Maclaurin and Binomial Series

8. 2017 H2 MA Prelim Compilation - Maclaurin and Binomial Series (24 Questions)

INTERMEDIATE LEVEL

ACJC Prelim 9758/2017/01/Q4

Expand  k  x  , in ascending powers of x , up to and including the term in x 2 ,
n
(i)
where k is a non-zero real constant and n is a negative integer. [3]
(ii) State the range of values of x for which the expansion is valid. [1]
(iii) In the expansion of  k  y  3 y 2  , the coefficient of y 2 is 2. By using the expansion in
3

(i), find the value of k . [3]

Answers
 n (n)(n  1) 2 
(i) k n 1  x  x  ...  ;(ii)  k  x  k ;(iii) 0.642.
 k 
2
2k

ACJC Prelim 9758/2017/01/Q6

It is given that e y  1  sin x  .
2

(i) Show that

 d 2 y  dy 2 
e  2      2  cos 2 x  sin x  .
y

 dx  dx  
By repeated differentiation, find the series expansion of y in ascending powers of x , up to
3
and including the term in x , simplifying your answer. [5]
3
(ii) Show how you can use the standard series expansion(s) to verify that the terms up to x for
your series expansion of y in (i) are correct. [3]
Answers
1
(i) y  2 x  x 2  x3  ... ;
3

AJC Prelim 9758/2017/01/Q3

D


A C

B 
The diagram above shows a quadrilateral ABCD, where AB = 2, BC  2 , angle ABC   
4
radians and angle CAD   radians.

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Maclaurin and Binomial Series

Show that
AC  6  4cos   4sin  . [2]

Given that  is small enough for  3 and higher powers of  to be neglected, show that
AD  a  b  c 2 ,
where a, b and c are constants to be determined. [5]
Answers
2
a  2, b   2, c  
2

AJC Prelim 9758/2017/01/Q5

A curve C has equation y = f(x). The equation of the tangent to the curve C at the point where x =
0 is given by 2x  ay = 3 where a is a positive constant.
d2 y dy
It is also given that y = f(x) satisfies the equation 1  2 x  2  y  0 and that the third term
dx dx
1
in the Maclaurin’s expansion of f(x) is x 2 .
3
Find the value of a. Hence, find the Maclaurin’s series for f(x) in ascending powers of x, up to
and including the term in x3. [7]

Answers
2 1 2 5 3
a  3 ; 1  x  x  x  ...
3 3 27

CJC Prelim 9758/2017/01/Q9

(a) Given that the first two terms in the series expansion of 4  x are equal to the first two
terms in the series expansion of p  ln  q  x  , find the constants p and q . [5]

dy
(b) (i) Given that y  tan 1  ax  1 where a is a constant, show that  a cos 2 y . Use this
dx
result to find the Maclaurin series for y in terms of a , up to and including the term
in x 3 . [5]
1
(ii) Hence, or otherwise, find the series expansion of up to and including the
1   4 x  1
2

term in x 2 . [3]
Answers
(a) p  2  ln 4
π 1 1 1 1
(b)(i)  ax  a 2 x 2  a3 x3  ... (ii)  2 x  4 x 2
4 2 4 12 2

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Maclaurin and Binomial Series

DHS Prelim 9758/2017/01/Q4

R

P Q
2

In the isosceles triangle PQR, PQ = 2 and the angle QPR = angle PQR   13 π    radians. The
area of triangle PQR is denoted by A.

Given that  is a sufficiently small angle, show that

 3  tan 
A  a  b  c 2 ,
1   3 tan 

for constants a, b and c to be determined in exact form. [5]

Answers

3  4  4 3  2 

HCI Prelim 9758/2017/01/Q7

2
d2 y 1  dy 
(i) It is given that ln y  2sin x . Show that   y ln y    . [2]
dx 2
y  dx 
(ii) Find the first four terms of the Maclaurin series for y in ascending powers of x . [4]
(iii) Using appropriate expansions from the List of Formulae (MF26), verify the expansion
found in part (ii). [2]
(iv) Given that x is sufficiently small for x 4 and higher powers of x to be neglected, deduce an
approximation for e(2sin x) ln(sec x) in ascending powers of x . [2]
Answers
(ii) y  1  2 x  2 x  x3  ...
2

e
2sin x 
(iv) cos x  1  2 x  32 x 2  ...

