The net of a rectangular prism and its dimensions as boxes connected to it in centimeters are shown.

Box 1 at the top is 4cm
Box 2 at the left side is 6cm and 4cm
Box 3 at the bottom is 9 cm
Box 4 at the right side is 6 cm and 9 cm
What is the total surface area of the rectangular prism in square centimeters?

1 answer

To find the total surface area of a rectangular prism, we use the formula:

\[ \text{Surface Area} = 2(lw + lh + wh) \]

where \( l \) is the length, \( w \) is the width, and \( h \) is the height of the prism.

From the information you provided, we have dimensions as follows:

  • The top measurement (Box 1) indicates the length \( l = 4 \) cm.
  • The left side (Box 2) has two dimensions given: \( w = 6 \) cm and \( h = 4 \) cm. Here, we need to interpret which represents width and height.

Since typically we will consider the left side to be the height, we can assign:

  • \( h = 6 \) cm (height from Box 2).
  • Then, from Box 3 (the bottom), we have \( w = 9 \) cm.

Now let’s clarify the dimensions again as:

  • Length (\( l \)): 4 cm
  • Width (\( w \)): 9 cm
  • Height (\( h \)): 6 cm

Now we can substitute these values into the surface area formula:

  1. Calculate \( lw \): \[ lw = 4 \times 9 = 36 \]

  2. Calculate \( lh \): \[ lh = 4 \times 6 = 24 \]

  3. Calculate \( wh \): \[ wh = 9 \times 6 = 54 \]

  4. Sum these areas: \[ lw + lh + wh = 36 + 24 + 54 = 114 \]

  5. Finally, calculate the total surface area: \[ \text{Surface Area} = 2 \times 114 = 228 \text{ square centimeters} \]

Thus, the total surface area of the rectangular prism is \(\boxed{228}\) square centimeters.