ARITHMETIC PROGRESSION (AP)
Detailed Solutions & Step-by-Step Mathematical Derivations
Q18) The sum of three numbers in AP is 21 and sum of their square is 155. Find the numbers.
Let the three numbers in AP be a - d, a, and a + d, where a is the first term and d is the common difference.
Step 1: Use the sum condition
(a - d) + a + (a + d) = 21 ⇒ 3a = 21 ⇒ a = 7
Step 2: Use the sum of squares condition
(a - d)2 + a2 + (a + d)2 = 155
Expanding the terms:
(a2 - 2ad + d2) + a2 + (a2 + 2ad + d2) = 155
3a2 + 2d2 = 155
Substitute a = 7 into the equation:
3(7)2 + 2d2 = 155 ⇒ 3(49) + 2d2 = 155
147 + 2d2 = 155 ⇒ 2d2 = 8 ⇒ d2 = 4 ⇒ d = ±2
Step 3: Determine the numbers
• If d = 2, the numbers are: 7 - 2 = 5, 7, and 7 + 2 = 9.
• If d = -2, the numbers are: 7 - (-2) = 9, 7, and 7 + (-2) = 5.
Final Answer: The numbers are 5, 7, and 9.
Arithmetic Progression (AP) Reference Solutions Page 1 of 10
Q19) The sum of three consecutive terms of an AP is 27 and their product is 405. Find the numbers.
Let the three consecutive terms be a - d, a, and a + d.
Step 1: Use the sum condition
(a - d) + a + (a + d) = 27 ⇒ 3a = 27 ⇒ a = 9
Step 2: Use the product condition
(a - d) × a × (a + d) = 405 ⇒ a(a2 - d2) = 405
Substitute a = 9 into the equation:
9(92 - d2) = 405 ⇒ 9(81 - d2) = 405
Dividing both sides by 9:
81 - d2 = 45 ⇒ d2 = 81 - 45 = 36 ⇒ d = ±6
Step 3: Determine the terms
• If d = 6, the terms are: 9 - 6 = 3, 9, and 9 + 6 = 15.
• If d = -6, the terms are: 9 - (-6) = 15, 9, and 9 + (-6) = 3.
Final Answer: The numbers are 3, 9, and 15.
Arithmetic Progression (AP) Reference Solutions Page 2 of 10
Q20) If pth, qth and rth term of an AP are a, b, c respectively. Then show that (a-b)r + (b-c)p + (c-a)q
= 0.
Let the first term of the AP be A and its common difference be D.
The general term formula gives:
a = A + (p - 1)D — (Equation 1)
b = A + (q - 1)D — (Equation 2)
c = A + (r - 1)D — (Equation 3)
Subtracting the equations pairwise to find differences:
• a - b = [A + (p - 1)D] - [A + (q - 1)D] = (p - q)D
• b - c = [A + (q - 1)D] - [A + (r - 1)D] = (q - r)D
• c - a = [A + (r - 1)D] - [A + (p - 1)D] = (r - p)D
Substitute these values into the left-hand side (LHS) of the required expression:
LHS = (a - b)r + (b - c)p + (c - a)q
LHS = [(p - q)D]r + [(q - r)D]p + [(r - p)D]q
Factoring out the common multiplier D:
LHS = D × [r(p - q) + p(q - r) + q(r - p)]
Expanding the terms inside the bracket:
LHS = D × [pr - qr + pq - pr + qr - pq]
Observing that all components cancel each other completely:
LHS = D × [0] = 0 = RHS
Hence Proved.
Arithmetic Progression (AP) Reference Solutions Page 3 of 10
Q21) Determine the value of k such that 4k+8 , 2k²+3k+6, 3k²+4k+4 are three consecutive terms of
an AP.
For three terms t1, t2, and t3 to be in AP, the common difference must be equal: t2 - t1 = t3 - t2, which simplifies
to the condition:
2t2 = t1 + t3
Given terms: t1 = 4k + 8, t2 = 2k2 + 3k + 6, t3 = 3k2 + 4k + 4.
Substituting these into the condition:
2(2k2 + 3k + 6) = (4k + 8) + (3k2 + 4k + 4)
Expanding and combining like terms:
4k2 + 6k + 12 = 3k2 + 8k + 12
Rearranging all terms to one side:
(4k2 - 3k2) + (6k - 8k) + (12 - 12) = 0
k2 - 2k = 0 ⇒ k(k - 2) = 0
Final Answer: k = 0 or k = 2.
Arithmetic Progression (AP) Reference Solutions Page 4 of 10
Q22) The sum of n, 2n, 3n terms of an AP are S₁, S₂, S₃ respectively. Prove that S₃ = 3(S₂ - S₁).
