MATH 109 – SOLID MENSURATION

Three-Dimensional Solids
A solid is any limited portion of space, bounded by
surfaces. A section of a solid is the plane figure cut from the
solid by passing a plane through it.
A polyhedron is a solid bounded by planes. The
edges of a polyhedron
are the intersections of
the bounding planes.
The faces (which are
polygons) are the portions of the bounding planes included by the
edges. The vertices are the intersections of the edges.

Solids for which V = bh

1. Rectangular Parallelepiped
A rectangular parallelepiped or a rectangular solid is a solid bounded by six rectangular plane
surfaces.

Characteristics and Properties

 The three edges meeting at a vertex are perpendicular to each other; they are called the
dimensions of the parallelepiped. Let a, b, c be the edges
where a = length, b = height, and c = width.
 Opposite faces of the rectangular parallelepiped are
congruent rectangles.
 If two opposite faces of the parallelepiped are considered
as bases, the other four faces are called lateral faces.
 The perpendicular to a base from any point of the other base is called the altitude of the
parallelepiped.
 The parallel edges of a rectangular parallelepiped are equal.
 Every section made by a plane parallel to the base is equal in area to that of the base.
 The line segment joining vertices of parallelepiped which do not lie on the same face is called a
diagonal of the parallelepiped.

Formulas
The sum of the areas of the lateral faces of a parallelepiped is called the lateral area; and the
sum of the lateral area and the areas of the bases are called the total area of the parallelepiped.
Lateral Area = sum of the areas of the lateral faces
= 2ac  2bc
Total Area = 2ac  2bc  2ab
Diagonal = a 2  b2  c 2
The volume of a rectangular parallelepiped is equal to the
product of its dimensions.
Volume = length x width x height

Acorda, G., et al., (2005). Solid Mensuration (Workbook). Kumintang Ilaya, Batangas City: Feliber Publishing House
nd
Bland, J. R., & Kern W. F. (1938). Solid Mensuration. 2 Edition. John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
 = a b c
Problems
1. A storage room has a rectangular floor 76 ft. by 42 ft. The walls are vertical and 20 ft. high. If there
are no windows, find the total area of the ceiling, walls and floor. Also, find the storage space of the
room.

2. A rectangular parallelepiped has the dimensions 8 cm, 10 cm, and 12 cm. If the midpoints of any
three edges meeting at a common vertex are connected by lines, find the area of the triangle formed by
the connecting lines.

Acorda, G., et al., (2005). Solid Mensuration (Workbook). Kumintang Ilaya, Batangas City: Feliber Publishing House
nd
Bland, J. R., & Kern W. F. (1938). Solid Mensuration. 2 Edition. John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
3. A tank, open at the top, is made of tin 4 cm. thick. The dimensions of the tank are 4 m. long, 6 m.
wide, and 2 m. deep. Find the weight of the tank when empty if the tin weighs 6.8 gm/cm 3.

4. If the density of ice is 0.92g/cu cm, find the mass of a block of ice 110 cm. by 20 cm. by 40 cm.

Acorda, G., et al., (2005). Solid Mensuration (Workbook). Kumintang Ilaya, Batangas City: Feliber Publishing House
nd
Bland, J. R., & Kern W. F. (1938). Solid Mensuration. 2 Edition. John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
5. A solid concrete porch with the dimensions as shown in the figure is to be painted on sides, front and
back. If the cost of the paint is Php 300.00 per square meter, how much is spent in painting the porch?

6. A pile of bricks is to be built to 23 meters long, 12 meters wide and 4 meters high space. If for every
1 cubic meter of space, 12 bricks including mortar are needed, how many bricks will be needed?

Acorda, G., et al., (2005). Solid Mensuration (Workbook). Kumintang Ilaya, Batangas City: Feliber Publishing House
nd
Bland, J. R., & Kern W. F. (1938). Solid Mensuration. 2 Edition. John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
7. An electric refrigerator is built in the form of a rectangular parallelepiped. The inside dimensions are
3 ft. by 2.6 ft. by 1.8 ft. A freezing unit (1.1 ft. by 0.8 ft. by 0.7 ft.) subtracts from the storage room of the
box. Find the capacity of the refrigerator.

8. A packing box 2.2 ft. by 4.9 ft. by 5.5 ft. is to be completely covered with tin. How many square feet
of the metal are needed? (neglect waste for seams, etc.)

Acorda, G., et al., (2005). Solid Mensuration (Workbook). Kumintang Ilaya, Batangas City: Feliber Publishing House
nd
Bland, J. R., & Kern W. F. (1938). Solid Mensuration. 2 Edition. John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
9. Counting 38 cu. ft. of coal to a ton, how many tons of coal bin 19 ft. long, 6 ft. wide, and 9 ft. deep
contain when level full?

10. Given a rectangular parallelepiped with base 12 cm. by 8 cm. and altitude 4 cm, find the area of the
section formed by the base 12 cm. and its diagonally opposite edge.

Acorda, G., et al., (2005). Solid Mensuration (Workbook). Kumintang Ilaya, Batangas City: Feliber Publishing House
nd
Bland, J. R., & Kern W. F. (1938). Solid Mensuration. 2 Edition. John Wiley & Sons, Inc.