Volume word problems – level 3-4

Level 3

1. Anya has two different sized cylindrical coffee mugs. The larger mug has an internal height of 15 centimeters (cm),
and the smaller mug has an internal height of 10cm. Both mugs have an internal diameter of 8cm. Which of the
following is closest to the difference in cubic centimeters (cm3) between the internal volume of the larger mug and
the internal volume of the smaller mug?
A. 63 cm3
B. 251 cm3
C. 754 cm3
D. 1,005 cm3

2. A multi-layer cake is in the shape of a right cylinder. The height of the cake is 20 centimeters (cm), and its radius is
10cm. If each of the cake layers has a volume of approximately 1,250 cubic centimeters, then how many layers does
the cake have?

3. A rectangular prism and cube have equal volumes. The length of the rectangular prism is 12 centimeters (cm) and its
width is 8cm. If each side of the cube is 12cm, then what is the height of the rectangular prism in centimeters?

4. A soup manufacturer sells its soup in right cylindrical cans. The cans have a diameter of 6 centimeters (cm) and a
height of 10cm. If the manufacturer fills each can to 90% capacity with soup, rounded to the nearest cubic centimeter,
what is the approximate volume of soup in each can?

5. An architect has created a scale drawing for a residential townhouse in the shape of a rectangular prism. In the
drawing, the internal width of the townhouse is labeled as 18 feet (ft), the internal length as 20ft, and the internal
height as 30ft. The local building department tells the architect that if built, the building would be too tall according
to local zoning laws and that its height must be reduced by 10%. If the architect creates a second scale drawing
where the townhouse's height is reduced by 10%, what will be its new proposed internal volume in cubic feet?

6. A trough shaped as half of a circular cylinder is being constructed as

shown at left. It is able to hold 0.5 cubic meters (m3) of water. Additionally, its
width, w, is 50 centimeters (cm). Approximating π as 3.14, what is the length
of the trough, l, to the nearest tenth of a meter?
A. 1.3
B. 2.5
C. 5.1
D. 10.2

7. A cylindrical soda can has a volume of 108π cubic centimeters (cm3) and a height of 12cm. What is the surface area
of the soda can in square centimeters?
A. 18 𝜋
B. 36 𝜋
C. 72 𝜋
D. 90 𝜋

8. The formula for the surface area of a sphere is:

𝐴 = 4𝜋𝑟 2
where A is the surface area and r is the radius. A simplified model of the Earth's crust is a hollow spherical shell with an
outer diameter of 8,000 miles (mi) and a thickness of 10mi. Using the fact that the volume of a shell is approximately
equal to its outer surface area times its thickness, what is the approximate volume of the earth's crust in cubic miles
according to this model?
A. 64,000,000 𝜋
B. 160,000,000 𝜋
C. 640,000,000 𝜋
D. 2,560,000,000 𝜋

9. A paint can in the shape of a right circular cylinder, shown at left,

has a height of 20 centimeters (cm). The circumference of the base of the
can is 43.96cm. To the nearest ten cubic centimeters (cm3), what is the
approximate volume of the paint can?
A. 2,760 cm3
B. 3,080 cm3
C. 30,340 cm3
D. 121,360 cm3

10. A cone and sphere have equal volumes and radii of equal length. If the height of the cone is 36 centimeters, then
what is the length of the radius of each shape in centimeters?

11. A right triangular prism with an equilateral triangular base is shown at left. The
height of the right triangular prism is equal to 7 feet (ft), and each side of the
triangular base is equal to 5ft. What is the volume of the right triangular prism,
rounded to the nearest cubic foot?

12. A right triangular prism with a right isosceles triangular base is shown at left.
The height of the prism is equal to 9 centimeters (cm), and the base of the right
isosceles triangle is equal to 8cm. What is the volume of the prism, rounded to the
nearest cubic centimeter?
13. A cylinder and sphere have equal volumes and radii of equal length. If the height of the cylinder is 8 centimeters,
then what is the length of the radius of each shape in centimeters?