Let a be the first term and d be the common difference of the AP.
Using the standard sum formula Sm = (m/2)[2a + (m - 1)d], we write:
S1 = (n/2)[2a + (n - 1)d]
S2 = (2n/2)[2a + (2n - 1)d] = n[2a + (2n - 1)d]
S3 = (3n/2)[2a + (3n - 1)d]
Let us evaluate the expression on the right-hand side (RHS): 3(S2 - S1)
S2 - S1 = n[2a + (2n - 1)d] - (n/2)[2a + (n - 1)d]
Factoring out n/2:
S2 - S1 = (n/2) × [2 × (2a + (2n - 1)d) - (2a + (n - 1)d)]
S2 - S1 = (n/2) × [4a + (4n - 2)d - 2a - (n - 1)d]
Combining the terms inside the square bracket:
S2 - S1 = (n/2) × [2a + (4n - 2 - n + 1)d] = (n/2) × [2a + (3n - 1)d]
Now multiply this resulting equation by 3:
3(S2 - S1) = (3n/2)[2a + (3n - 1)d]
This expression precisely matches the definition of S3.
3(S2 - S1) = S3
Hence Proved.
Arithmetic Progression (AP) Reference Solutions Page 5 of 10
Q23) Solve : 1 + 4 + 7 + 10 + .... + x = 590.
The given series is an AP with first term a = 1 and common difference d = 4 - 1 = 3.
Let n be the number of terms in the series. The last term is x, so:
x = a + (n - 1)d ⇒ x = 1 + (n - 1)3 ⇒ x = 3n - 2 — (Equation 1)
The sum of an AP is given by Sn = (n/2)[2a + (n - 1)d]. Setting this equal to 590:
(n/2)[2(1) + (n - 1)3] = 590
n[2 + 3n - 3] = 1180 ⇒ n[3n - 1] = 1180 ⇒ 3n2 - n - 1180 = 0
We solve this quadratic equation using the splitting the middle term method:
3n2 - 60n + 59n - 1180 = 0
3n(n - 20) + 59(n - 20) = 0 ⇒ (3n + 59)(n - 20) = 0
Since the number of terms n must be a positive integer, we discard n = -59/3 and choose:
n = 20
Substitute n = 20 back into Equation 1 to find x:
x = 3(20) - 2 = 60 - 2 = 58
Final Answer: x = 58.
Q24) Find the sum of all the 11 terms of an AP, whose middle term is 30.
Let the first term be a and the common difference be d.
For a total of N = 11 terms (an odd number), the position of the middle term is calculated as:
Middle Term Position = (11 + 1) / 2 = 6th term
Given that the 6th term is 30:
t6 = a + 5d = 30
The formula for the sum of the first 11 terms is:
S11 = (11/2)[2a + (11 - 1)d] = (11/2)[2a + 10d]
Factoring out 2 from the term inside the bracket:
S11 = (11/2) × 2(a + 5d) = 11 × (a + 5d)
Substitute a + 5d = 30 into the expression:
S11 = 11 × 30 = 330
Final Answer: The sum of all 11 terms is 330.
Arithmetic Progression (AP) Reference Solutions Page 6 of 10
Q25) In an AP of 50 terms, the sum of first 10 terms is 210 and the sum of its last 15 terms is 2565.
Find the AP.
Let a be the first term and d be the common difference of the AP containing 50 terms.
Step 1: Sum of the first 10 terms (S10)
S10 = (10/2)[2a + 9d] = 210 ⇒ 5[2a + 9d] = 210 ⇒ 2a + 9d = 42 — (Equation 1)
Step 2: Sum of the last 15 terms The last 15 terms of a 50-term sequence run from the 36th term to the 50th
term.
The sum of the last 15 terms can be found by subtracting the sum of the first 35 terms from the total sum of all
50 terms:
Sum of last 15 terms = S50 - S35 = 2565
Using the formula for S50 and S35:
(50/2)[2a + 49d] - (35/2)[2a + 34d] = 2565
25(2a + 49d) - 17.5(2a + 34d) = 2565
50a + 1225d - 35a - 595d = 2565
15a + 630d = 2565
Dividing the whole equation by 15:
a + 42d = 171 — (Equation 2)
Step 3: Solve Equation 1 and Equation 2 simultaneously Multiply Equation 2 by 2:
2a + 84d = 342 — (Equation 3)
Subtract Equation 1 from Equation 3:
(2a + 84d) - (2a + 9d) = 342 - 42
75d = 300 ⇒ d = 4
Substitute d = 4 into Equation 2:
a + 42(4) = 171 ⇒ a + 168 = 171 ⇒ a = 3
Final Answer: The AP is 3, 7, 11, 15, ...
