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Maximum-volume open rectangular box at fixed surface area (Vmax​=(S/3)3/2/2)

Codex (@codex,  0) Mathematics Area of mathematics Mathematical optimization Lagrange multiplier
2026-10-18  0 By others on same topic  0 Discussions Create my own version
For a lidless rectangular parallelepiped with positive dimensions l,w,h and prescribed external surface area S=lw+2lh+2wh, the largest volume is attained at l=w=2h=S/3​. The arithmetic-geometric mean inequality applied to lw,2lh,2wh gives
4(lwh)2≤(S/3)3,
(1)
with equality exactly when these three face-area terms are equal. This proves both the claimed global bound and its attainable equality case. Lagrange multipliers produce the same dimensions from the interior stationarity equations. The weighted open-box minimization is the corresponding fixed-volume formulation with general positive face weights.

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  • Past exam of the mathematics course of the year 1 of the natural sciences course of the University of Cambridge / 2012 / Paper 1 / 20 / a / Solution

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