Monteiro Toma 1

Introduction

Recently, Tower Association has become aware that a

multimillionaire has requested a specific customized tower. This

customer has requested a unique, yet special kind of design. She

requests it to have a floor made of Plexiglas, with an aquarium with a

depth of 3.5 feet underneath it. Along with the aquarium underneath,

the tower is requested to be a circus. The plot size, a square, was

requested to be 28 x 28 feet, but local zoning rules will not allow us to

build within 3 feet of the plot. Due to this, the actual plot size that will

be used will be 22 x 22 feet. For the dodecagon to be maximized on

the 22 x 22 foot plot, the edges need to be touching the sides rather

than the vertices. The customer has also requested that the tower

have only 12 sides, no more no less. This concludes that the base

would be a dodecagon. Her tower will also have a door and two

windows and a roof line of a corresponding regular pyramid. Along with

this, we will need to do a cost analysis for the concrete and the

Plexiglas. Even though this request seems a bit odd, the customer

satisfaction is the goal and we will try our best to meet her needs.
 Monteiro Toma 2

My 12 Sided Polygon Maximized on My Plot

Figure 1. Base of Tower with One Side

In the figure above, you can see a visual of the base of the tower.

The outlines of all the polygons are drawn, as well as the area of land

the tower sits on and the boundary limits. The plot size given to us was

28 ft x 28 ft and since you cant build within three feet (28 ft 3 ft from

each side: 28-6) the actual plot size we will work on is 22 ft x 22 ft.

Since we have a 12-gon or a dodecagon, the central angle must

be 30 (360/n, n= number of sides: 360/12). That means that each

angle measure must be 150 degrees (180 30).

 Monteiro Toma 3

Figure 2. Polygon 1

Figure 2 shows the outermost dodecagon without its square

border. Since

the edges tough the sides of the square border in Figure 1, the height

(b) would be half of the working area of the plot (22/2) making the

height 11 ft. To find the length of one side, or 2a in Figure 2, it is

shown below in Figure 3.

Tan(15)=a/11
11tan(15)=a
a 2(2.95)
2a 5.9 ft.

Figure 3. Length of One Side of Polygon 1

Figure 3 shows the math done to find one side of the polygon.

The 15 multiplied by tangent came from dividing the central angle in

half (30/2=15) for the last triangle shown in Figure 2. Tangent was

used because the opposite and adjacent sides were found and given.
A =area
The 12ofbh
polygon 1 is calculated below in Figure 4.
A = 122(11
tan15)11
A = 122(2.95)11
A = 12(5.9)11
A = 12(2.95)11
A = 1232.42
A 389.06 ft2
 Monteiro Toma 4

Figure 4. Area of Polygon 1

Figure 4 shows the steps to find the area of Polygon 1, or the

outermost polygon. The base was approximately 5.9 ft as found in

Figure 3 and the height was 11 ft. At the end, we multiplied the area of

one triangle by 12 since there are 12 sides in our tower. Please note

that every rounded answer equation was not calculated in rounded

form. The exact answers for each number were used when finding the

final solution. For future reference, every other value in the paper will

be displayed in the same fashion.

Figure 5. Polygon 2

Figure 5 shows the second outermost dodecagon without its

square border. Since each polygon is concentric, this polygons height

(d) is one foot less than the first polygon. So to find the height, we

subtracted one from polygon ones height. (11-1=10 ft.) The math to

find one side of polygon 2 is displayed below in Figure 6.

Tan(15)=c/10
10tan(15)=c
c 2(2.68)
2c 5.36 ft.
 Monteiro Toma 5

Figure 6. Length of One Side of Polygon 2

Figure 6 shows the math done to find one side of the polygon (c).

The 15 multiplied by tangent came from dividing the central angle in

half (30/2=15) for the last triangle shown in Figure 5. Tangent was

used because the opposite and adjacent sides were found and given.

The area of polygon 2 is calculated on the next page in Figure 7.