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Maclaurin and Binomial Series

IJC Prelim 9758/2017/01/Q6

(i) The variables x and y are related by
dy
( x  y)  ky  2 and y  1 at x  0 ,
dx
2
d2 y dy  dy 
where k is a constant. Show that ( x  y ) 2  (1  k )     0 . [1]
dx dx  dx 
By further differentiation of this result, find the Maclaurin series for y, up to and

including the term in x3 , giving the coefficients in terms of k. [4]

1
(ii) Given that x is small, find the series expansion of g( x)  in ascending
2 
sin  2 x  
 2
2
powers of x, up to and including the term in x .
2 2
If the coefficient of x in the expansion of g( x) is equal to twice the coefficient of x in
the Maclaurin series for y found in part (i), find the value of k. [4]
Answers
 3k  6  2
(i) y  1  (2  k ) x  
 2 
 2

 x  k  6k  8 x  ... (ii) 1  4 x  ... ; k 
3 2 10
3

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Maclaurin and Binomial Series

JJC Prelim 9758/2017/01/Q10

A laser from a fixed point O on a flat ground projects light beams to the top of two vertical
structures A and B as shown above. To project the beam to the top of A, the laser makes an

angle of elevation of radians. To project the beam to the top of B, the laser makes an angle of
6
 

elevation of   x  radians. The two structures A and B are of heights h m and h  3 k m
6 

respectively and are 10 m and (10 + k) m away from O respectively.
20
(i) Show that the length of the straight beam from O to A is m. [1]
3
(ii) Show that the length of AB is 2k m and that the angle of elevation of B from A is

radians. [3]
3
10sin x
(iii) Hence, using the sine rule, show that k  . [2]
 
3 sin   x 
6 
(iv) If x is sufficiently small, show that k 
20
3
 x  ax 2  , where a is a constant to be

determined. [6]
Answers
(iv) a  3

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Maclaurin and Binomial Series

JJC Prelim 9758/2017/02/Q1

It is given that y  ln 1  sin x  .
dy d2 y
(i) Find . Show that  e  y . [4]
dx dx 2
d4 y dy
(ii) Express 4 in terms of and e  y . [3]
dx dx
(iii) Hence, find the first four non-zero terms in the Maclaurin series for ln 1  sin x  . [3]
Answers
4
 y  dy 
2
  y  dy 2 
(ii) 4 =   e   e   or e e    
dy cos x d y y 2 y
(i) =
dx 1  sin x dx  dx    dx  
1 1 1
(iii) ln 1  sin x  = x  x 2  x3  x 4  ...
2 6 12

MI Prelim 9740/2017/02/Q3
It is given that tan y  ln 1  x  .
1
(a)

dy
(i) Show that 1  x  1 y2 . [1]
dx
(ii) By successively differentiating this result, find the Maclaurin series for
tan ln 1  x   , up to and including the term in x 3 . [3]
(iii) It is given that f ( x)  e x tan ln 1  x  . Using your answer to part (a)(ii), estimate the
1
value of f    . [3]
2

(b) The diagram shows triangle ABC, where AC  k cm , BC  h cm ,  BAC    and
3

 ABC = . A
4

B C
h 2 
Given that  is a sufficiently small angle, show that
k

4   
2   2   3  2  .

[3]
Answers
1 2 2 3
(a)(ii) y  x  x  x  ... (a)(iii) 2
2 3

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Maclaurin and Binomial Series

MJC Prelim 9758/2017/01/Q7

1 1 
Given that f  x   tan  x    , show that f '  x   1   f  x    , and find
1 2
(i)
2 4  2  

f  0 , f '  0  , f ''  0  and f '''  0 . Hence write down the first four non-zero terms in the

Maclaurin series for f  x  . [7]

(ii) The first three non-zero terms in the Maclaurin series for f  x  are equal to the first three

cos  ax 
non-zero terms in the series expansion of . By using appropriate expansions from
1  bx
the List of Formulae (MF26), find the possible value(s) for the constants a and b. [5]
Answers
1 2 1 3
(i) f (0)  1; f (0)  1; f (0)  1; f (0)  2 ; f ( x)  1  x  x  x (ii) a  1 ; b  1
2 3

