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Partial Fraction Decomposition: X X X X X X X X X X X

Partial fraction decomposition is used to simplify rational expressions by breaking them into sums of simpler fractions. There are four main cases for partial fraction decomposition based on the factors of the denominator: (1) distinct linear factors, (2) repeated linear factors, (3) distinct irreducible quadratic factors, and (4) repeated irreducible quadratic factors. A partial fraction decomposition problem can involve a mixture of these cases. The degree of the numerator must be less than the degree of the denominator for partial fraction decomposition to work properly.

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Remington Eckhardt
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34 views1 page

Partial Fraction Decomposition: X X X X X X X X X X X

Partial fraction decomposition is used to simplify rational expressions by breaking them into sums of simpler fractions. There are four main cases for partial fraction decomposition based on the factors of the denominator: (1) distinct linear factors, (2) repeated linear factors, (3) distinct irreducible quadratic factors, and (4) repeated irreducible quadratic factors. A partial fraction decomposition problem can involve a mixture of these cases. The degree of the numerator must be less than the degree of the denominator for partial fraction decomposition to work properly.

Uploaded by

Remington Eckhardt
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Partial Fraction Decomposition

We use partial fraction decomposition to simplify rational expressions. For example, we can simplify the
7 x + 11 7 x + 11 2 5
expression 2 into the sum of two much simpler rational expressions: 2 = + . We
x + x−6 x + x−6 x+3 x−2
start this process by first factoring the denominator. In the previous example, we can factor the denominator
7 x + 11 7 x + 11
of 2 as . The way the denominator factors dictates how the rational expression gets
x + x−6 ( x + 3)( x − 2 )
decomposed. There are four main cases for partial fraction decomposition:
NOTE: A, B, C ,  are real numbers

Case 1 – denominator consists of distinct linear factors


1 A B C
Example: = + +
( x − 3)( 2 x + 1)( x + 4 ) x − 3 2 x + 1 x + 4
Case 2 – denominator consists of repeated linear factors
1 A B C D E
Example: = + + + +
( 2 x − 3) ( x − 1) 2 x − 3 ( 2 x − 3) x − 1 ( x − 1) ( x − 1)
2 3 2 2 3

Case 3 – denominator consists of distinct irreducible quadratic factors


1 Ax + B Cx + D Ex + F
Example: =2 + 2 + 2
( x + 4 )( 2 x + x + 3)( x + 2 x + 5) x + 4 2 x + x + 3 x + 2 x + 5
2 2 2

Case 4 – denominator consists of repeated irreducible quadratic factors


1 Ax + B Cx + D Ex + F Gx + H Ix + J
Example: = 2 + + 2 + +
( x 2 + 1) ( x 2 + 2 ) x + 1 ( x 2 + 1) x + 2 ( x 2 + 2 ) ( x 2 + 2 )
2 3 2 2 3

In general, a partial fraction decomposition problem can be a mixture of the above cases. For example:

1 A B C Dx + E
= + + + 2
( x − 1)( x + 3)
2
(x 2
+ 9) x − 1 x + 3 ( x + 3) 2
x +9

In this example, we have a mixture of cases 1, 2, and 3.


It should be noted that in order for partial fraction decomposition to work, the degree of the numerator must
be less than the degree of the denominator. If the degree of the numerator is equal to or greater than the
degree of the denominator, one must first use long division. For example:

x3 + 3x 2 + 3x − 1 7 x + 11 7 x + 11 2 5
= x+2+ 2 = x+2+ = x+2+ +
x + x−6
2
x + x−6 ( x + 3)( x − 2 ) x+3 x−2

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