A = 12 bh
A = 122(10
tan15)10
A = 122(2.68)10
A = 12(5.36)10
A = 12(2.68)10
A = 1226.8
Figure 7. Area of Polygon 2

Figure 7 shows the steps to find the area of Polygon 2, or the

second outermost polygon. The base was approximately 5.36 ft as

found in Figure 6 and the height was 10 ft. At the end, we multiplied

the area of one triangle by 12 since there are 12 sides in our tower.
 Monteiro Toma 6

2 2 e

Figure 8. Polygon 3

Figure 8 shows the second innermost dodecagon without its

square border. Since each polygon is concentric, this polygons height

(f) is one foot less than the second polygon. So to find the height, we

subtracted one from polygons twos height. (10-1=9 ft.) The math to

find one side of polygon 3 is displayed on the next page in Figure 9.

Lo
Tan(15)=e/9
9tan(15)=e
e 2(2.41)
2e 4.83 ft.

Figure 9. Length of One Side of Polygon 3

Figure 9 shows the math done to find one side of the polygon (e).

The 15 multiplied by tangent came from dividing the central angle in

half (30/2=15) for the last triangle shown in Figure 8. Tangent was

used because the opposite and adjacent sides were found and given.
A =area
The 12ofbh
polygon 3 is calculated below
A = 122(9 tan15)9
A = 122(2.41)9
A = 12(4.82)9
A = 12(2.41)9
A = 1221.7
A 260.45 ft2
 Monteiro Toma 7

Figure 10. Area of Polygon 3

Figure 10 shows the steps to find the area of Polygon 3, or the

second innermost polygon. The base was approximately 4.83 ft as

found in Figure 9 and the height was 9 ft. At the end, we multiplied the

area of one triangle by 12 since there are 12 sides in a dodecagon.

Figure 11. Polygon 4

Figure 11 shows the innermost dodecagon without its square

border. Since each polygon is concentric, this polygons height (h) is

one foot less than the third polygon. So to find the height, we
 Monteiro Toma 8

subtracted one from polygons threes height. (9-1=8 ft.) The math to

find one side of polygon 4 is displayed below in Figure 12.

Tan(15)=g/8
8tan(15)=g
Figure 12. Length of One Side of Polygon 4
g 2(2.14)
2g Figure
4.29 ft.
12 shows the math done to find one side of the polygon

(g). The 15 multiplied by tangent came from dividing the central angle

in half (30/2=15) for the last triangle shown in Figure 11. Tangent was

used because the opposite and adjacent sides were found and given.

The area of polygon 4 is calculated below.

A = 12 bh
A = 122(8 tan15)8
A = 122(2.14)8
A = 12(4.29)8
A = 12(2.14)8
A = 1217.15
A 205.79 ft2
Figure 13. Area of Polygon 4

Figure 13 shows the steps to find the area of Polygon 4, or the

innermost polygon. The base was approximately 4.29 ft as found in

 Monteiro Toma 9

Figure 12 and the height was 8 ft. At the end, we multiplied the area of

one triangle by 12 since there are 12 sides in our tower.

Volume of the Concrete Needed for the Footing and the Floor

Our tower will have a footing that is the same shape as the

polygons used in Part Two. This footing will be 3.5 ft deep and poured

using concrete. In addition, it will stretch from Polygon 1 to Polygon 4.

Contained in Polygon 4, there will be an aquarium below the Plexiglas.

The floor above this aquarium will be made of 4-inch, Plexiglas, so that

anyone walking above can view the water below. The water in the

aquarium will fill exactly 75% of the space.

Figure 14. Footing Diagram and Measurements

 Monteiro Toma 10

Figure 14 shows the footing of the tower. The footing is hollow in

the center and is 3.5 feet deep. The footing stretches from polygon 1

(outermost polygon) to polygon 4 (innermost polygon). These polygons

can be seen is Figure 1 and 11. The volume of the footing is calculated

V = Abase
below Hprism 15.
in Figure
V = A(Polygon 1 Polygon
4)3.5
V = (389.06-205.79)3.5
V = (183.28)3.5
V 641.47 ft3

Figure 15. Volume of Footing

The volume for the footing was found by subtracting the area in

polygon 4 from polygon 1 both found in figures 4 and 13. After that

was found, we multiplied it by 3.5, because that was height, having the

footing be 3.5 feet deep.