NJC Prelim 9758/2017/02/Q3

e2 x
Using differentiation, find the Maclaurin’s series of , in ascending powers of x up to and
1  x2
including x 3 . [6]
2x
and the cubic polynomial obtained above be f  x  .
e
Let h( x) 
1  x2
Find, for 2  x  2 , the set of values of x for which the value of f  x  is within 0.5 of the

value of h( x) . [3]
Answers
3
2x
y  1  2 x  x2  ; 0.952  x  1.07
3

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Maclaurin and Binomial Series

NYJC Prelim 9758/2017/02/Q3

It is given that y  ln  cos ax  sin ax  , where a is a non-zero constant.
2
d 2 y  dy 
(i) Show that     a 2  0. [3]
dx 2  dx 
(ii) By further differentiation of the result in (i), find, in terms of a, the Maclaurin series for y,
up to and including the term in x 3 . [3]
(iii) Hence show that when x is small enough for powers of x higher than 2 to be neglected
and a  2, then cos 2 x  sin 2 x  1  kx  kx2 where k is a constant to be determined.
[4]
(iv) Using appropriate expansions from the List of Formulae (MF26), verify the correctness of
your answer in (iii). [2]
Answers
2
(ii) y  ax  a 2 x 2  a3 x3  (iii) 1  2 x  2 x2
3

PJC Prelim 9758/2017/02/Q5

It is given that y  sec 2 x .
2
 dy 
(i) Show that    4 y 2 ( y 2  1) . [3]
 dx 
(ii) By further differentiation, find the Maclaurin’s series for y up to and including the term
in x 4 . [5]
1
(iii) By considering sec 2 x  , check on the correctness of your answer in part (ii).
cos 2 x
[3]
Answers
10
(ii) y  1  2 x 2  x 4  ...
3

RI Prelim 9758/2017/01/Q6
2
d2 y  dy 
(i) Given that y  ln 1  sin 2 x  , show that e y  e y    4sin 2 x .
 dx 
2
dx
Find the first three non-zero terms in the Maclaurin’s series for y. [5]
(ii) It is given that the three terms found in part (i) are equal to the first three terms in the series
expansion of ax(1  bx)n for small x. Find the exact values of the constants a, b and n and

use these values to find the coefficient of x 4 in the expansion of ax(1  bx)n , giving your
answer as a simplified rational number. [5]
Answers
4 3 1 20
(i) 2 x  2 x 2  x  (ii) a = 2, b  , n  3 , 
3 3 27

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Maclaurin and Binomial Series

RVHS Prelim 9758/2017/02/Q4

1 x 3
Let y  f  x  , where f  x   e for x  1.

d2 y dy
Show that 4 1  x 2
 6 1  x   3 y  0 . [4]
dx dx
Hence find the Maclaurin series for f(x) up to and including the term in x2. [3]

Using the standard series of e x and 1  x  given in the List of Formulae (MF26), show how you
n

could verify the correctness of the series of f  x  above. [4]

Answers
3e 3e 2
e x  x
2 2

SAJC Prelim 9758/2017/01/Q2


The diagram shows the triangle ABC. It is given that the height AD is h units,  ABD  and
3

 ACD =  x.
4
A

B C
D

Show that if x is sufficiently small for x3 and higher powers of x to be neglected, then
 h  p + qx + rx 2 
h h
BC  
3 tan    x 
 
4  ,
for constants p, q, r to be determined in exact form. [5]
Answers
 3 
h 1   2x + 2x 2 
 3 

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Maclaurin and Binomial Series

SRJC Prelim 9758/2017/01/Q7

(a) By considering the Maclaurin expansion for cos x , show that the expansion of sec x up
1 5 4
to and including the term in x 4 is given by 1  x 2  x . Hence show that the
2 24
1 
expansion for ln  sec x  up to and including the term in x 4 is given by  x 2  Ax 4 
2 
where A is an unknown constant to be determined. [4]
(b) The variables x and y satisfy the conditions (A) and (B) as follows:
1  x2  ddyx  1  y ---(A)
y  0 when x  0 ---(B)
(i) Obtain the Maclaurin expansion of y, up to and including the term in x 3 .
[4]
(ii) Verify that both conditions (A) and (B) hold for the curve ln 1  y   tan x .
1

