Big Ideas Math Geometry, 2014
BI
Big Ideas Math Geometry, 2014 View details
Chapter Review
Continue to next subchapter

Exercise 23 Page 658

Use the formula for the volume of a prism.

≈ 27.53 yd^3

Practice makes perfect

The volume of a pentagonal prism with B base area, and h height can be calculated using the formula below. V=Bh We are given a prism in horizontal position with a height of 4 and its base is a regular pentagon whose side length is 2.

Let's first find the area of the base of the prism and then the volume.

Base Area

The area of a regular polygon is half the product of its apothem and perimeter. Note that we are only given the side length.

We will first need to find the perimeter and the apothem of the pentagon. Then we will use the formula A= 12ap to find the area.

Finding the Perimeter

In a regular pentagon all five sides have the same length. Therefore, we can obtain its perimeter by multiplying the length of a side by 5. 5* 2= 10 The perimeter of the given polygon is 10 yards.

Finding the Apothem

Let's now find the apothem. To do so, we will start by drawing the radii of the pentagon. Be aware that the radii divide a regular pentagon into five congruent isosceles triangles.

Since corresponding angles of congruent figures are congruent, the vertex angles of the isosceles triangles formed by the radii are congruent. Moreover, since a full turn measures 360^(∘), we can divide 360 by 5 to obtain their measures. 360/5=72 The vertex angles of the isosceles triangles measure 72^(∘) each.

The apothem bisects both the vertex angle of the isosceles triangle and the opposite side of the vertex, which is a side of the pentagon. As a result, a 36^(∘)-54^(∘)-90^(∘) triangle is created. The length of its shorter leg is 2÷ 2=1.

To find the apothem we can use the cotangent ratio. cot36=a/1 ⇔ a=cot36≈ 1.38 Therefore, the length of the apothem is approximately 1.38 yards. However, keep in mind that, to find the exact value of the volume, we will substitute cot36 for a in the following operations.

Finding the Area

To find the area of the given regular polygon, we will substitute a=cot36 and p= 10 in the formula A= 12ap.
A=1/2ap
A=1/2(cot36)( 10)
Evaluate right-hand side
A=1/210 cot36
A=10 cot36/2
A=5 cot36
The area of the base of the given prism is about 5cot36 squared yards.

Volume

We calculated that the area of the base B is 5cot36 squared yards. We are also given that the height equals 4 yards. Let's substitute these values into the formula of a volume of a prism and solve for V.
V=Bh
V= 5cot36( 4)
Simplify
V=4(5cot36)
V= 20cot36
V=27.52763...
V≈ 27.53
The volume of the prism is about 27.53 cubic yards.