MIT Arts, Design and Technology University, Rajbaug, Pune

MIT School of Engineering

First Year Engineering
Ordinary Differential Equations and Advanced Calculus
Question Bank
Unit-II-Applications of Differential Equations

Newton’s Law of Cooling:

1. Water at temperature 1000 C cools in 10 minutes to 800 C in a room having temperature

250 C . Find Temperature of water after 20 minutes and the time required to lower the

temperature of water to 400 C .  Ans : 77.90 C 

2. Water at temperature 1000 C cools in 10 minutes to 880 C in a room having temperature

250 C . Find Temperature of water after 20 minutes and the time required to lower the

temperature of water to 400 C .  Ans : 65.50 C 

3. Temperature of water initially is 1000 C and that of surrounding is 200 C . If water cools

down to 600 C in first 20 minutes. During what time will it cool to 300 C .  Ans :1hour 

4. A body at 800 C cools down to 600 C in 20 minutes. The temperature of the air being

40 0 C . What will be the temperature of the body after 40 minutes from the original?
5. A body originally at 850C cools to 650C in 25 minutes the temperature of air being 400C,
what will be the temperature of the body after 40 minutes?
6. A body originally at 800 C cools to 600 C in 20 minutes, the temperature of air being 400C,

what will be the temperature of the body after 40 minutes from the original?  Ans : 500 C 

7. The rate at which a body cools is proportional to the difference between the temperature of
the body and that of surrounding air. If a body in air at 250 C will cool from 1000 C to

750 C in one minute, find its temperature at the end of 3 minutes.

8. A body of temperature 1000 C is placed in a room whose temperature is 250 C and cools to

50 0 C in 5 minutes. What will be its temperature after a further interval of 5 minutes?

 Ans : 33.330 C 

9. A body of temperature 1000 C is placed in a room whose temperature is 250 C and cools to

50 0 C in 10 minutes. Find the time when temperature will be 600 C .

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10. A body of temperature 1000 C is placed in a room whose temperature is 20 0 C and cools to

60 0 C in 5 minutes. What will be its temperature after a further interval of 3 minutes?

 Ans : 46.40 C 

11. If the temperature of the body drops from 1000 C to 600 C in one minute. When the

temperature of the surrounding is 200 C , what will be the temperature of the body at the end

of the second minute?  Ans : 400 C 

12. According to Newton’s law of cooling, the rate at which a substance cools in moving air is
proportional to the difference between the temperature of the substance and that of the air. If
the temperature of the air is 300 C and the substance cools from 1000 C to 700 C in 15

minutes, find when the temperature will be 400 C .  Ans : 52.20 Minutes
13. According to Newton’s law of cooling, the rate at which a substance cools in moving air is
proportional to the difference between the temperature of the substance and that of the air. If
the temperature of the air is 300K and the substance cools from 370 K to 340 K in 15

minutes, find when the temperature will be 310K .  Ans : 52 Minutes

14. A metal ball is heated to a temperature of 1000 C and at time t  0 it is placed in water

which is maintained at 400 C . If the temperature of the ball is reduced to 600 C in 4 minutes,

find the time at which the temperature of the ball is 500 C .  Ans : 6.5 Minutes
15. A body at temperature 1000 C is placed in a room where temperature is 200 C and cools to

60 0 C in 5 minutes. Find its temperature after a further interval of 3 minutes.  Ans : 46.40 C 

16. The temperature of the air is 300 C and the substance cools from 1000 C to 700 C in 15

minutes. Find when the temperature will be 400 C .

