Utilizing MS EXCEL Solver

in Solving
Simultaneous Equations

Syamsul Rizal Abd Shukor

PhD, AMIChemE
Review: Linear Equations in Matrix Form

The first step in using matrix methods to solve a

series of linear simultaneous equations is to write
them in matrix form
For n simultaneous equations and n unknowns:

where A is the coefficient matrix (n n); X is the matrix of

unknowns (n 1), and C is the constant matrix (n 1)
 Review: Linear Simultaneous Equations

Recall that if there are more unknowns then

equations, then we cannot find a unique solution
If there are more equations than unknowns, then
some equations must be redundant
If there are exactly the same number of equations
and unknowns, then there may be a unique
solution. In this case the coefficient matrix will be
square
Solution of System of Linear Equations

We can find the unknown variables by multiplying

the inverse of the coefficient matrix by the
constant matrix
 Summary Linear Equations

If the inverse of the coefficient matrix exists, then

there is a solution, and that solution is unique
If the inverse does not exist, then there are two
possibilities:
The equations are incompatible, and so there are no
solutions, or
At least two of the equations are redundant, and so
there are more unknowns than unique equations.
Therefore, there are an infinite number of solutions
 Non-Linear Equations

If any of the equations are non-linear, then the

matrix method will not work
Example: Consider these two equations:

The x2 term in the first equation prevents the use

of a matrix solution
 Excel Solver

Solver is an Excel Add-In that can find solutions to

many problems with multiple independent
variables
The first step is to check that Solver is installed
If so, it will appear in the Data group of the ribbon:
 Installing Solver

If Solver is not present on

the ribbon, start by
clicking the Office
Button

And selecting Excel

Options
 Installing Solver

Choose Add-Ins

And click Go beside

Excel Add-Ins
 Installing Solver

Check Solver and click OK

If Solver has not been installed, click Yes to install

it now
 Using Solver

Solver attempts to set the value of a target cell to

its minimum, its maximum, or a specific value,
By changing one or more input cells (independent
variables,
While maintaining specified constraints (optional)
 Solver Example

Consider this equation:

Use Solver to find values of x for which

y is minimized
y is equal to exactly 50
y is maximized, within limits of x from 0 to 10
 Solver Example

To better understand this problem, consider this

plot of y vs. x:
200

180
On your own,
160
y create the plot
140
as shown here
120

100

80

60

40

20

0
-10 -5 0 5 10 15
x
 Solver Example

Label a cell for the independent variable x and

enter the formula for y in another cell:
 Solver Example

Start Solver. For the first part of the problem we

want to minimize y (Target Cell C4) by changing x
(cell C2):
 Solver Example

Start Solver. For the first part of the problem we

want to minimize y (Target Cell C4) by changing x
(cell C2):
 Solver Example

The answer is that when x = 2, y = 16, the

minimum value of y that is possible:
200

180

160
y
140

120

100

80

60

40

20

0
-10 -5 0 5 10 15
x
 Solver Example

Next, find the value of x for which y = 80:

 Solver Example

But we can see from the

graph that there are two
solutions to the problem 200

This is typical for non- 180

160
y
linear problems; multiple 140

solutions are possible

120

100

The solution found often

80

60

depend on the initial 40

20

guess entered before 0

-10 -5 0 5 10 15

running Solver
x
 Solver Example

Try x = -10 as the initial guess and run Solver

again:
 Solver Example

Now try to maximize y:

 Solver Example

Since the value of y increase to infinity for both

increasing and decreasing values of x, there are no
maxima values to be found
However, we can constrain the problem by requiring
the input value of x to be between 0 and 10:
 Solver Example
200

180

160
y
140

Allowable x-values
120

100

80

60

40

20

0
-5 0 5 10 15
x
 Solver Example

We find that when x = 10, y = 80. This is the

maximum value that y can have, subject to the
constraints on x.
 Solver Example

However, even this

solution is affected by
the initial guess. For
example, if we try x =
-10 as the initial value:

Then we get a different

solution, although the
value of y is clearly not
maximized:
 Solver Example

It is important to realize that Solver finds local

maximum and minimum values
200

180

160 Allowable
y
140 x-values
120

100

80

60

40

20

0
-5 0 5 10 15
x
 Simultaneous Equation Example

Back to our earlier example - consider these two

equations:

Can we find values of x and y that satisfy both

equations?
 Simultaneous Equation Example

With non-linear simultaneous equations, the first step

is to write the equations with all of the variables and
constants on the same side of the equal sign
We give the resulting expressions variable names (f1
and f2 here):

When both f1 and f2 are zero, then the equations are

satisfied
 Simultaneous Equation Example

Start by labeling two cells for the input variables (x

and y)
Label two cells for f1 and f2, and enter their
formulas:
 Simultaneous Equation Example

Remember that Solver must have a single target

cell: we cannot specify that both f1 and f2 are to be
zero
We could specify that the sum of f1 and f2 be zero;
however, this would not guarantee that both are
zero as one could be positive and the other
negative
If we square both values, then both these values
must be greater than or equal to zero
If the sum of the squares equals zero, then both f1
and f2 must be zero
 Simultaneous Equation Example

Add cells for the squares and their sum. The sum
(cell E7) will be the Target Cell in the Solver setup:
Simultaneous Equation Example
 Simultaneous Equation Example

Solver has found a

solution: x is about
-1 and y is about 0
 Simultaneous Equation Example

These are the exact values for the solution:

 Simultaneous Equation Example

Try different guess values of x and y:

 Simultaneous Equation Example

A second solution if found: x = 1.5 and y = 12.5

 Simultaneous Equation Example

A graphical solution is possible with two

equations. Notice that the curves intersect in two
places 80

60 Equation 1
y Equation 2
40

20

-20

-40
-5 -4 -3 -2 -1 0 1 2 3 4 5
x
 Simultaneous Equation Example

Zooming in, we can see the solutions that we found

with Solver 20

15 Equation 1
y Equation 2
10

-5

-10
-2 -1.5 -1 -0.5 0 0.5 1 1.5 2
x
 Simultaneous Equation Example

Now try these equations (only the second is

changed)
 Simultaneous Equation Example

In this case, no solution can be found

 Simultaneous Equation Example

Graphing the equations shows that they do not

intersect
20

15
Equation 1
y Equation 2
10

-5

-10

-15
-2 -1.5 -1 -0.5 0 0.5 1 1.5 2
x
 Summary

Excel Solver can be used to numerically find

maxima, minima, and specific values of a target
cell by varying one or more input cells, with or
without additional constraints
Solver can also find solutions of simultaneous non-
linear equations
Important to recognize that multiple solutions
may exist for non-linear problems