Partial fraction decomposition

All You Need in One Place

Everything you need for better marks in primary, GCSE, and A-level classes.

Learn with Confidence

We’ve mastered the UK’s national curriculum so you can study with confidence.

Instant and Unlimited Help

24/7 access to the best tips, walkthroughs, and practice questions.

0/1
?
Intros
Lessons
  1. Introduction to Partial Fraction Decomposition
    What is partial fraction decomposition?
0/8
?
Examples
Lessons
  1. Case 1: Denominator is a product of linear factors with no repeats

    Find the partial fractions of:

    1. x+7(x+3)(x1)\frac{x + 7}{(x + 3)(x - 1)}
    2. 4x+3x2+x\frac{4x + 3}{x^{2} + x}
  2. Case 2: Denominator is a product of linear factors with repeats

    Find the partial fractions of :

    1. 3x25(x2)3\frac{3x^{2} - 5}{(x - 2)^{3}}
    2. 2x1x2+10x+25\frac{2x - 1}{x^{2} + 10x + 25}
  3. Case 3: Denominator contains irreducible quadratic factors with no repeats

    Find the partial fractions of :

    2x2+5x+8x38x\frac{2x^{2} + 5x + 8}{x^{3} - 8x}

    1. Case 4: Denominator contains irreducible quadratic factors with repeats

      Find the partial fractions of:

      3x4+x3+1x(x2+1)2\frac{3x^{4} + x^{3} + 1}{x(x^{2} + 1)^{2}}

      1. First perform long division, then partial fraction decomposition

        Find the partial fractions of:

        1. x33x2+4xx23x2\frac{x^{3} - 3x^{2} + 4x}{x^{2} - 3x 2}
        2. 2x2+14x+24x2+6x16\frac{2x^{2} + 14x + 24}{x^{2} + 6x - 16}
      Topic Notes
      ?

      \bullet Partial fraction decomposition expresses a rational function f(x)g(x)\frac{f(x)}{g(x)}, where f(x)f(x) and g(x)g(x) are polynomials in xx, as a sum of simpler fractions.

      \bullet Partial fraction decomposition only applies to proper fractions in which the degree of the numerator is less than that of the denominator.