17. A body cools down from 600 C to 400 C in 15 minutes when surrounding temperature is

200 C . What will be temperature of the body after 10 minutes?

18. A body cools down from 400 C to 200 C in 3 minutes when surrounding temperature is 100 C .

Find time when the temperature of the body will be 150 C . Also find temperature after 5
minutes?
19. A cup of tea at 1000 C cools down to 700 C in 10 minutes when surrounding temperature is

400 C . Find time when temperature of the tea will be 600 C .

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20. The temperature of a body decreases at a rate ' k  ' where  0 is the amount the body is
hotter than surrounding air. The body is heated by a source which makes body’s temperature
increased at a rate '  t ' where ' t ' , is the time and ' ' is a constant. If this source is applied
at t  0 , the body is then at the temperature of surrounding air. Show that
 1 1  kt 
 t   e  .
k k k 
21. Two friends A & B orders coffee and receive cups of equal temperature at the same time A
adds a small amount of cool cream immediately but not drink his coffee until 10 minutes
later, B waits for 10 minutes and adds the same amount of cools cream and begins to drink.
Assuming the Newton’s law of cooling, decide who drinks the hotter coffee.
 Ans : B drinks hotter coffee
22. If a thermometer is taken outdoors where the temperature is 00 C , from a room in which the

temperature is 210 C and the reading drops to 100 C is 1 minute, how long after its removal

will the reading be 50 C ?  Ans :1 Minutes 60 seconds

23. When a thermometer is placed in a hot liquid bath at temperature T, the temperature 

indicated by the thermometer rises at the rate of T   . For a bath at 950 C , the temperature

reads 150 C at t  0 and 350 C at t  10 sec., what will be its temperature at t  20 sec.?

 Ans : 500 C 

Simple Electric Circuits (Kirchhoff’s Law):

24. A resistance of 100 ohms, an inductance of 0.5 Henry are connected in series with a battery of 20

 200 t 
 Ans : 5 1  e 
1
Volts. Find the current in a circuit as a function of time t .

25. A constant electromotive force E Volt is applied to a circuit containing constant resistance
' R ' ohms in series with constant inductance ' L ' henries. If the initial current is zero, show
that the current builds up to half of its theoretical maximum in  L log 2  R seconds.

26. Show that the differential equation for the current i in an electrical circuit containing an
inductance L and a resistance R in series and acted on by an electromotive force E  E0 sin t

di
satisfying the equation L  R i  sin t . Find the value of the current at an time t , if initially
dt
 E 
there is no current in the circuit.  Ans : i  sin t     sin  e Rt L 
 R 2   2 L2 

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27. The equation of the electromotive force in terms of current i for an electric circuit having
i
resistance R and condenser of the capacity C in series is given by E  Ri   dt . Find
C
 CE0 
current i at any time t when E  E0 sin wt .  Ans : i  cos t     ket RC 
 1  R C
2 2 2

28. Find the current i in the circuit having resistance R and condenser of capacity C in series

 CE A t RC 
with electromotive force E sin wt .  Ans : i  cos t     ke 
 1  R C
2 2 2 RC 
29. In a circuit containing inductance L resistance R and voltage E , the current I is given
dI
by E  R I  L , where I (0)  0 . If L  640 H , R  250 and E  500 units, find the
dt
times that elapses before the current reaches 90 % of its maximum value.

 64 log10 
 Ans : t  25
 5.89 

30. The charge Q on the plate of a condenser of capacity C charged through a resistance R by
dQ Q
steady voltage V satisfies the differential equation R   V . If Q  0 at t  0 , then
dt C
 V 
show that Q  CV 1  et RC  . Find the current flowing into the plate.  Ans : i  e  t RC 
 R 
di
31. The equation of L  R circuits is given by L  R i  sin10t . If i  0 at t  0 find the
dt
expression for i in terms of t .
di
32. The equation of an L  R circuits is given by L  R i  10sin t . If i  0 at t  0 , express
dt
 
i as a function of t .  Ans : i 
10
sin  t     sin .e 
 Rt L

 R L
2 2

33. A constant electromotive force E volt is applied to a circuit containing inductance L
henries. If the initial current is zero, find the time that lapse before the current reaches 25 %
of its maximum value.
34. A resistance of 100 ohms, an inductance of 0.5 henries ate connected in series with a battery
of 20 volts. Find the current in a circuit as a function of time.
35. A circuit consists of resistance R ohms and condenser of C farads connected to constant
electromotive force. If q C is the voltage of the condenser at time t after closing the circuit,

show that the voltage at time t is E 1  e t / RC  .

