Cuboctahedron

Elizabeth Stacheit and Lara Thomas

GAT and IDS

Mr. Acre and Mrs. Gravel
26 February 2016

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What would happen if someone were to cut all of the corners off of a cube? Or maybe
combine a square pyramid with four rectangular pyramids? What is someone combines eight
tetrahedrons with six regular square pyramid? A cuboctahedron will result. A cuboctahedron is a
combination of a cube and its dual, the octahedron. A cuboctahedron has twelve vertices and
twenty-four edges. There are six square faces, and eight equilateral triangular faces on a
cuboctahedron. The volume of a cuboctahedron can be found three ways, and the surface area
can be found one way.

Figure 1. Edge of Cuboctahedron

Figure 1 shows how the edge of the cuboctahedron was found. The new square face was
found by connecting the midpoints of the original square, which measured 8.4 centimeters.
Connecting the midpoints forms 45-45-90 triangles at the corners, making the hypotenuses,
the edge of the new square faces, 4.22 centimeters.
The edge of the cuboctahedron was found to be the same in all three cases. The edge of
the cuboctahedron was found by drawing a face of the original cube with the side lengths

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measuring 8.4 centimeters. The midpoints of the square face were marked and then connected.
This formed a new, smaller square with a side length of 4.22. The side length of the smaller
square was found by using the 45-45-90 triangle rule. In this rule, the legs of the right triangle
are the same, and the hypotenuse of the triangle is the length of the legs multiplied by root two.
The corner of the smaller square is in the center of one edge of the larger square, and equals 90
degrees. The 90-degree corner and the two other angles on the same edge are supplementary
angles, which mean they add up to equal 180 degrees. The two other angles added together
would have to equal 90 degrees. Since both of the unknown angles are equal, 90 could be
divided by two to get two 45 degree angles. This makes a 45-45-90 triangle. In the case of the
original square being 8.4 centimeters, each leg would be 4.2 centimeters, since 4.2 is half of 8.4.
The hypotenuse of this would end up being 4.22. The hypotenuse of this is also the edge of the
cuboctahedron.
A= 6 * length * width
A= 6 * 4.22 * 4.22
A= 6 * 17.64 * 4
A= 6 * 17.64 * 2
A= 6 * 35.28
A= 211.68 cm2
Figure 2. Surface Area of Six Square Faces
Figure 2 shows how the surface area of the six square faces was found. The A in the
equation represents the area of the six square faces.

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A= (1/2) * base * height
A= (1/2) * 4.22 * 2.16 * 8
A= (1/2) * 8.8212 * 8
A= (1/2) * 70.5612
A= 35.2812
A= 35.28 * 3.46
A= 122.069 cm2
Figure 3. Surface Area of Eight Triangular Faces
Figure 3 shows how to find the surface area of the eight equilateral triangular faces. The
A represents the area of the eight triangular faces.
A= area of 6 square faces + area of 8 triangular faces
A= 211.68 + 122.069
A= 333.749 cm2
Figure 4. Surface Area of Cuboctahedron
The surface area of the entire cuboctahedron was found by doing the math in figure 4. In
this case, A represents the area of the entire cuboctahedron.
The surface area of the cuboctahedron was found to be 333.749 centimeters2. The
cuboctahedron has six square faces and eight equilateral triangular faces. The edges of the square
were found to be 4.22. The edges of the equilateral triangle also happen to be 4.22 since the
edges of the triangles perfectly lineup, and connect, to the edges of the square faces. The surface
area of the cuboctahedron was found by finding the area of six square faces and eight triangular
faces.
To find the area of the square face, the length was multiplied by the height. This resulted
in the area of one face being 35.28 centimeters2. Multiplied by six, to account for the six square
faces of the cuboctahedron, produced an area of 211.68 centimeters2.
The formula to find the area of the triangular faces is slightly more complex. To find the
area of a triangle, the base is multiplied by the height, and then divided by two. Because the

