Rational Equations

In this section, we learn about Rational Equations. Essentially we are learning how to solve equations with rational expressions involved. Recall that to solve an equation with fractions, we can clear the fractions by multiplying both sides by the LCD. In the case of an equation with rational expressions, we can use the same trick. We would begin by finding the LCD for the rational expressions in our equation. We then multiply both sides of our equation by the LCD to clear all denominators. Once this is done, we can solve our equation as we normally would. We must pay close attention to our solution. If we check the proposed solution and it results in a denominator of zero, we must reject this solution. Recall that we can never divide by zero.