Rational Expressions
Rational Expressions
Rational Expressions
Prayer
Our loving and generous God, we praise and thank you for the
bountiful blessings You have given to us.
Thank you for giving us a mind that can know and a heart that can
love.
Thank you for giving us the chance to continue learning amidst
the pandemic that have cause a lot of changes in our lives.
We humbly ask for forgiveness for the times we have failed You.
When learning becomes difficult, grant us the gifts of courage and
enthusiasm.
All this we pray, in your mighty name
Amen.
Rational Expressions
September 30, 2021
Objectives
At the end of this unit, you should be
able to:
describe a rational algebraic
expression;
identify the domain of a rational
algebraic expression;
simplify rational algebraic
expressions;
Rational Expressions
32 63
𝑏 . 𝑒 .
88 27
45
𝑐 .
85
Rational Expressions
Domain of a Rational
Expression
Recall that the domain of any function consists of the set of all
allowable values of 𝑥. Since a rational expression is essentially a
fraction, its denominator cannot be equal to 0. Recall that a
fraction with a zero denominator is undefined. The same is true
for rational expressions. Thus, you always have to know for
which values of 𝑥 the rational expression you are solving will be
undefined.
Rational Expressions
As a function, the domain of any rational algebraic expression is
always the set of real numbers except the restricted values of 𝑥.
Rational Expressions
Example 1: Is the expression a rational algebraic
expression?
Solution: This is not a rational expression
because of the radical term, √𝑥, in the
numerator. Radical expressions, like the
square root of a variable, are not allowed
in the numerator or denominator because
by definition, a rational expression must
be the ratio of two polynomials. √𝑥 is not
a polynomial.
Rational Expressions
Example 1a: Is the expression a rational algebraic
expression?
Rational Expressions
Example 2: Given the expression , find the value(s) of 𝒙 for which it
is undefined.
Solution:
Step 1: Equate the
denominator to 0.
Step 2: Solve for the value of x.
Find the value of 𝑥 that makes the rational
expression undefined.
Rational Expressions
𝑥+𝑐
Example 3: What is the domain of
2
𝑥 − 3 𝑥 −28
Solution:
Step 1: Equate the
denominator to 0.
Step 2: Factor the polynomial if
possible.
Step 3: Equate each factor to 0
and solve for the value of x.
Rational
Expressions
Example 4: It is known that the velocity
of an object is determined by its
displacement divided by time and is
expressed in terms of m/s. If the object’s
displacement is (𝑥 + 5) meters and the
time it took for the object to travel the
said displacement is seconds, for which
values of the variable 𝑥 is the velocity
undefined?
Rational
Expressions
Solution:
Step 1: Form the rational expression for
the velocity. Velocity is the ratio of the
object’s displacement to the time. Thus,
the expression for the velocity is given by:
2 4
+ =¿
Step 1: Add the numerators and copy the
5 5 common denominator.
Solution:
Step 1: Factor the numerators and
denominators.
Step 2: Cancel the common factors
vertically or diagonally.
Step 3: Multiply the remaining
numerators and then multiply
the remaining denominators.
Multiplication and Division of Rational
Expression
Example 1: Find the product of the
given rational algebraic expressions.
Solution:
Step 1: Factor the numerators and
denominators.
Step 2: Cancel the common factors
vertically or diagonally.
Step 3: Multiply the remaining
numerators and then multiply
the remaining denominators.
Multiplication and Division
of Rational Expressions
October 14, 2021
Prayer
Our loving and generous God, we praise and thank you for the
bountiful blessings You have given to us.
Thank you for giving us a mind that can know and a heart that can
love.
Thank you for giving us the chance to continue learning amidst
the pandemic that have cause a lot of changes in our lives.
We humbly ask for forgiveness for the times we have failed You.
When learning becomes difficult, grant us the gifts of courage and
enthusiasm.
All this we pray, in your mighty name
Amen.
?
Panda
?
Monkey
?
Cat
?
Duck
Multiplication and Division of Rational
Expression
Example 2: Find the quotient of the given
rational algebraic expressions.
Solution:
Step 1: Factor the numerators and the
denominators.
Difference of two cubes: 𝑎3 − 𝑏3 = (𝑎 − 𝑏)
(𝑎2
+ 𝑎𝑏 +3𝑏 )
2
Thus, 𝑥 − 1 = (𝑥 − 1)(𝑥 2 + 𝑥 + 1).
Multiplication and Division of Rational
Expression
Step 2: Get the reciprocal of
the divisor and proceed to
multiplication.
Step 3: Cancel the common
factors vertically or
diagonally.
Step 4: Multiply the
remaining numerators and
then multiply the remaining
denominators.
Multiplication and Division of Rational
Expression
Find the quotient of the given rational
algebraic expressions.
Multiplication and Division of Rational
Expression
Multiplication and Division of Rational
Expression