Surface - area - to - volume ratio - wikipedia Surface - area - to - volume ratio Graphs of surface area, A against volume, V of the Platonic solids and a sphere, showing that the surface area decreases for rounder shapes, and the surface - area - to - volume ratio decreases with increasing volume. The surface - area - to - volume ratio, also called the surface - to - volume ratio and variously denoted sa / vol or SA : V, is the amount of surface area per unit volume of an object or collection of objects. In chemical reactions involving a solid material, the surface area to volume ratio is an important factor for the reactivity, that is, the rate at which the chemical reaction will proceed. For a given volume, the object with the smallest surface area ( and therefore with the smallest SA : V ) is the sphere, a consequence of the isoperimetric inequality in 3 dimensions. By contrast, objects with tiny spikes will have very large surface area for a given volume. Contents 1 Dimension 2 Physical chemistry 3 Biology 4 Fire spread 5 Mathematical examples 6 See also 7 References 8 External links 9 Further reading Dimension The surface - area - to - volume ratio has physical dimension L ( inverse length ) and is therefore expressed in units of inverse distance. As an example, a cube with sides of length 1 cm will have a surface area of 6 cm and a volume of 1 cm. The surface to volume ratio for this cube is thus SA : V = 6 cm 2 1 cm 3 = 6 cm − 1 ( displaystyle ( mbox ( SA : V ) ) = ( \frac ( 6 ~ ( mbox ( cm ) ) ^ ( 2 ) ) ( 1 ~ ( mbox ( cm ) ) ^ ( 3 ) ) ) = 6 ~ ( mbox ( cm ) ) ^ ( - 1 ) ). For a given shape, SA : V is inversely proportional to size. A cube 2 cm on a side has a ratio of 3 cm, half that of a cube 1 cm on a side. Conversely, preserving SA : V as size increases requires changing to a less compact shape. Physical chemistry This section does not cite any sources. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. ( February 2014 ) See also : Dust explosion Materials with high surface area to volume ratio ( e.g. very small diameter, very porous, or otherwise not compact ) react at much faster rates than monolithic materials, because more surface is available to react. Examples include grain dust ; while grain is n't typically flammable, grain dust is explosive. Finely ground salt dissolves much more quickly than coarse salt. High surface area to volume ratio provides a strong `` driving force '' to speed up thermodynamic processes that minimize free energy. Biology Cells lining the small intestine increase the surface area over which they can absorb nutrients with a carpet of tuftlike microvilli. The ratio between the surface area and volume of cells and organisms has an enormous impact on their biology, including their physiology and behavior. For example, many aquatic microorganisms have increased surface area to increase their drag in the water. This reduces their rate of sink and allows them to remain near the surface with less energy expenditure. An increased surface area to volume ratio also means increased exposure to the environment. The finely - branched appendages of filter feeders such as krill provide a large surface area to sift the water for food. Individual organs like the lung have numerous internal branchings that increase the surface area ; in the case of the lung, the large surface supports gas exchange, bringing oxygen into the blood and releasing carbon dioxide from the blood. Similarly, the small intestine has a finely wrinkled internal surface, allowing the body to absorb nutrients efficiently. Cells can achieve a high surface area to volume ratio with an elaborately convoluted surface, like the microvilli lining the small intestine. Increased surface area can also lead to biological problems. More contact with the environment through the surface of a cell or an organ ( relative to its volume ) increases loss of water and dissolved substances. High surface area to volume ratios also present problems of temperature control in unfavorable environments. The surface to volume ratios of organisms of different sizes also leads to some biological rules such as Bergmann 's rule and gigantothermy. Fire spread In the context of wildfires, the ratio of the surface area of a solid fuel to its volume is an important measurement. Fire spread behavior is frequently correlated to the surface - area - to - volume ratio of the fuel ( e.g. leaves and branches ). The higher its value, the faster a particle responds to changes in environmental