14. The roof the the Ericsson Globe in Stockholm is shaped like a hemisphere with a volume of 111,000π cubic meters
(m3). What is the diameter of the roof of the Ericsson Globe in meters?
3
A. √83,250
3
B. √166,500
3
C. 2 √83,250
3
D. 2 √166,500

15. A building contractor has a pickup truck with a rear storage area in the shape of a rectangular prism. The storage area
has a length of 80 inches (in), a width of 60in, and a height of 44in. She wants to fill the entire storage area with
equal-sized rectangular prism-shaped bricks with lengths of 8in, widths of 4in, and heights of 2in. How many bricks
can the contractor fit in the storage area of her truck?

16. An artist has a cylindrical container that is filled with sculpting clay. The container has a radius of 10 centimeters
(cm) and a height of 30cm. The artist removes a piece of clay and sculpts it into a sphere with a radius of 6cm. If the
artist sculpts as many identical spheres as possible with the amount of clay in the container, how many total identical
spheres will the artist be able to sculpt? Use π≈3.14.

Level 4
17. Two large spherical balloons are being inflated for a party. It takes more air to increase the diameter of the larger
balloon from 36 centimeters (cm) to 40cm than to increase the diameter of the smaller balloon from 26cm to 30cm.
Approximately how much more air is needed, in cubic centimeters (cm3)? Use π≈3.14.
A. 990 cm3
B. 4,145 cm3
C. 4,932 cm3
D. 33,158 cm3

18. The Louvre Pyramid, designed by the architect I. M. Pei, is a landmark in the city of Paris. The right square pyramid
has a vertical height of 21.6 meters (m) and a square base with side length 35m. The Inverted Pyramid is a skylight
in the shape of an upside-down pyramid located on the ceiling of a mall below the main Pyramid. The Inverted
Pyramid has sides of length 16 m and vertical height 7m. Approximately how much greater is the volume of the
Louvre Pyramid than the volume of the Inverted Pyramid, to the nearest cubic meter (m3)?

19. A grain silo, shown in the figure at left, consists of a regular cylinder with an
internal height of 90 meters (m) and a top hemisphere with an internal diameter of 60m.
If the internal diameters of the hemisphere and the cylinder are equal, which of the
following is closest to the internal volume of the grain silo in cubic meters (m3)?
A. 311,018 m3
B. 367,566 m3
C. 572,555 m3
D. 1,470,265 m3
20. The inside of a beaker is shaped like a circular cylinder with a base diameter of 12 centimeters (cm). Water in the
beaker is filled to a height of 8cm above the base. A stainless steel sphere with a diameter of 6cm submerged in the
liquid displaces an equal volume of water. How high above the base of the beaker is the new water level, in
centimeters?

21. A rubber stopper used for plugging chemical flasks has the shape of a
frustum as shown at left. The frustum is 3 centimeters (cm) high and was cut
from the bottom 3cm of a cone with a height of 15cm and a base radius of
1.5cm. The radius of the top circular face of the rubber stopper is 1.2cm.
What is the volume of the stopper in cubic centimeters (cm3)?
A. 2.25 𝜋
B. 5.4 𝜋
C. 5.49 𝜋
D. 6.3 𝜋

22. An ice cream bombe, shown at left, is made by layering different flavors of
ice cream in a bowl that is in the shape of a hemisphere. Assume the bowl is 20
centimeters (cm) in diameter. The first layer of ice cream covers the inside of the
bowl and forms a shell 4cm thick. Approximately what volume of ice cream, in
cubic centimeters (cm3), is needed to fill the rest of the bowl? Use π≈3.14.
A. 452 cm3
B. 904 cm3
C. 1,072 cm3
D. 8,574 cm3

