Integration

by substitution
There are occasions when it is possible to perform an apparently difficult piece of integration
by rst making a substitution. This has the effect of changing the variable and the integrand.
When dealing with denite integrals, the limits of integration can also change. In this unit we
will meet several examples of integrals where it is appropriate to make a substitution.
In order to master the techniques explained here it is vital that you undertake plenty of practice
exercises so that they become second nature.
After reading this text, and/or viewing the video tutorial on this topic, you should be able to:
carry out integration by making a substitution
identify appropriate substitutions to make in order to evaluate an integral

Contents
1. Introduction

2. Integration by substituting u = ax + b

3. Finding

f (g( x)) g ( x) dx by substituting u = g( x)

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All references to mathtutor on subsequent pages should be read as skillbank solutions limited 2010

1. Introduction
There are occasions when it is possible to perform an apparently dicult piece of integration
by rst making a substitution. This has the eect of changing the variable and the integrand.
When dealing with denite integrals, the limits of integration can also change. In this unit we
will meet several examples of this type. The ability to carry out integration by substitution is a
skill that develops with practice and experience. For this reason you should carry out all of the
practice exercises. Be aware that sometimes an apparently sensible substitution does not lead
to an integral you will be able to evaluate. You must then be prepared to try out alternative
substitutions.
Before looking at the rst example, it is worth recording a preliminary result which will be very
useful in all the examples.
du
Suppose we have a variable u = u(x) which can be dierentiated, to give
. Then a quantity
dx
called the dierential is given by
 
du
du =
dx .
dx
For example, if we have u = 1 2x, we can dierentiate u to give
du
= 2
dx
so that du = 2 dx.

2. Integration by substituting u = ax + b
We introduce the technique through some simple examples for which a linear substitution is
appropriate.
Example
Suppose we want to nd the integral

(x + 4)5 dx .

(1)

You will be familiar already with nding a similar integral

u5 du and know that this integral

u6
is equal to
+ c, where c is a constant of integration. This is because you know that the rule
6
for integrating powers of a variable tells you to increase the power by 1 and then divide by the
new power.
In the integral given by Equation (1) there is still a power 5, but the integrand is more complicated due to the presence of the term x + 4. To tackle this problem we make a substitution.
We let u = x + 4. The point of doing this is to change the integrand into the much simpler u5 .
However, we must take care to substitute appropriately for the term dx, too.
mathtutor project:
May 24, 2004

In terms of dierentials we have

du =


du
dx .
dx

du
= 1 and so
Now, in this example, because u = x + 4 it follows immediately that
dx
 
du
du =
dx = 1 dx = dx .
dx
So, substituting both for x + 4 and for dx in Equation (1) we have




5
(x + 4) dx = u5 du .
u6
The resulting integral can be evaluated immediately to give
+ c. We can revert to an
6
expression involving the original variable x by recalling that u = x + 4, giving


(x + 4)6
+c.
(x + 4)5 dx =
6
We have completed the integration by substitution.
Example
Suppose now we wish to nd the integral


cos(3x + 4) dx .

(2)

Observe that if we make a substitution u = 3x + 4, the integrand will then contain the much
simpler form cos u which we will be able to integrate.
As before,


du =

du
dx


dx

and so
with u = 3x + 4


it follows that
du =

and

du
=3
dx


du
dx = 3 dx .
dx

So, substituting u for 3x + 4, and with dx = 13 du in Equation (2) we have

1
cos u du
cos(3x + 4) dx =
3


1
=
cos u du
3
1
sin u + c .
=
3
We can revert to an expression involving the original variable x by recalling that u = 3x + 4,
giving


1
cos(3x + 4) dx = sin(3x + 4) + c .
3
We have completed the integration by substitution.
3

mathtutor project:
May 24, 2004



It is very easy to generalise the result of the previous example. If we want to nd

cos(ax+b)dx

1
where a and b are constants, the substitution u = ax + b gives du = a dx, so that dx = du.
a
The integral is then


1
cos u du,
a
1
1
which equals sin u + c, and in terms of x this is sin(ax + b) + c. For instance, we can use
a
a
this result to see straight away that