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 dI
36. The equation of an L-R circuit is given by L  RI  10sin t . If I  0 at t  0 , express ‘I’
dt
 10   L 10  1 L   Rt L 
as a function of t .  Ans : i  sin  t  tan 1    tan  .e 
 R 2  L2   R R 2  L2  R 
dI
37. The equation of an L-R circuit is given by L  RI  10 cos t . If I  0 at t  0 , express ‘I’
dt
as a function of t , where L  5 henries and R  12 ohms.

 1   1 1   1 1  2.4t 
 Ans : i  cos  t  tan   cos  tan  .e 
 1.3   2.4   2.4  
38. An electrical circuit contains an inductance of 5 henries and a resistance of 12 ohms in series
with an e. m. f. 120sin 20t Volts. Find the current at t  0.01 , if it is zero when t  0 .

 
 Ans : i 
120
sin  20t     A.e  Rt L
, 0.024 A
 R 2  400 L2 
39. An electrical circuit contains an inductance of 0.2 henries and a resistance of 10 ohms in
series with an electromotive force 150cos  200t  volts. Find the current at any time t, if it is

zero when t  0 . What value does it approach after a long time?

40. A voltage Ee  at is applied at t  0 to a circuit containing inductance ‘L’ and resistance ‘R’.

Show that the current at any time t is

E
R  aL
 e  at  e  Rt L  .

41. A resistance of 20 ohms is connected in series with a capacitor of 0.01 farads and
electromotive force E volts given by 40e3t  20e6t . If q  0 at t  0 , find the maximum
charge on the capacitor.
42. In a circuit containing inductance L  640 henries, resistance R  250 Ohms and voltage
E  500 volts. Current ‘I’ being zero, when t  0 . Find the time that elapses, before it
reaches 50 % of its maximum value.
43. When switch is closed in a circuit containing, a battery E, a resistance R and an inductance L,
dI
the current I builds up at a rate given by L  RI  E . Find I as a function of t. How long
dt
will t be, before the current has reached one half its maximum value, if E  6V , R  100

and L  0.1 Henry?  Ans : t  0.0006931 second 

dI
44. Solve the equation L  RI  E0 sin wt , where I, R and E0 is constant and discuss the case
dt
when t increases indefinitely.

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 dI
45. In a circuit of resistance R, self inductance L, the current I is given by L  RI  E cos pt ,
dt
where E, p are constants. Find the current at any time t.

  Rt L 
 Ans : i  L2 p 2  R 2  pL sin pt  R cos pt  A.e 
E
 
dI
46. Solve the equation L  RI  200 cos  300t  , where R  100 ohms, L  0.05 Henry and hence
dt
find I, given that i  0 when t  0 . What value does current I approach after a long time?

 40  800 200t  40 
 Ans : i  400 20 cos 300 t  3sin 300 t  409 e  and 
   409 

47. An electromotive force 200e 5t is applied to series electric circuit consisting 20 resistance
and 0.01F capacitor. Find the charge and current at any time t, assuming that there is no
charge on capacitor.

Motion under Gravity, Rectilinear Motion:

48. A body of mass m falling from rest is subject to the force of gravity and an air resistance
proportional to the square of the velocity k v 2 . If it falls through a distance x and possesses

2kx  a2 
a velocity v at that instant. Prove that  log  2 2 
, where mg  k a 2 .
m a v 
49. A body starts moving from rest. It is opposed by a force per unit mass of value c x and

resistance per unit mass of value bv 2 , where x and v are the displacement and velocity of
the particle at that instant. Show that the velocity of the particle is given by

2 
1  e 2 bx   .
c cx
v2 
2b b

dv  v2 
50. The distance descended by a parachuter satisfies the differential equation  g 1  2  ,
dt  k 
where v velocity, k and g are constants. If v  0 and x  0 at t  0 , show that

k2
x  log cosh  gt k  .
g
51. The distance x descended by a person falling by means of a parachute satisfies the

  , where
2
 dx 
differential equation    k 2 1  e 2 gx k2
k and g are constants and x  0 when
 dt 
k2
t  0 , show that x  log cosh  gt k  .
g

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52. A particle is moving in a straight line with acceleration k  x  a 4 x3  directed towards

origin. If it starts from rest at ‘a’ distance from the origin. Prove that it will arrive at the
origin at the end of time  4 k .