[2]
(iii) Hence, without using a graphing calculator, find an approximation for

 e 
1
tan 1 x
 1 dx .
2
[2]
0

Answers
2 3
1 2 1 4 1 x x 55
(a) x  x , A  (b) (i) y  x    ... (iii)
2 12 12 2 6 384

TJC Prelim 9758/2017/01/Q2

200 m

A B

xm

The diagram shows two points at ground level, A and B. The distance in metres between A and B
is denoted by x. The angle of elevation of C from B is twice the angle of elevation of C from A.

The distance AC is 200 m and BAC  radians. Show that
3
200sin 
x . [2]
2 
sin   
3 
It is given that  is a small angle such that  4 and higher powers of  are negligible. By using
appropriate expansions from the List of Formulae (MF26), show that
2700  250 2
x . [4]
9

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Maclaurin and Binomial Series

TJC Prelim 9758/2017/02/Q3

Given that e y  e  x  sin x . Show that
2
d2 y  dy 
2e 2y
 4e2 y    sin x  0 . [2]
dx 2
 dx 
dy d2 y
(i) Find the values of y, and when x  0 . Hence, find in terms of e, the
dx dx 2
Maclaurin’s series for ln  e  x  sin x  , up to and including the term in x 2 . [4]
(ii) By using appropriate standard series expansions from the List of Formulae (MF26),
verify the correctness of the first three terms in the series expansion for ln  e  x  sin x 
found in part (i). [3]
e 1
2e  4 x
(iii) Use your answer to part (i) to give an approximation for  dx,

0 e ln e  x  sin x
2

giving your answer in terms of e. [3]
Answers
2 2 2
(i) ln(e  x  sin x)  1  x  2 x  (iii) ln(e4  2e2  2)  4
e e

TPJC Prelim 9758/2017/02/Q3

1 1
(a) Find the series expansion of e2 x ln 1  3x  , where   x  , in ascending powers of x,
3 3
3
up to and including the term in x . [3]

3π
(b) In the triangle PQR as shown in the diagram below, PR  1 , angle QPR  radians and
4
angle PRQ  2 radians.
Q

1
P
1
(i) Show that QR  . [4]
cos 2  sin 2
(ii) Given that  is sufficiently small angle, show that QR  1  a  b 2 , for constants a
and b to be determined. [4]
Answers
3 2
(a) 3x  x  6 x 3  ... (b)(ii) a  2 , b  6
2

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Maclaurin and Binomial Series

VJC Prelim 9758/2017/02/Q4

dy
(a) It is given that y  f  x  is such that my 2  y 3  e x sin x and that the Maclaurin
dx
1
series for f  x  is given by 1  x  nx 2  , where m and n are some real constants.
3

(i) State the values of f  0  and f '  0  . [2]

(ii) Find the values of m and n. [3]

 
(b) In the triangle ABC, AC  1 , angle BAC  radians and angle ABC  radians. D is a
2 6
point on BC produced such that angle CAD   radians (see diagram).

3
(i) Show that AD  . [4]
3 cos   sin 
(ii) Given that  is a sufficiently small angle, show that
AD  1  a  b 2 ,
for constants a and b to be determined exactly. [3]
Answers
1 1
f  0  1, f '  0 
1 5
(ai) (aii) m  3, n   (bii) a , b
3 9 3 6

YJC Prelim 9758/2017/01/Q6

It is given that y  ln  3  e x  .
2
d 2 y  dy  dy
(i) Show that 2     . [3]
dx  dx  dx
(ii) By differentiating the above result, find the first four non-zero terms of the Maclaurin
series for y. Give the coefficients in exact form. [3]
2 x
e
(iii) Hence find the Maclaurin series for 2 x
, up to and including the term in x 2 .
3 e
[2]
Answers
2 x
1 3 1 e 1 3 3
(ii) y  ln 4  x  x 2  x3  ... (iii) 2 x
  x  x2 
4 32 64 3 e 4 8 16

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