MTM1043 - Applied Differential Equations

Applications of 1st Order ODEs

Problem 1. A culture initially has a number N0 of bacteria. at t = 1 hr the number of bacteria is measured to be 32 N0 . If the rate of growth is proportional to the number of bacteria present, determine the time necessary for the number bacteria to triple. Ans. t 2.71 hrs.
Problem 2. A bacteria culture is known to grow at a rate proportional to the
amount present. After one hour, 1000 strands of bacteria are observed in the culture; and after 4 hours, 3000 strands. Find (a) an expression for the approximate number of strands of bacteria present
in the culture at any time t, and (b) the approximate number of
strands of the bacteria originally in the culture.
Ans. (a)N = 694e0.366t , (b) N0 = N (0) = 694.
Problem 3. The population of certain country is known to increase at a rate proportional to the number of people presently living in the country. If
after 2 years, the population has doubled, and after three years the
population is 20,000, estimate the number of people initially living
in the country. Ans. N0 7062
Problem 4. (Radioactive Decay) A certain radioactive material is known to decay at a rate proportional to the amount present. If initially there is
50 mg of the material present and after two hours it is observed that
the material has lost 10% of its original mass, find (a) an expression
for the mass of the material remaining at any time t, (b) the mass
of the material after 4 hours, and (c) the time at which material has
decayed to one half of its initial mass.
Ans. (a) N = 50e0.053t ; (b) N = 40.5 mg; (c) t = 13 hours.
Problem 5. (Mixing Problem) A 1500 gallons tank initially contains 600 gallons
of water with 5 lb of salt dissolved in it. Water enters the tank at a
rate of 9 gal/hr and the entering water has a salt concentration of
1
5 (1 + cos t) lbs/gal. If a well-mixed solution leaves the tank at a rate
of 6 gal/hr, how much salt is in the tank when it overflows? Ans.
Q(300) = 279.78 lbs.

Problem 6. A tank initially holds 100 gallons of a brine solution containing 20

lbs of salt. At t = 0, fresh water is poured into the tank at the rate of
5 gal/min, while the well-mixed solution leaves the tank at the same
rate. Find the amount of the salt in the tank at any time t. What is
t
the limiting value of Q as t . Ans. Q = 20e 20 .
Problem 7. (Continuous Compounding) A person places $ 20,000 in a saving
account which pay 5 % per annum, compounded continuously. Find
(a) the amount in the account after 3 years, and (b) the time required
for the account to double in value, presuming no withdrawals and no
additional deposits. Ans. (a) $ 23,236.68, (b) 13.86 yrs.
Problem 8. A body at a temperature of 50o F is placed outdoors where the temperature is 100o F. If after 5 minutes the temperature of the body is
60o F, find (a) how long it will take the body to reach a temperature
of 75o F and (b) the temperature of the body after 20 minutes.
Hint. Newtons law of cooling ; the time rate of change of the temperature of a body is proportional to the temperature difference between the
dT
= k(T Tm ), where k is a
body and its surrounding medium. i.e.,
dt
positive constant of proportionality Once k is chosen +ve, the minus
sign is required in Newtons law to make dT /dt negative in a cooling
process, when T is greater than Tm . and positive in a heating process,
when T is less than Tm . Ans. (a) t = 15.4 min. (b) T = 79.5o F.
Problem 9. A body at an unknown temperature is placed in a room which is held
at a constant temperature of 30o F. If after 10 minutes the temperature of the body is 0o F and after 20 minutes the temperature of the
body is 15o F, find the unknown initial temperature. Ans. T0 = 30o
F.
Problem 10. A body of mass 5 slugs is dropped from a height of 100 ft with zero
velocity. Assuming no air resistance, find (a) an expression for the
velocity of the body at any time t, (b) an expression for the position
of the body at any time t, and (c) the time required to reach the
ground. Ans. v = 32t, x = 16t 2 , and t = 2.5 sec.
Instructor: Dr. Shafqat Hussain