Related Rates

Kirsten Maund
Dahlia Sweeney

Background
Calculus was invented to predict
phenomena of change: planetary motion,
objects in freefall, varying populations, etc.
In many practical applications, several
related rates vary together. Naturally, the
rates at which they vary are also related to
each other. With calculus, we can describe
and calculate such related rates.

What are related rates?

A related rates problem involves two or

more quantities that vary with time and an

equation that expresses some relationship
between them.
Typically, the values of these quantities at
some instant are given together with all
their time rates of change but one. The
problem is usually to find the time rate of
change this is not given, at some instant
specified in the problem.

How to Solve Related Rates

One common method for solving such a
problem is to begin with implicit differentiation
of the equation that relates the given
quantities.
For example, suppose that x and y are each
functions of time such that:
x^2 + y^2 = a^2 (a is a constant)
Differentiate both sides of this equation with
respect to time t. This produces the equation:
2x dx/dt + 2y dy/dt = 0

 If the values of x, y, and dx/dt at a certain

instant t are known, then the last equation
can be solved for the value of dy/dt at time
t.
Note that it is not necessary to know x and
y as functions of t.
It is typical for a related rates problem to
contain insufficient information to express
x and y as functions of t.

WARNING!
The most common error to be avoided
is the premature substitution of the
given data, before rather than after
implicit differentiation.

Strategy for Solving

Step 1: Make a drawing of the

situation if possible.

 Step 2: Use letters to represent the

variables involved in the situation say x, y.

 Step 3: Identify all rates of change

given and those to be determined,
Use the calculus notation (dx/dt,
dy,dt, etc) to represent them.

 Step 4: Determine an equation that

involves both
The variables from step two
The derivative of step three

 Step 5: Differentiate (by implicit

differentiation) the equation of step
four

 Step 6: Substitute all know values

into the differentiated equation

 Step 7: Use algebraic

manipulation ,if necessary, to solve
for the unknown rate or quantity

Formulas You May Need To

Know

V a3

V r h
2

4 r

V
3

r h

V
2

V lwh

bh

V
3

Example #1
A ladder 10 feet long is resting against a wall. If
the bottom of the ladder is sliding away from the
wall at a rate of 1 foot per second, how fast is
the top of the ladder moving down when the
bottom of the ladder is 8 feet from the wall?
First, draw the picture:

 We have dx/dt is one foot per second.

We want to find dy/dt.
X and y are related by the
Pythagorean Thereom
Differentiate both sides of this equation
with respect to t to get

When x = 8 ft, we have

Therefore
The top of the ladder is sliding down
(because of the negative sign in the
result) at a rate of 4/3 feet per second.

Example #2
A man 6 ft tall walks with a speed of 8 ft
per second away from a street light atop
an 8 foot pole. How fast is the tip of his
shadow moving along the ground when he
is 100 feet from the light pole.
6 ft

z-x

x
z

18 ft

 Let x be the mans distance from the pole and z

be the distance of the tip of his shadow from

the base of the pole.
Even though x and z are functions of t, we do
not attempt to obtain implicit formulas for either.
We are given that dx/dt = 8 (ft/sec), and we
want to find dz/dt when x = 100 (ft).
We equate ratios of corresponding sides of the
two similar triangles and find that z/18 = (z-x)/6
Thus 2z = 3x

 Implicit differentiation now gives 2 dz/dt =

3 dx/dt

We substitute dx/dt = 8 and find that

(dz/dt = 3/2) * (dx/dt = 3/2) * (8) = 12
So the tip of the mans shadow is moving at 12
ft per second.

Try Me!
A ladder 25 ft long is leaning against a
vertical wall. If the bottom of the ladder is
pulled horizontally away from the wall at 3
ft/sec, how fast is the top of the ladder
sliding down the wall, when the bottom is
15 ft from the wall?

Solution
t = the number of seconds in time that has

elapsed since the ladder started to slide

down the wall.
y = the number of feet in distance from the
ground to the top of the ladder at t
seconds.
x = the number of feet in the distance from
the bottom of the ladder to the wall at t
seconds.

 Because the bottom of the ladder is pulled

horizontally away from the wall at 3 ft/sec,
dx/dt = 3. We wish to find dy/dt when x =
15.
From the Pythagorean Thereom, we have
y^2 = 625 x^2
Because x and y are functions of t, we
differentiate both sides of equation one
with respect to t and obtain 2y dy/dt = -2x
dx/dt giving us dy/dt = -x/y dx/dt

 When x = 15, it follows from equation one

that y = 20.
Because dx/dt = 3, we get from equation
two: dy/dt = (-15/20) * 3 = -9/4
Therefore, the top of the ladder is sliding
down the wall at the rate of 2 ft/sec
when the bottom is 15 ft from the wall.
The significance of the minus sign is that y
is decreasing as t is increasing.

Was Your Answer Correct?

Bibliography
http://www.math.dartmouth.edu/~klb

ooksite/2.17/217examples/217ladder
.htm
http://www.math.dartmouth.edu/~klb
ooksite/2.17/217examples/217baseba
ll.htm

Maund and Sweeney 2011