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triangle is equilateral, and altitude had to be dropped in to find the height. Equilateral triangles
have three 60 degree angles. When the altitude is dropped in, a 90-degree angle is created, and
the vertex that the altitude was dropped from is cut in half resulting in a 30-degree angle. The
other angle remains untouched, so it is still 60 degrees. The small leg, between the 90-degree
angle and the 60-degree angle, is half of the original side length, in this case, 2.12. The
hypotenuse, the side length connecting the 30-degree angle to the 60-degree angle, is twice the
size of the small leg. That would make the hypotenuse 4.22. The bigger leg, located between
the 90-degree angle and the 30-degree angle, is the length of the smaller leg, multiplied by 3. If
2.12 is the small leg, multiplying it by root three would result in 2.16, because the 2
multiplied by 3 is 6. Therefore, the height of the triangle is 2.16.
Now that the height is found, it can be plugged into the formula to find the area of the
triangle. The area of the eight triangles was found to be 122.069 centimeters2. The area of the six
squares and eight triangles were added together to give the total surface area, which was 333.749
centimeters2.
Case one of the cuboctahedron entails cutting the corners off of a cube. A cube has eight
corners, and each corner forms a corner pyramid. The net of the corner pyramid is made of one
equilateral triangle, connected to the hypotenuse of a right triangle, with another right triangle
connected to each of its legs. Each leg of the right triangles measured to be 4.2 centimeters. The
equilateral triangle is the part that would cover the cut off corner of the cube. All of the side
lengths of the equilateral triangles would be 4.22 because that is the length of the edge of the
cube. The edges of the square and triangular faces line up perfectly. The legs of each of the
equilateral triangles were measured to be 4.2 centimeters, making the hypotenuses 4.22
centimeters. The height of the pyramid was 4.2 centimeters. The height can be found by turning

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the pyramid so that one of the right triangles not directly attached to the equilateral triangle is the
new base. When the pyramid is turned this way, the leg of the right triangle connected to the
equilateral triangle is the new height. This is the easiest way to find the height of the corner
pyramid.

Figure 5. Net of Corner Pyramid

Figure 5 shows the net of the corner pyramid. Note that all of the 45-degree angles are
marked with a double angle marking. Also notice that only one of the right triangles is connected
to the equilateral triangle. The equilateral triangle is split into a 30-60-90 triangle when the
altitude is dropped in, and all of the right triangles are 45-45-90 triangles.
V= length * width * height
V= 8.4 * 8.4 * 8.4
V= 592.704 cm3
Figure 6. Volume of Original Cube
The volume of the original cube is found in figure 6 by using the volume formula of a
cube. The V in the equation means the volume of the cube.
The volume of the cuboctahedron can be found by subtracting the volume of eight corner
pyramids from the volume of the cube. To find the volume of the cube, the formula is the length

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multiplied by the width, multiplied by the height. The length, width, and height of the cube are
all the same, with measurements of 8.4 centimeters. When multiplied together, the volume of the
cube is found to be 592.704 centimeters3.
A= (1/2) * base * height
A= (1/2) * 4.2 * 4.2
A= 8.82 cm2
Figure 7. Area of Corner Pyramid Base
Figure 7 shows a very important step to finding the volume of the corner pyramid. Figure
# shows how to find the area of the base of the corner pyramid. The A represents the area of
the base of the corner pyramid in case one.
The volume of the corner pyramid is found by multiplying the area of the base by the
height of the pyramid and dividing by three. The area of the base is found by using the formula
base multiplied by height, divided by two. The base of the base is 4.2, and the height is also 4.2.
4.2 multiplied by 4.2, divided by 2, leaves the area of the base being 8.82 centimeters2.
V= (1/3) * base * height
V= (1/3) * 8.82 * 4.2
V= (1/3) * 37.044
V= 12.348 cm3
Figure 8. Volume of One Corner Pyramid
The steps to finding the volume of one corner pyramid in case one is shown above in
figure 8. The V stands for the volume of one corner pyramid.
If the area of the base and the height of the pyramid are plugged into the volume formula,
the volume of one corner pyramid is found to be 12.348 centimeters3. The volume of eight corner
pyramids 98.784 centimeters3.

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V= (volume of cube) (volume of 8 corner pyramids)
V= 592.704 (8*12.348)
V= 592.704-98.784
V= 493.92 cm3
Figure 9. Volume of Cuboctahedron in Case One
The volume of the cuboctahedron in case one was found in figure 9. The variable V in
the equation represents the volume of the entire cuboctahedron in case one.
Now that the volume of the cube and the volume of the eight corner pyramids is known,
the volume of the cuboctahedron can be found. The volume of the eight corner pyramids is
subtracted from the volume of the cube, making the total volume of the cuboctahedron 493.92
centimeters3.
Case two of the cuboctahedron is one square prism and four rectangular pyramids. The
sides of the square bases in the square prism are 4.22 centimeters. These make up two of the six
square faces on the cuboctahedron, and the edges of the cuboctahedron are all 4.22 centimeters.
The height of the prism is 8.4 centimeters. This is because the height of the entire cube was 8.4
centimeters, and, as seen in case one, the cuboctahedron can be made by cutting the corners off
of a cube, leaving the height of the cube the same.

