The volume of a solid (3D) figure is the amount of space it occupies.

Examples of 3D solids include

cube, prism, and cone.
Volume is obtained by multiplying 3 lengths or dimension of a solid figure. Therefore, volume is
measured in mm3, cm3, m3, etc.

Cube and cuboids are considered rectangular prism and the same formula for volume is used for
each solid. In the case of a cube, all the sides have the same length. However, the sides are
different in cuboids.
Different types of pyramids exist. There are square pyramid, rectangular pyramid, and triangular
pyramid. A cone is also a pyramid. The name of the pyramid is associated with the shape of the
base, e.g. in a square pyramid, the base is a square. A triangular pyramid also called a tetrahedron
has a base in the shape of a triangle.
To calculate the volume of a solid correctly, ensure that the right formula is used.
Example 1: The diagram below shows a rectangular prism with cross-section ABCD. Given that AB
= 25 cm and AD = 40 cm, calculate the volume of the prism if its length is 1.2 m.

The volume of a rectangular prism, V = LWH

Vol. = 25 cm 40 cm 120 cm

(1.2 m changed to cm = 120cm)

= 120,000 cm3
In m3, V = 0.12 m3
Volume of a fraction of a solid
How do you determine the volume of part or fraction of a solid? The same formula is used but the
volume of the missing portion is subtracted from the volume of the whole.
Lets use example 1 to demonstrate this. If the prism is made of wood and a portion is removed from
it in the form of a cone, what is the volume of the wood that remains? Lets assume the diameter of
the base of the cone is 30 cm and its height is 0.7m or 70 cm.
First, find the volume of the cone.

Change in shape of the solid

Lets say that the prism in Example 1 is made of iron and was melted down and transformed into a
spherical ball. What is the diameter of the ball? First, changing the shape of the solid does
not change its volume. Whether we are making one new solid or several solids from the original,
the volume at the start will be the same as the volume at the end of the process.
The ball will have the same volume of 120,000 cm3 and using the formula for volume of a sphere,
the diameter can be determined. The radius is first found and then multiplied by 2 to get the
diameter.

Surface Area of Solids

The surface area of a solid shape is the sum of the areas of its faces. The areas can usually be
found more easily from the net of the solid. A net is a two dimensional (2D) pattern of a solid that will
fold up into a three-dimensional (3D) shape.
Drawing the nets of solids is optional. If you can identify the different faces and the number of each
face, use the correct formula to find the area and then sum all the areas.
The net of the common solids are shown. Apart from the cube, there are other ways to draw net
diagrams for the solids and those below are examples.

Volume and Capacity

The volume of a container is generally understood to be the capacity of the container. The two terms
are used interchangeably, have the same units and are calculated using the same formula. However,
the two terms have different meanings. Volume is the amount of space the container occupies;
capacity on the other hand is the amount of fluid (gas or liquid) that the container can hold when it is
full.
In the International System of Units (SI), the standard unit of volume is the cubic metre (m 3). In the
metric system the litre (L) is also included as a unit of volume. The litre is mostly used for fluid
volume in a container, i.e. the capacity of the container.
1 litre = 1000 cubic centimetres (cm3)
1 cubic metre (m3) = 1000 litres
Small amounts of liquid are often measured in millilitres, where
1000 millilitre (ml) =1 litre

WORKED EXAMPLE 3

A rectangular block of wood is 6 cm high. The cross-section of the

block is a square of side 16 cm. A cylindrical container is carved
out of the block. The cylinder is 5 cm deep and the diameter of the

cross-section is 14 cm. The figure below, not drawn to scale,

shows the top surface of the container. Calculate:
a.

The volume of the rectangular block of wood.

b.

The area of the wooden top surface of the container

c.

The capacity, in litres, of the container.

d.

The volume of the wood in the container.