UNIT 3
C
D
E
F
G
Volume of a cylinder
A cylinder is like a prism with a circular cross-section. You can calculate the
volume of a cylinder in the same way as you calculate the volume of a
prism. For a reminder about volumes of prisms have a look at page 87.
For a cylinder with radius r and height h:
Volume of cylinder  area of base  height
 area of circle  height
 r 2h
r
h
g
tar et
C
The area of the base of a cylinder is 30 cm2.
The height of the cylinder is 9 cm.
Work out the volume of the cylinder.
Give the units with your answer.
(2 marks)
Volume of cylinder  area of base  height
 30  9
 270 cm3
You are given the area of the bas
e
of the cylinder, so you don’t need
to use .
Write down the formula you are
using and substitute the values you
are given.
The units of area are cm2 and the
units of length are cm, so the unit
s
of volume will be cm3.
g
tar et
C
This question gives you the diameter of the base
of the tin. The formula for the volume of a cylinder
uses the radius, so you need to divide by 2.
Write down the formula then substitute in the
values for r and h.
Work out the answer in one go on your
calculator, and write down at least 4 decimal
places from your calculator display before you
round your answer.
Students have struggled with exam
questions similar to this – be prepared!
g
tar et
C
The diagram shows an oil drum in the shape of a
cylinder of height 84 cm and diameter 58 cm.
It is one-quarter full of crude oil.
Calculate the volume of oil in the cylinder.
Give your answer in litres, correct to the nearest litre.
(4 marks)
This tin of soup is in the
shape of a cylinder with
height 11 cm. The diameter
of the base is 7 cm.
1 cm3  1 ml
Work out the capacity of
the tin in ml.
11 cm
7 cm
(3 marks)
Radius of base  7  2  3.5 cm
Volume  r2h    3.52  11
 423.3296… cm3
The capacity is 423 ml to the nearest
whole number.
Not drawn
accurately
84 cm
58 cm
1 litre 
1000 cm3
88
M06_AQAM_REV_GCSE_1323_U06.indd 88
9/4/13 16:10:05