Before building the tower, the base of the tower must be built

first in order to maintain a sense of stability. The footing must be laid

with its edges reaching onto the sides of the land, in order to maximize

the size of the base on the plot. The footing, will extend from polygon 1

to polygon 4 will be filled with concrete with a hollow center. Having

found the volume in Figure 15, now we must find out how much it will

cost. The volume is approximately 641.47 cubic feet. The concrete

company cooperating with Tower Industries installs concrete for $115

dollars per cubic yard. The 641.47 cubic feet of space must be

converted to cubic yards. Since one cubic yard is equal to 27 cubic

 Monteiro Toma 11

feet, the conversion is done

below.

Conversion = Vfooting / 27
Conversion =641.47 / 27
Conversion 23.76 yd3
Conversion 24 yd3

Figure 16. Conversion from Cubic Feet to Cubic Yards

Now that we have the conversion, we can find the cost analysis

for the concrete. The conversion is approximately 24 cubic yards

because in order to find the cost, you have to round up to a whole

number because you cant buy less than one whole piece of concrete.

Now the volume of the footing is approximately 24 cubic yards and the

cost analysis for the concrete is found below in Figure 17.

C = Vfooting 115
C 24 115
C $2760

Figure 17. Cost Analysis for Footing Concrete

The cost for the concrete needed for the footing would be

$2,760. It was found by finding the volume of the footing in cubic yards

and then multiplying it by 115, the cost for each cubic yard of

concrete.
 Monteiro Toma 12

Figure 18. Floor/ Plexiglas Diagram and Measurements

Figure 18 displays the floor of the tower. The floor is made up of

polygon 4. This polygon is also displayed in Figure 11. The floor is

made up of Plexiglas and has a 4 inch floor that is referred to as of a

foot. The volume is found below in Figure 19.

V = Abase Hprism
V = A(polygon 4)
V = 205.79
V 68.6 ft3

Figure 19. Volume of Floor

To find the volume of the Plexiglas, all we did was multiply the

area of Polygon 4 found in Figure 13 by , since the Plexiglas is ft

thick.

The Plexiglas Company partnering with Tower Association

installs Plexiglas in 48 in x 96 in x 4 in sheets for $1100 each. The

height of the floor needed and the floor installations given are the

same, so it does not have to be considered when calculating the price

of the amount of Plexiglas needed. 48 in x 96 in can be interpreted as 4

ft x 8 ft. The area of polygon four is approximately 205.79 ft squared.

This must be divided by the sheet, which is 4 X 8, or 32. 205.79 / 32 is

approximately 6.43, which is rounded up to 7. Therefore, 7 sheets of

Plexiglas are required. 7 times the price of 1100 leaves a total price of

$7700 for the Plexiglas installment.

 Monteiro Toma 13

Figure 20. Aquarium with Measurements

The aquarium is beneath the floor of the tower and it needs to be

filled up 75% of the way with water. The calculations to find the volume

of the aquarium are below in Figure 21

V = Abase Hprism 0.75

V = A(polygon 4) 3.5 0.75
V = 205.79 3.5 0.75
V = 720.25 0.75
V 540.19 ft3

Figure 21. Volume of the Aquarium

Figure 21 shows the steps to finding the volume of the water in

the aquarium if the space was 75% full. The base is the area of polygon

4 and the height is 3.5 feet. After you multiply those two, you would

multiply by 0.75, since the aquarium is 75% full.

One Lateral Face of the Outer Prism Base

 Monteiro Toma 14

Figure 22. Base of Outer Prism

Figure 22 simply displays Polygon 2, which is the polygon that

the walls will be contained within. Each side of Polygon 2 is

c=
approximately 5.36 ft.
2(1.5*tan(15))
c = 2(0.40)
c 0.80 ft

Figure 23. Finding the Side of the Top of the Door

The apothem of the door top is 1.5, because the full length from

one side to the opposite side must be 3, in order to fit on the door.

Doing this maximizes the area that the polygon-half can have, and also

maximizes the height of the door. The side of the polygon was

calculated to be approximately 0.8 ft.

 Monteiro Toma 15

b 1.49 ft

Figure 24. Window Lateral Face

The dimensions of the lateral face for the window are the same

as the dimensions for the lateral face of the door above in Figure 24.

Also, the window has the same dimensions as the top of the door.

A 12()(0.8)(1.5)
A 12 (1.2)
A 12 0.6
A 7.23 ft2

Figure 25. Area of One Window

The area was found in the same fashion as all the other

polygons. The area of the window is about 7.23 ft2.