Figure 10. Net of Square Prism

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Figure 10 shows the net of the right square prism
in case two. Notice that both of the bases are squares
with the side lengths of 4.22 centimeters. All of the
faces of the prism are the same, with a height of 8.4
centimeters.
V= length * width * height
V= 4.22 * 4.22 *8.4
V= 17.64 * 4 * 8.4
V= 17.64* 2 * 8.4
V= 35.28 * 8.4
V= 296.352 cm3
Figure 11. Volume of One Square Prism
Figure 11 shows how the volume of one square prism in case two was found by using the
same volume formula that was used on the cube in case one. The V stands for the volume of
one square prism.
The volume of the one square prism was found by multiplying the length by the width, by
the height. The length and width are both 4.22, and the height of the prism is 8.4. The volume
of one square prism is 296.352 centimeters3.

A= length * width
A= 4.22 * 8.4
A= 35.282 cm2
Figure 12. Rectangular Pyramid Base Area
Figure 12 shows how the area of the base of the rectangular pyramid in case two was
found by using the area formula of a square. The A stands for the area of the base of the
pyramid.

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To find the volume of one of the rectangular pyramids, the area of the base is multiplied
by the height, and is divided by three. The base of the rectangular pyramid has the same
dimensions as the faces of the square prism since the base of the pyramids are connected to each
of the lateral faces. Therefore, the shorter sides of the rectangular base are 4.22 centimeters, and
the longer sides of the rectangular base are 8.4 centimeters. The area of the base is found by
multiplying the length by the width, which in this case, is 4.22 multiplied by 8.4. The area of
the base is 35.282 centimeters2.

Figure 13. Net of the Rectangular Pyramid

Figure 13 shows the net of the rectangular pyramid in case two. It can be seen that the
measurements of the base of the pyramid are the same as the face of the prism since they attach

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there. Take note that the 2.12 is running from the midpoint to the middle of the side measuring
8.4 centimeters. Since the leg measuring 2.12 centimeters is parallel to 4.22, and 2.12 starts
at the midpoint, it is half of 4.22. That is where the measurement 2.12 comes from. Also
notice that all of the triangular faces are 45-45-90 triangles, and the 45-degree angles are
shown with double angle markings.

Figure 14. Height of Rectangular Pyramid

The figure above shows how the height of the rectangular pyramid was found in case
two. 4.22 was divided by 2 to get 2.12 as one of the legs. Then, the 45-45-90 triangle was
used to figure out the slant height, which is 4.2 centimeters. Once those numbers were found, the
Pythagorean theorem was used to get 8.82 centimeters as the height.
a2 + b2 = c2
2.122 + b2 = 4.22
4.41 * 4 + b2 = 17.64
4.41 * 2 + b2 = 17.64
8.82 + b2 = 17.64
b2 = 8.82
b = 8.82 cm

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Figure 15. Height of the Rectangular Pyramid
Figure 15 shows how the Pythagorean theorem was used to find the height of the pyramid
in case two. When using the Pythagorean theorem, a and b are always the legs of the right
triangle, and c is the hypotenuse. In this problem, a represents the smallest leg, located on
the base of the pyramid, b represents the height of the pyramid, and c represents the slant
height of one pyramid face.
The height of the pyramid was found by using the Pythagorean theorem. 2.12 was used
for a, b was left as a variable, and c was replaced with 4.2. When simplified, the value of
b was 8.82. This was the height of the pyramid. The height is dropped from the vertex of the
pyramid to the center of the base. A was replaced with 2.12 simply because it is half of
4.22. From the center of the pyramid to the side is half of the adjacent side length to where the
line is drawn. The slant height is 4.2, and becomes c since it is the hypotenuse in this right
triangle situation. The slant height was found to be 4.2 centimeters because in the net, the height
of the pyramid face was found to be 4.2 centimeters. 4.22 centimeters is the side length for all
of the isosceles triangles in this net, and the side length of the base of the isosceles triangle is 8.4,
since it is the side of the rectangular prism. If an altitude is dropped from the vertex between the
two congruent side lengths, it cuts the isosceles triangle in half, forming two right triangles. The
new base of this right triangle is 4.2, since 4.2 is half of 8.4. This creates a 45-45-90 triangle
situation. In this situation, both legs of the right triangle are the same, and the hypotenuse is the
length of the legs, multiplied by 2. Since the hypotenuse is 4.22, and one leg is 4.2, the height
of the isosceles triangle is 4.2. By plugging these numbers into the Pythagorean theorem, the
height of the rectangular pyramid was found to be 8.82 centimeters.
V= (1/3) * area of base * height