53. A particle moves in horizontal line OA with acceleration k r 3 at a distance r and directed
towards O. If initially the particle was at rest at a distance ‘a’ from O, find the time when it
will be at a distance a 2 from O.
54. A bullet is fired into sand tank; its retardation is proportional to square root of its velocity.

2 v
Show that the bullet will come to rest in time .Where v is initial velocity and k is
k
constant.
mk
55. A particle of mass m moves in a horizontal straight line OA with acceleration at a
r3
distance r and directed towards O. If initially the particle was at rest at a distance ' a ' from

a2 3
O, find the distance of particle from O at the end of time .
2 k

Heat Flow:
56. A pipe 30 cm in diameter contains at 1500 C and is protected with a covering 5 cm thick

for which k  0.0025 . If the temperature of the outer surface of the covering is 400 C , find
the temperature at a point which is at 16.5 cm from the axis of the pipe.
57. A steam pipe 20 cm in diameter is protected with a covering 6 cm thick for which the
coefficient of thermal conductivity is K  0.003 cal / cm deg sec steady state. Find the heat

loss per hour through a meter length of the pipe, if the surface of the pipe is at 2000 C and

the outer surface of the covering is at 300 C .  Ans : 245443.3861 cal 

58. A pipe 20 cm in diameter contains at 1500 C and is protected with a covering 5 cm thick

for which k  0.0025 . If the temperature of the outer surface of the covering is 400 C , find

the temperature halfway through the covering under steady state conditions.  Ans : 89.50 C 

59. A pipe 20 cm in diameter contains steam at 2000 C and is protected with covering 5 cm

thick for which k  0.0015 . If the temperature of the outer surface of the covering is 500 C ,
find the temperature halfway through the covering under steady state conditions.
60. A long hollow pipe has an inner diameter of 10 cm and outer diameter of 20 cm. The inner
surface is kept at 2000 C and the outer surface at 500 C . The thermal conductivity is 0.12.
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 How much heat is lost per minute from a portion of the pipe 20 meters long? Find the
temperature at a distance x  7.5 cm from the centre of the pipe.

 Ans : q  163 cal , 1956000 cal , 1130 C 

61. A pipe 10 cm in diameter contains steam at 1000 C . It is covered with asbestos, 5 cm thick,

for which k  0.0006 and the outside surface is at 300 C . Find the amount of heat lost per

hour from a meter long pipe.  Ans : 140000 cal / hr.

Radio Active Decay:
62. Uranium disintegrates at a rate proportional to the amount that present at any instant. If M 1

and M 2 grams of uranium are present at times T1 and T2 respectively. Show that the half-

life of uranium is
T2  T1  log 2 .
log  M 1 M 2 

63. If 30 % of a radioactive substance disappeared in 10 days, how log will it takes for 90 % of

it to disappear?  Ans : 64.5 days 

64. Radium decomposes at the rate proportional to the amount present. If 5 % of the original
amount disappears in 50 years, how much will remain after 100 years?  Ans : 90.25%
65. In a culture of yeast at each instant, the time rate of change of active ferment is proportional
to the amount present. If the active ferment doubles in 2 hours, how much can be expected at
the end of 8 hours at the same rate of growth?  Ans :16 times 

66. In a certain culture of bacteria the rate of increases is proportional to the number doubles in 4
hours, how many be expected at the time of 12 hours?  Ans : 8 times 

67. The amount x of a substance present in a certain chemical reaction at time t is given by
dx x  69 
  2  1.5e  t 10 . If t  0, x  0.5 , find x at t  10 .  Ans : x  20  2e 
dt 10
68. A man invests Rs 5000 at the rate of 6 percent per annum, interest being compounded
continuously. When will be the sum doubles itself?  Ans :11.55 years 

69. If the population of a country doubles in 50 years, in how many years will it triple under the
assumption that the rate of increase is proportional to the number of inhabitants?
 Ans : 79 years

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