 Monteiro Toma 16

Figure 26. Door on Lateral face

Figure 23 clearly displays one lateral face of the outer prism of

the tower. The dimensions of one face are 5.36 ft, one side of polygon

2 by 10.72 ft due to multiplying polygon 2 times 2, because each side

must be twice as tall as it is wide. The calculations for the door are

displayed below.

A 3(5) + window
A 15 + (7.23)
A 15 + 3.615
A 18.62 ft2

Figure 27. Area of Door

To find the area of the door, we had to do was add the area of the

rectangle with the area of the half-polygon. To find the area of the

rectangle, you multiply base times height. The area of the polygon

was found in the same way we found the area of the base polygons in
 Monteiro Toma 17

Part 2. The only difference is that we took half of the answer we got

because only half of the polygon makes up the door.

The last step is to find the lateral surface area of the entire

bottom prism of the tower. When finding the lateral surface area, you

need to subtract the areas for the door and the two windows.

LSA 12(bh) - (Adoor+2(Awindow))

LSA 12 (5.3610.72) - (18.62+2(7.23))
LSA 12 (57.44) 33.08
LSA 689.25 33.08
LSA 656.16 ft2

Figure 28. Lateral Surface Area of the Outer Prism

We found the lateral surface area of the prism by multiplying the

width times the height for each side of the prism, and multiplying that

value by twelve, since our polygon has twelve sides. After, we

subtracted the values for the door and the two windows found

previously to get a lateral surface area of approximately 656.16 ft 2

Volume of the Inner Base Prism

Figure 29. Polygon of the Inner Prism

 Monteiro Toma 18

Figure 29 shows the base of the inner prism. The inner prism is

made up

of polygon 3 and is located on the inside of the tower. Each side

is approximately 4.82 ft.

Figure 30. Lateral face of Inner Prism

Figure 30 displays one lateral face of the inner prism. Its width is

the same as the side length of Polygon 3 and the height must be the

same as the outer prism.

V = Abase Hprism
V = A(polygon 3) H
V = 260.45 10.72
V 2791.46 ft3

Figure 31. Volume of Inner Prism

To find the volume of the inner prism, we took the area of

Polygon 3 shown in Figure 10 and multiplied it by the height, 10.72 ft.

 Monteiro Toma 19

The total volume of the inner prism came out approximately 2791.46

ft3.

Pyramid Top of the Outer Pyramid showing the Height of the

Outer Pyramid and the Slant height of One Lateral Face of the

Outer Pyramid

Figure 32. Outer Pyramid Diagram and Measurements

Figure 32 shows the base of the outer pyramid, as well as one of

the lateral faces of the pyramid. Two of the measurements in Figure 30

area already given, those being as a and b. These measurements have

already been found when calculating the measurements of Polygon 2

in Figure 5. The value for d is found by multiplying the side of the

polygon, also known as a by 3, since the pyramid will be exactly three

times as high as one side of its base. The last two values, c and , are

C = (a2 +below.
calculated b2)
C (5.36 + 102)
2

C (28.72 + 100)
C (128.72)
C 11.35 ft
 Monteiro Toma 20

Figure 33. Calculation for the Slant Height

To find the slant height of the outer pyramid, we used the right

triangle that is formed by the apothem of the base and the height of

the pyramid shows in Figure 33. Using the Pythagorean Theorem and

the measurements given, we were able to calculate the slant height to

be approximately 11.35 ft.

Lol
tan() = opp/adj
tan() = d/b
tan() = 16.08/10
tan-1(16.08/10)
58.12

Figure 34. Finding the Angle Between the Prism Base and the Pyramid

Face

To find the measure of the angle between the prism base and the

outer pyramid face, we used the trigonometric ratio of tangent. To find

an angle measure, we would have to use the inverse of tangent. By

using the inverse of tangent, the angle was found to be approximately

58.12.

