Maths Olympiad Prep

Track / Stage 7 / 24 of 300 #1424 of 1964

Problem 1424

National olympiad second round; IMO P1/P4
Algebra Difficulty 7.0 Find the answer

Solve the following system of equations for real x,yx,y and zz:
\begin{eqnarray*}
x &=& \sqrt{2y+3}\\
y &=& \sqrt{2z+3}\\
z &=& \sqrt{2x+3}.
\end{eqnarray*}

A number or a short expression. Spacing and $ signs are ignored.

Official solution

1. Given the system of equations:
{x=2y+3y=2z+3z=2x+3 \begin{cases} x = \sqrt{2y + 3} \\ y = \sqrt{2z + 3} \\ z = \sqrt{2x + 3} \end{cases}
We start by squaring each equation to eliminate the square roots:
{x2=2y+3y2=2z+3z2=2x+3 \begin{cases} x^2 = 2y + 3 \\ y^2 = 2z + 3 \\ z^2 = 2x + 3 \end{cases}

2. Rearrange each equation to isolate the terms involving xx, yy, and zz:
{x22y=3y22z=3z22x=3 \begin{cases} x^2 - 2y = 3 \\ y^2 - 2z = 3 \\ z^2 - 2x = 3 \end{cases}

3. Notice that if x=y=zx = y = z, then substituting xx for yy and zz in the original equations should satisfy all three equations. Let's test x=y=zx = y = z:
x=2x+3 x = \sqrt{2x + 3}
Squaring both sides:
x2=2x+3 x^2 = 2x + 3
Rearrange to form a quadratic equation:
x22x3=0 x^2 - 2x - 3 = 0
Factor the quadratic equation:
(x3)(x+1)=0 (x - 3)(x + 1) = 0
Thus, the solutions are:
x=3orx=1 x = 3 \quad \text{or} \quad x = -1

4. Since xx, yy, and zz must be real and non-negative (as they are under square roots in the original equations), we discard x=1x = -1. Therefore, we have:
x=y=z=3 x = y = z = 3

5. Verify the solution x=y=z=3x = y = z = 3 by substituting back into the original equations:
{3=23+3=6+3=9=33=23+3=6+3=9=33=23+3=6+3=9=3 \begin{cases} 3 = \sqrt{2 \cdot 3 + 3} = \sqrt{6 + 3} = \sqrt{9} = 3 \\ 3 = \sqrt{2 \cdot 3 + 3} = \sqrt{6 + 3} = \sqrt{9} = 3 \\ 3 = \sqrt{2 \cdot 3 + 3} = \sqrt{6 + 3} = \sqrt{9} = 3 \end{cases}
The solution x=y=z=3x = y = z = 3 satisfies all three equations.

6. To check for any other possible solutions, consider the case where none of xx, yy, or zz is equal to 3. Multiply the three equations:
(x22y)(y22z)(z22x)=27 (x^2 - 2y)(y^2 - 2z)(z^2 - 2x) = 27
This simplifies to:
(x22y)(y22z)(z22x)=27 (x^2 - 2y)(y^2 - 2z)(z^2 - 2x) = 27
Since x,y,z0x, y, z \geq 0, the left-hand side must be non-negative. However, the product of three non-negative terms equaling 27 implies that each term must be at least 3, which is not possible unless x=y=z=3x = y = z = 3.

Therefore, the only solution is x=y=z=3x = y = z = 3.

The final answer is x=y=z=3\boxed{x = y = z = 3}.

Source: NuminaMath-1.5, licensed Apache-2.0. Statement and solution reproduced as published; topic, difficulty and ordering added by this site.