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V= (1/3) * 35.282 *8.82
V= (1/3) * 35.28 * 17.62
V= 11.76 * 17.62
V= 11.76 * 4.2
V= 49.39 cm3
Figure 16. Volume of One Rectangular Pyramid
The volume of one rectangular pyramid in case two shows how, once again, the volume
formula of a pyramid is used to find the volume of the pyramid.
V= volume of one pyramid * 4
V= 49.39 * 4
V= 197.56 cm3
Figure 17. Volume of Four Rectangular Pyramid
Figure 17 shows the volume of all four of the rectangular pyramids in case two, since
there are four pyramids in the case.
The volume of the pyramid was found by taking one third of the area of the base
multiplied by the height. The height, 8.82 centimeters, and the area of the base, 35.28
centimeters2, were plugged into the volume formula to come up with the 49.39 centimeters3 for
the volume as one pyramid. Since there are four regular rectangular pyramids, the volume from
one pyramid was multiplied was four. The total volume from all of the rectangular pyramids was
197.56 centimeters3.
V= volume of one square prism + volume of 4 rectangular pyramids
V= 296.352 + 197.56
V= 493.92 cm3
Figure 18. Volume of Cuboctahedron in Case Two
The volume of the entire cuboctahedron found in case two is shown above in figure 18.
The V represents the volume of the entire cuboctahedron.

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To find the entire volume of the cuboctahedron in case two, the total volumes from the
rectangular prism and four rectangular pyramids are added together. The total volume, just like in
case one, ends up being 493.2 centimeters3.
Case three is by far the most difficult of the three cases. In case three, there are eight
tetrahedrons and six regular square pyramids. The faces of the pyramids and tetrahedrons
connect, leaving their bases on the outside of the shape, forming the famous cuboctahedron
shape. This means that the faces on the pyramids and tetrahedrons have to be the same so that
they can fit together perfectly.
A= (1/2) * base * height
A= (1/2) * 4.22 * 2.16
A= (1/2) *8.8212
A= 4.4112 cm2
Figure 19. Area of Tetrahedron Base
The area of the tetrahedron base in case three is found by using the triangle area formula.
In the formula, A stands for the area of the tetrahedron base.

Figure 20. Net of Tetrahedron

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The net of the tetrahedron is shown in figure 20. All of the faces and the base of the
tetrahedron are made of equilateral triangles. The height of each triangle can be found by
splitting them into 30-60-90 triangles when an altitude is dropped in.
The first step to finding the volume of the cuboctahedron is to find the area of the
tetrahedrons base. To find the area of the base, the side lengths first had to be known. Since it is
a regular tetrahedron, the base and all of the side lengths are the same, and they are equilateral
triangles. The sides of the tetrahedron are all 4.22 since that is the length of the cuboctahedron
edge. Since the faces are all equilateral triangles, an altitude can be dropped in to make them
30-60-90 triangles. In the 30-60-90 triangles, the side length between the 60-degree and
90-degree angles is cut in half to form the shortest leg. The height of the triangle is found by
multiplying the shortest leg by 3, which, in this case, would result in 2.16. The area formula of
a triangle, necessary for finding the area of a triangular base, is the base multiplied by the height,
and then divided by two. The base, in this case, is 4.22, and the height is 2.16. If these
numbers are multiplied, the result is 8.8212. Dividing by two leaves the area of the base being
4.4112.
H= (side length/3) * 6
H= (4.22/3) * 6
H= 1.42 *6
H= 1.412 cm
Figure 21. Height of Tetrahedron
The height of the tetrahedron, using the tetrahedron formula, is shown in figure 21. The
H in the equation stands for the height of the tetrahedron.
The next step to finding the volume of the tetrahedron is to find its height. To find the
height of a tetrahedron, the side length is divided by three and is then multiplied by 6. The side

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length is 4.22, and when divided by three, resulted in 1.42. Since that number was multiplied
by 6, the height of the tetrahedron became 1.412 centimeters.