1
cos(7x + 3)dx = sin(7x + 3) + c.
7


1
A similar argument, which you should try, shows that sin(ax + b)dx = cos(ax + b) + c.
a

Key Point
1
sin(ax + b)dx = cos(ax + b) + c
a

Example
Suppose we wish to nd

cos(ax + b)dx =

1
sin(ax + b) + c
a

1
dx.
1 2x

1
We make the substitution u = 1 2x in order to simplify the integrand to . Recall that the
u
1
integral of with respect to u is the natural logarithm of u, ln |u|. As before,
u
 
du
du =
dx
dx
and so
with

u = 1 2x and

it follows that


du =

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du
= 2
dx


du
dx = 2 dx .
dx
4

The integral becomes





1
1
1
du
=
du
2
2
u
1
= ln |u| + c
2
1
= ln |1 2x| + c .
2

1
u

The result of the previous example can be generalised: if we want to nd

1
dx, the
ax + b

1
substitution u = ax + b gives du = a dx, so that dx = du. So the integral is
a


1
1
du,
a
u
1
1
which equals ln |u| + c, and in terms of x this is ln |ax + b| + c. For instance, we can use this
a
a
result to see straight away that


1
dx = ln |x + 1| + c
x+1
and

1
1
dx = ln |3x 2| + c.
3x 2
3

Key Point
1
1
dx = ln |ax + b| + c
ax + b
a

A little more care must be taken with the limits of integration when dealing with denite
integrals. Consider the following example.
Example
Suppose we wish to nd

(9 + x)2 dx .

We make the substitution u = 9 + x. As before,

 
du
du =
dx
dx
5

mathtutor project:
May 24, 2004

and so
with

u = 9 + x and


it follows that
du =
The integral becomes

du
dx

du
=1
dx

x=3

dx = dx .

u2 du

x=1

where we have explicitly written the variable in the limits of integration to emphasise that those
limits were on the variable x and not u. We can write these as limits on u using the substitution
u = 9 + x. Clearly, when x = 1, u = 10, and when x = 3, u = 12. So we require

x=3

u=12
2
u du =
u2 du
x=1


=

u=10

1 3
u
3

12
10


1 3
12 103
3
1
(1728 1000)
=
3
728
.
=
3
=

Note that in this example there is no need to convert the answer given in terms of u back into
one in terms of x because we had already converted the limits on x into limits on u.
Exercises 1.
1. In each case use a substitution to nd the integral:

1



1


3
4
7
(x + 5) dx (c) (2x 1) dx (d)
(1 x)3 dx.
(a) (x 2) dx (b)
0

2. In each case use a substitution to nd the integral:

/2






3x2
dx (c)
cos(1 x)dx (d)
(a) sin(7x 3)dx (b) e
0

mathtutor project:
May 24, 2004

1
dx.
7x + 5

3. Finding

f (g(x))g
(x) dx by substituting u = g(x)

We are now going to extend the method of integrating by substitution by looking at integrals
which can be written in the form


f (g(x))g
(x) dx .
Now this expression looks very complicated, so we shall try to understand it by taking a particular example.
Example
Suppose we write

g(x) = 1 + x2

and

f (u) =

u.

Then we note that the composition1 of the functions f and g is f (g(x)) =

1 + x2 .

Further, we note that if g(x) = 1 + x2 then g
(x) = 2x. So the integral

2
is of the form
f (g(x)) g
(x) dx .
2x 1 + x dx
To perform an integration of this kind, we always try the substitution u = g(x). Then
 
du
du =
dx = g
(x)dx.
dx
So in this case, we try the substitution u = 1 + x2 . Then du = g
(x)dx = 2x dx.

u du. In the general case, the

Once the substitution is made, the resulting integral becomes


integral will become f (u) du. This will always happen when the integrand is in the particular
form f (g(x))g
(x). Then, provided that the nal integral can be found, the problem is solved.
So now

u du
2x 1 + x2 dx =


=
u1/2 du
u3/2
+c
3/2
2 3/2
u +c.
=
3

We can revert to an expression involving the original variable x by recalling that u = 1 + x2 ,

giving

2
2x 1 + x2 dx = (1 + x2 )3/2 + c .
3
We have completed the integration by substitution.
1

When finding the composition of functions f and g it is the output from g which is used as input to f ,
resulting in f (g(x)).

mathtutor project:
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For purposes of comparison the specic example and the general case are presented side-by-side:

2
f (g(x))g
(x)dx
2x 1 + x dx
let u = 1 + x2
 
du
du =
dx = 2x dx
dx

2
u du
2x 1 + x dx =

let u = g(x)
 
du
du =
dx = g
(x) dx
dx






f (g(x))g (x)dx = f (u) du

2 3/2
u +c
3
2
(1 + x2 )3/2 + c
3
It is worth pointing out that integration by substitution is something of an art and your skill
at doing it will improve with practice. Furthermore, a substitution which
 at rst sight might
1 + x2 dx by letting
seem sensible, can lead nowhere. For example, if you were try to nd
2
u = 1 + x you would nd yourself up a blind alley. Be prepared to persevere and try dierent
approaches.
Example
Suppose we wish to evaluate

4x
dx .
2x2 + 1

1
By writing the integrand as
4x we note that it takes the form
2x2 + 1
1
where f (u) = , g(x) = 2x2 + 1 and g
(x) = 4x.
u

f (g(x))g
(x)dx

The substitution u = g(x) = 2x2 + 1 transforms the integral to

1
du .
f (u) du =
u
This is evaluated to give

1
du =
u1/2 du
u
= 2u1/2 + c .

Finally, using u = 2x2 + 1 to revert to the original variable gives

4x

dx = 2(2x2 + 1)1/2 + c
2
2x + 1
or equivalently

mathtutor project:
May 24, 2004

2 2x2 + 1 + c .

Key Point

To evaluate

f (g(x))g
(x)dx

substitute u = g(x), and du = g
(x)dx to give

f (u) du
Integration is then carried out with respect to u, before reverting to the original variable x.

Example
Suppose we wish to evaluate

2xex dx .

We note that the integrand takes the form

f (g(x))g
(x)dx where f (u) = eu , g(x) = x2 and

g
(x) = 2x.
The substitution u = g(x) = x2 transforms the integral to




f (u) du = eu du .
This is evaluated to give

eu du = eu + c .

Finally, using u = x2 to revert to the original variable gives

2
2
2xex dx = ex + c.
Example
Suppose we wish to evaluate

cos(3x4 )12x3 dx .

We note that the integrand takes the form

f (g(x))g
(x)dx where f (u) = cos u, g(x) = 3x4

and g
(x) = 12x3 .

The substitution u = g(x) = 3x4 transforms the integral to




f (u) du = cos u du .
9

mathtutor project:
May 24, 2004

This is evaluated to give

cos u du = sin u + c .

Finally, using u = 3x4 to revert to the original variable gives

cos(3x4 )12x3 dx = sin(3x4 ) + c .
Exercises 2
1. In each case the integrand can be written as f (g(x)) g
(x). Identify the functions f and g
and use the general result on page 7 to complete the integration.






cos x
x2 5
2
dx.
(a) 2xe
dx
(b) 2x sin(1 x )dx
(c)
1 + sin x
2. In each case use the given substitution to nd the integral:


2
(a) 2xex dx,
u = x2 .


u = 2x2 .
(b) x sin(2x2 )dx,

5
x3 x4 + 1dx,
u = x4 + 1.
(c)
0

3. In each case use a suitable

(a)
5x 1 x2 dx (b)


x3

dx
(e)
(d)
4 + 16
x

(g)
5x2 1 x3 dx (h)

mathtutor project:
May 24, 2004

substitution to nd


dx

x(1 + x)2


cos x
dx
(5 + sin x)2


ecos x sin x dx

the integral.


(c)
x4 (1 + x5 )3 dx

1
x3

dx
(f)
4 + 12
x
0


(i)
esin x cos x dx.

10

Answers to Exercises
Exercises 1
4651
1
(x 2)4
+c
(b)
= 930
4
5
5
(2x 1)8
(c)
+ c (d) 4.
16
e3x2
cos(7x 3)
+c
(b)
+c
(c) 1.382 (3dp)
2. (a)
7
3
Exercises 2
1. (a)

1. (a)
(b)
(c)

11

1
ln |7x + 5| + c
7

f (u) = eu , g(x) = x2 5, ex 5 + c,
f (u) = sin u, g(x) = 1 x2 , cos(1 x2 ) + c
f (u) = u1 , g(x) = 1 + sin x, ln |1 + sin x| + c.

cos(2x2 )
2
ex +c (b)
4
5
2 3/2
3. (a) (1 x ) + c (b)
3
1 4
(x + 16)1/2 + c
(e)
(d)
2
10
(g) (1 x3 )3/2 + c (h)
9
2. (a)

(d)

+ c (c) 2610 (4sf).

2
1
+c

(c)
(1 + x5 )4 + c
1+ x
20
1
+ c (f) 0.0707

5 + sin x
ecos x + c
(i) esin x + c.

mathtutor project:
May 24, 2004