Relating Surface area to volume

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Homework Help Overview

The discussion revolves around expressing the surface area of a sphere in terms of its volume, rather than using the radius. Participants are exploring the relationships between the formulas for surface area and volume of a sphere.

Discussion Character

  • Conceptual clarification, Mathematical reasoning, Problem interpretation

Approaches and Questions Raised

  • Participants discuss the formulas for the volume and surface area of a sphere and consider methods for eliminating the radius from the equations. Some suggest using substitution and derivatives, while others question the necessity of derivatives in this context.

Discussion Status

The discussion is active, with various approaches being explored. Some participants have offered guidance on substituting variables, while others are questioning the complexity of the problem. There is no explicit consensus on a single method yet.

Contextual Notes

Participants are working within the constraints of expressing surface area in terms of volume, and there are discussions about the correctness of formulas and the potential for simplification.

juice34
How do I express the surface area of for instance a sphere in terms of volume?
 
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juice34 said:
How do I express the surface area of for instance a sphere in terms of volume?

(question moved to homework help)

What is the context of your question. The surface area and volume of a sphere are straightforward formulas in terms of the radius. I'm guessing that there is more to your question?
 
I want to express the surface area of a sphere in terms of the volume and not radius.
 
juice34 said:
I want to express the surface area of a sphere in terms of the volume and not radius.

What are the two formulas for volume and surface area? What would be some way to do what you are asking?
 
V(sphere)=(4/3)*pi*R^3
S.A.(sphere)=4*pi*R^3

I am thinking i need to take derivatives, but when you do dV/dR you just get the surface area
 
juice34 said:
V(sphere)=(4/3)*pi*R^3
S.A.(sphere)=4*pi*R^3

I am thinking i need to take derivatives, but when you do dV/dR you just get the surface area

You meant R^2 in the area forumula.

I would think one way would be to express R as a function of volume, and then substitute that back into the area forumula for R... (or the other way around, depending on what you are wanting to do. Does that work?
 
Surface area is equal to [itex]4\pi r^2[/itex] and there are no need for derivatives, you have two equations, both with r in them so you want to eliminate r by substitution.
 
Here let's make this more complicated.
#1) V(sphere)=(4/3)*pi*(D/2)^3
#2)S.A.(sphere)=4*pi*(D/2)^3

So i solve to D using equation 1. D=(V(24/(4*pi)))^(1/3)
So can i just plug this D into #2 and wah lah?
 
juice34 said:
Here let's make this more complicated.

:bugeye:

Uhh yep, that's all there is to it... By the way, simplify 24/4pi, unless you like to keep things more complicated :-p
 
  • #10
Sometimes things look more complicated than they are, haha! THANKS GUYS
 

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