) and q(x) are functions of x.

2. What is the difference between a linear and a non-linear first-order ODE?

A non-linear first-order ODE is one in which the dependent variable and its derivatives appear in non-linear terms (e.g. y' + y^2 = x). On the other hand, a linear first-order ODE only involves linear terms, making it relatively easier to solve using various methods.

3. How do I solve a system of three linear first-order ODEs?

To solve a system of three linear first-order ODEs, you can use the matrix method or the elimination method. In the matrix method, you can convert the system into a matrix and use techniques such as Gaussian elimination to solve for the variables. In the elimination method, you can eliminate one variable at a time by substituting one equation into another until you have a single equation with one unknown variable.

4. Can a system of three linear first-order ODEs have multiple solutions?

Yes, a system of three linear first-order ODEs can have multiple solutions. This is because the system is underdetermined, meaning there are more variables than equations. In such cases, the solution space is infinite and can be represented by a family of curves or surfaces.

5. How are systems of three linear first-order ODEs used in real-world applications?

Systems of three linear first-order ODEs are commonly used in various fields of science and engineering to model dynamic systems and processes. Examples include predator-prey models in ecology, population growth in biology, and circuit analysis in electrical engineering. They can also be used to solve optimization problems and make predictions about the behavior of complex systems.

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