V= (1/3) * area of base * height

V= (1/3) * 4.4112 * 1.412
V= (1/3) * 6.174 * 144
V= (1/3) * 6.174 * 12
V= (1/3) * 74.088
V= 24.696 cm3
Figure 22. Volume of One Tetrahedron
In figure 22, the volume of one tetrahedron in case three is found by substituting the area
of the base and the height into the volume formula. The V in the equation stands for the
volume of one tetrahedron.
V= volume of one tetrahedron * 8
V= 24.696 * 8
V= 197.568 cm3
Figure 23. Volume of Eight Tetrahedrons
The volume of all eight of the tetrahedrons in case three were found in figure 23, shown
above. The V stands for the volume of all eight of the tetrahedrons.
The final step to finding the volume of one of the tetrahedrons is to plug all of the
numbers into the volume formula. Once again, the area of the base will be multiplied by the
height and then divided by three. The volume of one tetrahedron is 24.696 centimeters3. Since

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there are eight tetrahedrons, the volume of one tetrahedron is multiplied by eight. The volume for
eight tetrahedrons is 197.568 centimeters3.

A= length * width
A= 4.22 * 4.22
A= 17.64 * 4
A= 17.64 * 2
A= 35.28 cm2
Figure 24. Area of Square Pyramid Base
The area of square pyramid base in case three was found in figure 24. The variable A
represents the area of the square pyramid base.
To find the volume of the regular square pyramid, the first step is to find the area of the
base. To find the area of a square, the length is multiplied by the width. Since the base of the
square pyramids form the square faces on the cuboctahedron, the edges will be the same,
measuring 4.22 centimeters. 4.22 multiplied by 4.22 makes the area of the base 35.28.

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Figure 25. Net of Square Pyramid

The net for the square pyramid in case three is shown in figure 25. Each triangular face
can be split into 30-60-90 triangles. The 60-degree angles are identified with a single angle
marking, and the 30-degree angles are marked with a triple angle marking. The faces of the
square pyramid and the faces of the tetrahedron are the same.
The second step is to figure out the height of the square pyramid. The height of the
pyramid is 4.2 centimeters. This was found by thinking about the structure of the shape. If two of
the pyramids were stacked on each other with the vertexs touching, they would equal the height
of the original square, or 8.4. This gets cut in half since it takes two pyramids to equal the height
of the original square. This makes the height of one pyramid 4.2 centimeters. Another way that
the height can be found is to use the Pythagorean theorem again. In this case, a would be
2.12, b would be the height, which is 4.2 centimeters, and c would be the hypotenuse,
which is 2.16.
V= (1/3) * area of base * height
V= (1/3) * 35.28 * 4.2
V= (1/3) * 148.176
V= 49.392 cm3
Figure 26. Volume of One Square Pyramid
Figure 26 shows how the volume of one square pyramid was found in case three. The
variable V stands for the volume of one square pyramid.
V= volume of one square pyramid * 6
V= 49.392 * 6
V= 296.352 cm3
Figure 27. Volume of Six Square Pyramids

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The volume of all six square pyramids in case three is shown in figure 27. V represents
the volume of all six square pyramids.
Since the height and area of the base have been found, the volume of the square pyramid
can be found. The volume of one square pyramid was found to be 49.392 centimeters3. This was
found by using the volume formula for pyramids. This formula requires that the area of the base
be multiplied by the height, and then divided by three. The volume of one square pyramid is
multiplied by six to account for the six square pyramids in the cuboctahedron. The volume of six
square pyramids is 296.352 centimeters3.
V= volume of 6 square pyramids + volume of 8 tetrahedrons
V= 296.352 + 197.568
V= 493.92 cm3
Figure 28. Volume of Cuboctahedron in Case Three
Solving for the volume of the cuboctahedron, found in case three, is shown in figure 27.
The V represents the total volume of the cuboctahedron.
The total volume of the cuboctahedron is found by adding the volumes from the square
pyramids and the tetrahedrons. Case three also comes up with the volume of the cuboctahedron
being 493.92 centimeters3. The volume is correct since it was found to be the same in all three
cases.
The cuboctahedron project was a struggle. There were many problems encountered over
the course of the project. One of the problems was that Lara and Elizabeth were struggling to
figure out the side lengths for the nets, and therefore could not do the rest of the project. This
pushed the goal times way further back than was desired. The teamwork skills in this project
were lacking as well. Lara and Elizabeth had very different ideas about how to tackle the project.

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Though procrastination and lack of teamwork made the project very difficult, the hardest part of
the project was figuring out the correct side lengths for the nets. As shown in the three different
cases with the cube with the cut off corners, the square prism and rectangular pyramids, and the
tetrahedrons and square pyramids, the volume of the cuboctahedron was proven to be found
three different ways. The cuboctahedron had a surface area of 333.749 centimeters2. Since the
cuboctahedron came from the same original measurements, the same volume was found for each
of the three cases, as 493.92 centimeters3.