MENSURATION OF PLANE AND 3 DIMENSIONAL SHAPES

Mensuration of plane shapes

Mensuration is an aspect of geometry concerned with the determining of lengths, areas and
volumes. The word mensuration simply means measurement. Mensuration is a very popular aspect
in any post utme examination.

What is a plane shape?

A plane shape is a FLAT or 2 dimensional shape. It doesn’t have depth therefore it is just flat (not
solid).

In the mensuration of plane shapes, two aspects are majorly looked into, the perimeter and area

Perimeter: It is the length of the OUTER BOUNDARY of a plane shape.

Area: It is the space ENCLOSED in a plane shape

PLANE SHAPES AND THEIR MENSURATION

1. SQUARE
It is a quadrilateral that has ALL 4 sides equal in length. Opposite sides are parallel and
adjacent sides are perpendicular to each other (They meet at 90⁰)
Perimeter = 4s
Area = s²
where s means side

2. RECTANGLE
It is a quadrilateral that has opposite sides equal in length but all 4 sides are not equal.
Opposite sides are also parallel and adjacent sides are perpendicular to each other.
Perimeter = 2 (L + B)
Area = L × B
Where L means length and B means breadth (or width) of rectangle

3. TRIANGLE
It is a 3 sided plane shape. There are 4 types of triangles:
a. Equilateral triangle: It has all 3 sides equal in length. All 3 angles in an equilateral
triangle are equal and 60⁰ (It is a regular polygon)
b. Isosceles triangle: It has two sides ONLY equal in length. It also has two angles equal
in size
c. Scalene triangle: It has three unequal sides. It also has three unequal angles
d. Right-angled triangle: It has one angle as 90⁰. A right angled triangle can be an
isosceles or scalene triangle but CANNOT be equilateral.

Perimeter = Addition of all the sides

Area = ½ × base × height

(In a triangle, the base is ALWAYS perpendicular (at 90⁰) to the height)

4. CIRCLE
It is a ROUND plane shape (The perimeter of a circle is called its circumference)
Circumference = 2 π R
Area = π R²
(Where R means the radius of the circle)

5. PARALLELOGRAM
It is a flat quadrilateral that has two opposite and parallel equal sides. (Unlike the rectangle,
the adjacent sides of a parallelogram are NOT perpendicular)

Perimeter = 2 (L + B)
Area = B × h
(Where L means length, B means base)

6. TRAPEZIUM
It is a quadrilateral that comprises of two opposite parallel sides that are connected by
either two diagonal sides or a diagonal side and a perpendicular line. The height in the
trapezium is line that is PERPENDICULAR to both parallel sides
Perimeter = Addition of the lengths of all the sides (external sides)
Area = ½ × (A + B) × h
 (Where A and B mean the lengths of the two parallel sides and h means the perpendicular
height)

Mensuration of solid (3D) shapes

What is a solid shape?

A solid (or 3D) shape is a figure that has depth and a solid appearance. It is 3 dimensional
because it has a length, width(breadth) and depth (height)

Imagine a circle drawn on a paper and a round soccer ball on a table. A soccer ball has depth and
therefore is a solid shape

In mensuration of solid shapes, two aspects are mainly considered, the volume and the surface
area.

Volume: Volume of a solid shape is the amount of substance that the shape can occupy.

Surface area: It is the region enclosed in a particular surface or a shape in scope. Solid shapes
have curved (lateral) and total surface areas.

SOLID SHAPES AND THEIR MENSURATION

1. CYLINDER
Imagine the figure of a tin on milk or a can of paint.
A cylinder is a figure that has a circular base and a uniform curved lateral
There are three types of cylinders:
• Open: An open cylinder is open at both ends and as such it has only a CURVED (or lateral)
AREA. A pipe is an example of a closed cylinder
Volume of open cylinder = π r² h
Curved (lateral) surface area of open cylinder = 2πrh
• Closed: A closed cylinder is closed at both ends and as such it has both CURVED (lateral)
and TOTAL SURFACE AREAS
Volume of closed cylinder = πr²h
Curved surface area of closed cylinder = 2πrh
Total surface area of closed cylinder = 2πrh + 2πr²
= 2 π r (r + h)
• Closed at one end only: It is closed at only one end
Volume of cylinder that is closed at one end = πr²h
Curved (lateral) surface area = 2πrh
Total surface area = 2πrh + πr²
= πr (2h + r)
(Note that irregardless of the type of cylinder, the volume is always πr²h and the Curved
surface area is always 2πrh; r and h mean the radius of the circular base and height of the
cylinder respectively. If you are not informed whether the cylinder is closed or not, take it to
be closed)