23. A candy box, shown at left, is in the shape of a right triangular prism whose
base is an equilateral triangle of side length s. For shipping and packing purposes,
the length, l, of the box must be 20 centimeters (cm), and the volume of the box
must be 100 cubic centimeters (cm3). What is the side length, s, of the base of the
box, rounded to the nearest tenth of a centimeter? The volume V of a right triangular
prism of length l and base area A is V=Al.
A. 2.4 cm
B. 3.4 cm
C. 4.8 cm
D. 11.5 cm

24. The shape of a solid wire can be approximated by a long cylinder with a base diameter, or wire thickness, of 1
centimeter. The wire is wound ten times into a circular loop of diameter 1 meter. What is the total volume of the wire
in cubic centimeters?
A. 25𝜋 2
B. 250𝜋 2
C. 500𝜋 2
D. 1,000 𝜋 2
 25. A large spherical balloon inflated with air is 60 centimeters (cm) in diameter. Approximately
what volume of air, to the nearest cubic centimeter (cm3), is needed to increase the diameter of
the balloon by 6cm? Use π≈3.14.

26. The salt piles in a particular salt mine are shaped like circular cones. They have the property that their base diameter
is twice the height of the pile. Assuming a pile is created from 1,000 cubic meters of salt, what is the circumference
of the circular base in meters?
3
A. 10 √3𝜋 2
3
B. 20 √3𝜋 2
3
C. 30 √3𝜋 2
3
D. 40 √3𝜋 2

27. An oxygen tank is shaped like a cylinder with two hemispheres attached to the
cylinder bases as shown at left. The diameter of the cylinder and hemispheres is 6
inches (in). The height of the entire tank is 16in. What is the volume of the oxygen tank
in cubic inches?
A. 126 𝜋
B. 144 𝜋
C. 180 𝜋
D. 504 𝜋

28. A pyramid is formed from six identical steel beams of length l such that
√6
its base forms an equilateral triangle. The height h is equal to 3 𝑙 . What is the

volume of the pyramid in terms of l?

√2 3
A. 12
𝑙

√3 3
B. 12
𝑙

√2 3
C. 4
𝑙

√3 3
D. 𝑙
4

29. A metal pipe has the shape of a hollow cylinder as shown at left. The length
of the pipe is l=30 centimeters (cm), the thickness of the pipe is t=1cm, and the
internal diameter is d=4cm. What is the volume of the pipe material in cubic
centimeters?
A. 120 𝜋
B. 150 𝜋
C. 270 𝜋
D. 600 𝜋
30. A regulation FIFA soccer ball is modeled after the Buckyball, a truncated icosahedron
that was introduced by Buckminster Fuller. Due to air pressure, the inflated ball assumes the
shape of an almost perfect sphere. A regulation soccer ball has a circumference of 70
centimeters (cm). What is the approximate volume of the soccer ball in cubic
centimeters(cm3)? Use π≈3.14 and round the answer to the nearest whole number.
A. 5,792 cm3
B. 46,338 cm3
C. 179,594 cm3
D. 1,436,755 cm3

31. A "conical bottom tank," shown at left, is a large container used in water
purification plants. The tank consists of a cylinder with a cone at the bottom for
drainage. A conical bottom tank has a cylinder of height 175centimeters and diameter
120 centimeters. The cone at the bottom has height 50 centimeters. What is the
volume of the conical bottom tank, to the nearest cubic centimeter? Use π≈3.14.
A. 1,789,800 cubic centimeters
B. 188,400 cubic centimeters
C. 1,978,200 cubic centimeters
D. 2,166,600 cubic centimeters

32. A gemstone, shown at left, is being carved in the shape of a right square
pyramid from a hemispherical stone with diameter 40 millimeters (mm). The
square base of the pyramid will be carved from the base of the hemisphere. The
height of the pyramid will coincide with the radius of the hemisphere. What is the
volume, in cubic millimeters (mm3), of the right square pyramid that can be
carved from the hemisphere, as shown below?
A. 2,667 mm3
B. 5,333 mm3
C. 10,667 mm3
D. 16,746 mm3