40. Sand is being dumped on a pile in such a way that it always forms a cone whose base radius is always 3 times its height. The function V whose graph is sketched in the figure gives the volume of the conical sand pile, V(t), measured in cubic feet, after t minutes.

\( V(t) = \frac{1}{3} \pi r^2 h \)

At what approximate rate is the radius of the base changing after 6 minutes? (calculator)

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Answer is: option2

0.28 ft/min

Solution:

The sand pile forms a cone where the radius r is always three times the height h.

Given: \( r = 3h \)

The volume of a cone is:

\( V = \frac{1}{3} \pi r^2 h \)

Substituting \( h = \frac{r}{3} \) into the volume formula:

\( V = \frac{1}{3} \pi r^2 \left(\frac{r}{3}\right) \)

\( V = \frac{1}{9} \pi r^3 \)

Differentiating both sides with respect to t:

\( \frac{dV}{dt} = \frac{1}{9} \pi (3r^2) \frac{dr}{dt} \)

\( \frac{dV}{dt} = \frac{1}{3} \pi r^2 \frac{dr}{dt} \)

Solving for \( \frac{dr}{dt} \):

\( \frac{dr}{dt} = \frac{3}{\pi r^2} \frac{dV}{dt} \)

From the graph we have:

  • \( V(6) = 4\pi \)
  • \( \frac{dV}{dt} = \pi \)

Using \( V = \frac{1}{9} \pi r^3 \), we substitute \( V(6) = 4\pi \):

\( 4\pi = \frac{1}{9} \pi r^3 \)

Cancel \( \pi \):

\( 4 = \frac{1}{9} r^3 \)

\( r^3 = 36 \)

\( r = \sqrt{36} \)

Approximating:

\( r \approx 3.3 \)

Cancel \( \pi \):

\( \frac{dr}{dt} = \frac{3}{\pi r^2} \cdot \pi \)

\( \frac{dr}{dt} = \frac{3}{r^2} \)

Substituting \( r \approx 3.3 \):

\( \frac{dr}{dt} = \frac{3}{(3.3)^2} \)

Approximating:

\( (3.3)^2 = 10.89 \)

\( \frac{dr}{dt} \approx \frac{3}{10.89} \)

\( \frac{dr}{dt} \approx 0.2756 \)

Final Answer: \( \frac{dr}{dt} \approx 0.28 \) ft/min

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