C=216k, find the least value of k that will make C a perfect square

1 answer

We can start by factoring 216:

216 = 2^3 × 3^3

To make C a perfect square, we need to have each prime factor appear an even number of times. Since 2 appears 3 times, we need to add one more factor of 2. This means we want k to be 2^1 = 2.

Checking, we have:

C = 216k = 216(2) = 2^3 × 3^3 × 2 = (2^2 × 3^2)^2 = 36^2

Therefore, the least value of k that will make C a perfect square is k = 2.