Solve Volume of Circle Rotated Around X-axis: Group Take Home

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around calculating the volume of a solid formed by rotating a circle around the x-axis, specifically focusing on a torus shape. Participants are exploring different methods and approaches to arrive at the correct volume, sharing their calculations and reasoning.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Technical explanation
  • Debate/contested
  • Mathematical reasoning

Main Points Raised

  • One participant states the volume of the torus as \( V = 40\pi^2 \) but expresses confusion about incorporating the circle's center at (0,5) into the calculations.
  • Another participant provides a detailed calculation using the washer method, outlining the setup with the equation of the circle and the integration process to find the volume.
  • There is a discussion about the method of bisecting the torus and the realization that the inner volume would be less than the outer volume due to the distances traveled during rotation.
  • Some participants reference external threads for additional context but express confusion regarding the application of those methods to their specific problem.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants do not reach a consensus on the correct approach or final volume. There are multiple competing views and methods presented, with some confusion remaining about the setup and calculations.

Contextual Notes

Participants express uncertainty about the integration limits and the implications of the circle's center on the volume calculation. There are unresolved aspects regarding the application of the washer method and the relationship between the inner and outer volumes of the torus.

Pull and Twist
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I am working on a take home with a group of students and we all got different answers for this problem... can anyone look over it and tell me where I am going wrong?? Let me know if any of my work is confusing...

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Well, the solid is a torus, and so we know its volume is:

$$V=\pi(2)^2(2\pi(5))=40\pi^2$$

You may wish to look at this thread:

https://mathhelpboards.com/threads/roisins-question-at-yahoo-answers-regarding-the-volume-of-a-torus.7992/
 
Last edited:
MarkFL said:
Well, the solid is a torus, and so we know its volume is:

$$V=\pi(2)^2(2\pi(5))=40\pi^2$$

You may wish to look at this thread:

http://mathhelpboards.com/questions-other-sites-52/roisins-question-yahoo-answers-regarding-volume-torus-7992.html?highlight=torus

I looked at that link and I'm confused as to how you incorporate the fact that the circle is centered at (0,5). I'm not really following the setup in that link.
 
PullandTwist said:
I am working on a take home with a group of students and we all got different answers for this problem... can anyone look over it and tell me where I am going wrong?? Let me know if any of my work is confusing...

The whole circle has equation $\displaystyle \begin{align*} x^2 + \left( y - 5 \right) ^2 = 4 \end{align*}$, so if we use washers, the inner radius is $\displaystyle \begin{align*} y = 5 - \sqrt{4 - x^2} \end{align*}$ and the outer radius is $\displaystyle \begin{align*} y = 5 + \sqrt{4 - x^2} \end{align*}$, so the volume is

$\displaystyle \begin{align*} V &= \pi \int_{-2}^2{ \left( 5 + \sqrt{4 - x^2} \right) ^2 - \left( 5 - \sqrt{4 - x^2 } \right) ^2 \,\mathrm{d}x } \\ &= 2\pi \int_0^2{ \left( 5 + \sqrt{4 - x^2} \right) ^2 - \left( 5 - \sqrt{4 - x^2} \right) ^2 \, \mathrm{d}x } \\ &= 2\pi \int_0^2{ \left[ \left( 5 + \sqrt{4 - x^2} \right) - \left( 5 - \sqrt{4 - x^2} \right) \right] \left[ \left( 5 + \sqrt{ 4 - x^2} \right) + \left( 5 - \sqrt{4 - x^2} \right) \right] \,\mathrm{d}x } \\ &= 2\pi \int_0^2{ 20\,\sqrt{4 - x^2} \,\mathrm{d}x } \\ &= 40\pi \int_0^2{ \sqrt{ 4 - x^2} \,\mathrm{d}x } \end{align*}$

Now with the substitution $\displaystyle \begin{align*} x = 2\sin{(t)} \implies \mathrm{d}x = 2\cos{(t)}\,\mathrm{d}t \end{align*}$ and noting that when $\displaystyle \begin{align*} x = 0, t = 0 \end{align*}$ and when $\displaystyle \begin{align*} x = 2, t = \frac{\pi}{2} \end{align*}$, the integral becomes

$\displaystyle \begin{align*} 40\pi \int_0^2{\sqrt{4 - x^2}\,\mathrm{d}x} &= 40\pi \int_0^{\frac{\pi}{2}}{ \sqrt{4 - \left[ 2\sin{(t)} \right] ^2 }\,2\cos{(t)}\,\mathrm{d}t} \\ &= 40\pi \int_0^{\frac{\pi}{2}}{\sqrt{4 - 4\sin^2{(t)}}\, 2\cos{(t)}\,\mathrm{d}t} \\ &= 40\pi \int_0^{\frac{\pi}{2}}{ 2\cos{(t)} \, 2\cos{(t)}\,\mathrm{d}t } \\ &= 160\pi \int_0^{\frac{\pi}{2}}{ \cos^2{(t)}\,\mathrm{d}t } \\ &= 160\pi \int_0^{\frac{\pi}{2}}{\frac{1}{2} \left[ 1 + \cos{(2t)} \right] \,\mathrm{d}t} \\ &= 80\pi \int_0^{\frac{\pi}{2}}{1 + \cos{(2t)}\,\mathrm{d}t} \\ &= 80\pi \left[ t + \frac{1}{2}\sin{(2t)} \right]_0^{\frac{\pi}{2}} \\ &= 80\pi \left[ \left( \frac{\pi}{2} + 0 \right) - \left( 0 + 0 \right) \right] \\ &= 80\pi \left( \frac{\pi}{2} \right) \\ &= 40 \pi ^2 \end{align*}$
 
PullandTwist said:
I looked at that link and I'm confused as to how you incorporate the fact that the circle is centered at (0,5). I'm not really following the setup in that link.

That problem is in more general terms, and is rotated about the $y$-axis instead, but the method would be essentially the same. :D
 
Thank you guys. That helped me immensely.

After thinking about it I realized where I was going wrong. I was thinking that I could bisect the torus at y=5 and solve for half the volume and then double it.

I finally realized that the volume of the inner part would actually be less then that of the outer part as it travels less distance to complete the full rotation. I had to imagine cutting a doughnut to visualize it.
 

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