2. CONE
Imagine a traffic safety cone.
It is a solid shape that has a curved lateral that converges at a point, it also has a circular
base. The tipping point (tip) of a cone is known as its vertex
Volume of cone = 1/3 × π × r² × h
Curved (lateral) surface area = πrl
Total surface area = πr² + πrl
= πr (r + l)
(Where r means radius of circular base and l means slant height of the cone)
3. CUBE
Imagine a cube of sugar
In a cube, 6 identical squares form an enclosed solid shape. Because it is formed by 6
identical squares, all sides of the cube are the same
Volume of cube = s³
Total surface area = 6s²
(Where s means side of the cube)
4. CUBOID
In a cuboid, 6 shapes (that could be rectangles or a combination of rectangles and squares)
form an enclosed solid shape. It has a length, breadth and height
Volume of cuboid = lbh
Total surface area of cube = 2 (lh + lb + bh )
Where l, b and h mean length, breadth and height of the cuboid respectively

5. SPHERE
Imagine a soccer ball, a basket ball or the earth
A sphere is a uniformly round solid shape. Half of a sphere is called a hemisphere (A
hemisphere has a bowl like shape)

Volume of sphere = 4/3 × π × r³

Curved/Total surface area of sphere = 4πr²

Volume of hemisphere = Half of volume of sphere = Volume of sphere/2

= 2/3 × π × r³
Curved/Total surface area of hemisphere = Half of curved surface area of sphere = Curved
surface area of sphere/2
= 2πr²
(Where r in any case means the radius of the sphere.

EXAMPLES
1. From Unilag 2011/12 Mathematics screening exam

The base diameter of a cylinder is 14cm while the height is 12cm. Calculate the total
surface area if the cylinder has both a base and a top.
Solution
The cylinder described is a closed cylinder (it has both a base and a top)
Total surface area (TSA) of closed cylinder = 2 π r (r + h)
Since radius is half of diameter, if diameter = 14cm, radius = 7cm
Height, h = 12cm
Therefore, TSA = 2 × 22/7 × 7 (7 + 12)
= 44 (19)
= 836cm³

2. Unilag 2015/16
A right circular cylinder of base radius 5cm has a height of 7cm, find the quantity of
water the cylinder can contain.
Solution
The amount of water the cylinder can contain is its volume
Volume of cylinder = π r² h
r = 5cm, h = 7cm

Volume of cylinder = 22/7 × 5² × 7

= 22 × 25
= 550cm³
3. A wire is looped in the form of a circle of radius 28cm. It is re-bent into a square form.
Find the length of the side of the square (π = 22/7)
Solution
If the wire is looped to form a circle, it means that the length of the wire will be the
same as the circumference of the circle formed
So, length of wire = circumference of circle
 Radius of the circle = 28cm
Circumference of the circle = 2 π r
= 2 × 22/7 × 28
= 176cm
This means that the length of the wire = 176cm
If the 176cm long wire is used to form a square, it will mean that its length will be the
new perimeter of the square formed
So 176 = Perimeter of square
176 = 4l
L = 176/4 = 44cm

4. The total surface area of a sphere is 154cm². Its radius is 3.5cm. Find its volume
Solution
The volume of a sphere = 4/3 × π × r³
(Beware of this trick question because the surface area information is not needed)
Volume of sphere = 4/3 × 22/7 × 3.5³
= 179.67cm³

5. Find the curved surface area of a cone with a radius of 8cm and a vertical height of 6cm
(π = 22/7)
Solution
Curved surface area of a cone = πrl
Where l = SLANT HEIGHT
In a cone, l² = r² + h² (Pythagora's theory)
(Note that you were given the VERTICAL HEIGHT and NOT the SLANT HEIGHT)
r = 8cm, h = 6cm
l² = r² + h²
l² = 6² + 8²
l² = 36 + 64
l² = 100
l = 10cm

Recall, CSA cone = π r l

= 22/7 × 8 × 10
= 251.53cm²