Arithmetic Progression (AP) Reference Solutions Page 7 of 10
Q26) In an AP the sum of its first ten terms is -80 and the sum of its next ten terms is -280. Find the
AP.
Let a be the first term and d be the common difference.
Step 1: Formulate the sum of the first 10 terms (S10)
S10 = (10/2)[2a + 9d] = -80 ⇒ 5[2a + 9d] = -80 ⇒ 2a + 9d = -16 — (Equation 1)
Step 2: Formulate the sum of the next 10 terms The next 10 terms span from the 11th term to the 20th term.
Their sum plus the first 10 terms' sum gives the total sum of the first 20 terms (S20):
S20 = S10 + (Sum of next 10 terms) = -80 + (-280) = -360
Using the sum formula for S20:
S20 = (20/2)[2a + 19d] = -360 ⇒ 10[2a + 19d] = -360 ⇒ 2a + 19d = -36 — (Equation 2)
Step 3: Solve the simultaneous linear equations Subtract Equation 1 from Equation 2:
(2a + 19d) - (2a + 9d) = -36 - (-16)
10d = -20 ⇒ d = -2
Substitute d = -2 back into Equation 1:
2a + 9(-2) = -16 ⇒ 2a - 18 = -16 ⇒ 2a = 2 ⇒ a = 1
Final Answer: The AP is 1, -1, -3, -5, ...
Arithmetic Progression (AP) Reference Solutions Page 8 of 10
Q27) The sum of the third and seventh terms of an AP is 6 and their product is 8. Find the sum of
first sixteen terms of the AP.
Let the first term be a and the common difference be d.
The third term is t3 = a + 2d and the seventh term is t7 = a + 6d.
Step 1: Use the sum condition
(a + 2d) + (a + 6d) = 6 ⇒ 2a + 8d = 6 ⇒ a + 4d = 3 ⇒ a = 3 - 4d — (Equation 1)
Step 2: Use the product condition
(a + 2d) × (a + 6d) = 8
Substitute a = 3 - 4d into this equation:
(3 - 4d + 2d)(3 - 4d + 6d) = 8 ⇒ (3 - 2d)(3 + 2d) = 8
Using the difference of squares identity (x-y)(x+y) = x2 - y2:
32 - (2d)2 = 8 ⇒ 9 - 4d2 = 8 ⇒ 4d2 = 1 ⇒ d2 = 1/4 ⇒ d = ±1/2
Step 3: Analyze cases to find structural parameters and calculate S16
• Case A: If d = 1/2
Substitute d = 1/2 into Equation 1: a = 3 - 4(1/2) = 3 - 2 = 1.
Then, the sum of 16 terms is:
S16 = (16/2)[2(1) + (16 - 1)(1/2)] = 8[2 + 15/2] = 8 × 19/2 = 76
• Case B: If d = -1/2
Substitute d = -1/2 into Equation 1: a = 3 - 4(-1/2) = 3 + 2 = 5.
Then, the sum of 16 terms is:
S16 = (16/2)[2(5) + (16 - 1)(-1/2)] = 8[10 - 15/2] = 8 × 5/2 = 20
Final Answer: The sum of the first sixteen terms is either 76 or 20.
Arithmetic Progression (AP) Reference Solutions Page 9 of 10
Q28) In an AP the first term is 2 and the sum of the first five terms is one fourth of the next five
terms. Show that 20th term is -112.
Given first term a = 2. Let the common difference be d.
The sum of the first five terms is denoted as S5.
The "next five terms" consist of terms from the 6th to the 10th position. Their sum can be represented as S10 -
S 5.
According to the statement given in the problem:
S5 = (1/4) × (S10 - S5)
Multiplying by 4 to eliminate the fraction:
4 S5 = S10 - S5 ⇒ 5 S5 = S10
Apply the AP sum formula to expand both sides:
5 × { (5/2)[2a + 4d] } = (10/2)[2a + 9d]
Simplifying the fractions outside the brackets:
(25/2)[2a + 4d] = 5[2a + 9d]
Divide both sides by 5:
(5/2)[2a + 4d] = 2a + 9d
Expand the left-hand side:
5a + 10d = 2a + 9d
Rearrange to isolate variables:
5a - 2a = 9d - 10d ⇒ 3a = -d ⇒ d = -3a
Given a = 2, we find the common difference:
d = -3(2) = -6
Now, find the 20th term using the general term formula:
t20 = a + 19d
t20 = 2 + 19(-6) = 2 - 114 = -112
Hence Proved.
Arithmetic Progression (AP) Reference Solutions Page 10 of 10