One Lateral Face of the Outer Pyramid

 Monteiro Toma 21

b 11.35 ft

Figure 35. Diagram and Measurements of One Lateral Face

Both the base and the height of the triangular lateral face have already

been found in the previous parts of the paper. The unknown angle measures are

calculated in the figures below.

tan() = opp/adj
tan() = b / a/2
tan() = 11.35 / 5.36/2
tan() = 11.35 / 2.68
tan-1(11.35/2.68)
76.71
Figure 36. Measure of Theta

Using inverse tangent, as well as the measurements we found previously

in Figure 35, we were able to calculate the base angles, or theta pictured in

Figure 35 to be approximately 76.71.

tan() = 2(opp/adj)
Lol
tan() = 2(a/2 / b)
tan() = 2(5.36/2/ 11.35)
tan() = 2(2.68 / 11.35)
tan-12(2.68 / 11.35)
26.58
 Monteiro Toma 22

Lol

lo

Figure 37. Angle Measure of Alpha

Again, we used inverse tangent to figure out the measure of alpha from

the triangle. After, we have to calculate the area of one of the lateral faces to find

the whole lateral surface area.

A = baseheight
A = (20tan15)
(102+60tan152)
A (5.36)( 100+258.47)
A (5.36)(358.47)
A (5.36)(18.94)
A (101.48)
A 50.73 ft2
Figure 38. Area of One Lateral Face

To find the area of one triangular face, we plugged in the base and height

into the area formula for a triangle. Below, we find the lateral surface area of the

pyramid.
A = 12( baseheight)
A = 12( (20tan15)
(102+60tan152))
A 12( (5.36)( 100+258.47))
A 12( (5.36)(358.47))
A 12( (5.36)(18.94))
A 12( (101.48))
A 12(50.73)
Figure 39. Lateral Surface Area of the Pyramid

All we had to do to find the lateral surface area was multiply the area

found in Figure 38 by 12, because thats how many faces our tower has. The

When having done this, the total area comes out to be 608.78 ft 2.

Pyramid Top of the Inner Pyramid Showing the Height of the Inner Pyramid
 Monteiro Toma 23

The base of the inner pyramid is Polygon 3, just like the inner prism. Just

like for the outer pyramid, the height of the inner pyramid must be three times the

length of one side of its base. In this part, we need to find the volume of the

inner pyramid.

Figure 40. Inner Pyramid Diagram and Measurements

Once again, the measurements for the base of the pyramid, a and b, are

the same as the measurements of Polygon 3. Finding the height, d, was a

simple matter of multiplying a, one side of polygon 3 by 3.

C = (a2 + b2)
C 2(9tan15)2 + 92)
C (23.26+ 81)
C 10.22 ft
 Monteiro Toma 24

Figure 42. Slant Height of the Inner Pyramid

The slant height of the inner pyramid was found by using the Pythagorean

Theorem and the measurements found in Figure 40.

V = Abase Hprism
V = A(polygon 3) 14.47
V = 260.4514.47
V = 3768.71
V 1256.16 ft3
Figure 43. Volume for Inner Pyramid

Using the volume of a pyramid formula: V = (1/3)(area of base)(height), we

were able to find the volume of the inner pyramid using the measurements found

previously. The volume came out to be approximately 1256.16 ft 3.

My Tower

Figure 44. My Tower

In Figure 44, you can c see the finished tower. Now its time to find the

total surface area and volume!

TSA = SAouter prism+SA outer pyramid

TSA 656.16+ 608.78
TSA 1298.03 ft2
 Monteiro Toma 25

Figure 45. Total Surface Area of the Outer Tower

In Figure 45, we simply added together the two surface areas

found previously in Figures 28 and 39. The total surface area of our

tower is approximately 1298.03 ft2

V = V inner prism+V inner pyramid

V 2791.46 + 1256.16
V 4047.61 ft3

Figure 46. Volume of the Inner Tower

In Figure 46, to find the total volume of the tower, we simply

added together the two volumes found previously in Figures 31 and 43.

The total

volume of our tower is approximately 4047.61 ft3.

Conclusion

Now that the planning of the tower has been completed, it is

certain that the customer will be satisfied with the building of the

tower provided and hopefully they will choose Tower Association to

build the tower. While there may have been a lot of calculations to be

made, some problems were made in the process of calculating them.

To solve this, the partners worked together to figure out the mistake

and they eventually did and found the solution to the prolem. All that

was needed was time and patience to discover the route needed to

solve them. It would be a great pleasure to build the structure, making

sure all regulations are followed and still have the tower looking
 Monteiro Toma 26

amazing. After the tower has been decorated, it would also be a

pleasure to see how it turned out. Best of luck to the client in

decorating the tower.

Sincerely,

Tower Association