If an integral can be evaluated using the substitution method, it of often simpler to make two substitutions. The first seeks to simplify the integrand into a more familiar form which.
Example:![]()
Complete the square inside the square root to obtain![]()
Now substitute![]()
The integral becomes
![]()
Now substitute![]()
The integral becomes
![]()
This can be evaluated using the trigonometric identity
rearranged as
We have![]()
Now use the substitutions to obtain the result in terms of x. Use
and![]()
Now use u=x+1 to obtain the result
Example:
Complete the square inside the square root to obtain
Now substitute![]()
The integral becomes

Now substitute![]()
The integral becomes

Use
and
successively to obtain