conditions, such as temperature or moisture. Higher values are also correlated to shorter fuel ignition times, and hence faster fire spread rates. Mathematical examples Shape Characteristic Length a ( displaystyle a ) Surface Area Volume SA / V ratio SA / V ratio for unit volume Tetrahedron side 3 a 2 ( displaystyle ( sqrt ( 3 ) ) a ^ ( 2 ) ) 2 a 3 12 ( displaystyle ( \frac ( ( sqrt ( 2 ) ) a ^ ( 3 ) ) ( 12 ) ) ) 6 6 a ≈ 14.697 a ( displaystyle ( \frac ( 6 ( sqrt ( 6 ) ) ) ( a ) ) approx ( \frac ( 14.697 ) ( a ) ) ) 7.21 Cube side 6 a 2 ( displaystyle 6a ^ ( 2 ) ) a 3 ( displaystyle a ^ ( 3 ) ) 6 a ( displaystyle ( \frac ( 6 ) ( a ) ) ) 6 Octahedron side 2 3 a 2 ( displaystyle 2 ( sqrt ( 3 ) ) a ^ ( 2 ) ) 1 3 2 a 3 ( displaystyle ( \frac ( 1 ) ( 3 ) ) ( sqrt ( 2 ) ) a ^ ( 3 ) ) 3 6 a ≈ 7.348 a ( displaystyle ( \frac ( 3 ( sqrt ( 6 ) ) ) ( a ) ) approx ( \frac ( 7.348 ) ( a ) ) ) 5.72 Dodecahedron side 3 25 + 10 5 a 2 ( displaystyle 3 ( sqrt ( 25 + 10 ( sqrt ( 5 ) ) ) ) a ^ ( 2 ) ) 1 4 ( 15 + 7 5 ) a 3 ( displaystyle ( \frac ( 1 ) ( 4 ) ) ( 15 + 7 ( sqrt ( 5 ) ) ) a ^ ( 3 ) ) 12 25 + 10 5 ( 15 + 7 5 ) a ≈ 2.694 a ( displaystyle ( \frac ( 12 ( sqrt ( 25 + 10 ( sqrt ( 5 ) ) ) ) ) ( ( 15 + 7 ( sqrt ( 5 ) ) ) a ) ) approx ( \frac ( 2.694 ) ( a ) ) ) 5.31 Capsule radius ( R ) 4 π a 2 + 2 π a ∗ 2 a = 8 π a 2 ( displaystyle 4 pi a ^ ( 2 ) + 2 pi a * 2a = 8 pi a ^ ( 2 ) ) 4 π a 3 3 + π a 2 ∗ 2 a = 10 π a 3 3 ( displaystyle ( \frac ( 4 pi a ^ ( 3 ) ) ( 3 ) ) + pi a ^ ( 2 ) * 2a = ( \frac ( 10 pi a ^ ( 3 ) ) ( 3 ) ) ) 12 5 a ( displaystyle ( \frac ( 12 ) ( 5a ) ) ) 5.251 Icosahedron side 5 3 a 2 ( displaystyle 5 ( sqrt ( 3 ) ) a ^ ( 2 ) ) 5 12 ( 3 + 5 ) a 3 ( displaystyle ( \frac ( 5 ) ( 12 ) ) ( 3 + ( sqrt ( 5 ) ) ) a ^ ( 3 ) ) 12 3 ( 3 + 5 ) a ≈ 3.970 a ( displaystyle ( \frac ( 12 ( sqrt ( 3 ) ) ) ( ( 3 + ( sqrt ( 5 ) ) ) a ) ) approx ( \frac ( 3.970 ) ( a ) ) ) 5.148 Sphere radius 4 π a 2 ( displaystyle 4 pi a ^ ( 2 ) ) 4 π a 3 3 ( displaystyle ( \frac ( 4 pi a ^ ( 3 ) ) ( 3 ) ) ) 3 a ( displaystyle ( \frac ( 3 ) ( a ) ) ) 4.836 Example Table side of cube side Area of side 6 * side Area of Cube 's Surface side Volume Ratio of Surface Area to Volume 2x2 6x2x2 24 2x2x2 8 3 : 1 4x4 16 6x4x4 96 4x4x4 64 3 : 2 6 6x6 36 6x6x6 216 6x6x6 216 3 : 3 8 8x8 64 6x8x8 384 8x8x8 512 3 : 4 12 12x12 144 6x12x12 864 12x12x12 1728 3 : 6 20 20x20 400 6x20x20 2400 20x20x20 8000 3 : 10 50 50x50 2500 6x50x50 15000 50x50x50 125000 3 : 25 1000 1000x1000 1000000 6x1000x1000 6000000 1000x1000x1000 1000000000 3 : 500 See also Compactness measure of a shape Square - cube law References Schmidt - Nielsen, Knut ( 1984 ). Scaling : Why is Animal Size so Important ?. New York, NY : Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978 - 0 - 521 - 26657 - 4. OCLC 10697247. Vogel, Steven ( 1988 ). Life 's Devices : The Physical World of Animals and Plants. Princeton, NJ : Princeton University Press. ISBN 978 - 0 - 691 - 08504 - 3. OCLC 18070616. Specific Jump up ^ Kils, U. : Swimming and feeding of Antarctic Krill, Euphausia superba - some outstanding energetics and dynamics - some unique morphological details. In Berichte zur Polarforschung, Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research, Special Issue 4 ( 1983 ) : `` On the biology of Krill Euphausia superba '', Proceedings of the Seminar and Report of Krill Ecology Group, Editor S.B. Schnack, 130 - 155 and title page image. Jump up ^ Tortora, Gerard J. ; Anagnostakos, Nicholas P. ( 1987 ). Principles of anatomy and physiology ( Fifth ed. ). New York : Harper & Row, Publishers. pp. 556 -- 582. ISBN 0 - 06 - 350729 - 3. Jump up ^ Williams, Peter L ; Warwick, Roger ; Dyson, Mary ; Bannister, Lawrence H. ( 1989 ). Gray 's Anatomy ( Thirty - seventh ed. ). Edinburgh : Churchill Livingstone. pp. 1278 -- 1282. ISBN 0443 041776. Jump up ^ Romer, Alfred Sherwood ; Parsons, Thomas S. ( 1977 ). The Vertebrate Body. Philadelphia, PA : Holt - Saunders International. pp. 349 -- 353. ISBN 0 - 03 - 910284 - X. Jump up ^ Krause J. William ( July 2005 ). Krause 's Essential Human Histology for Medical Students. Universal - Publishers. pp. 37 --. ISBN 978 - 1 - 58112 - 468 - 2. Retrieved 25 November 2010. Jump up ^ Meiri, S. ; Dayan, T. ( 2003 - 03 - 20 ). `` On the validity of Bergmann 's rule ''. Journal of Biogeography. 30 ( 3 ) : 331 -- 351. doi : 10.1046 / j. 1365 - 2699.2003. 00837. x. ( Subscription required ( help ) ). Jump up ^ Ashton, Kyle G. ; Tracy, Mark C. ; Queiroz, Alan de ( October 2000 ). `` Is Bergmann 's Rule Valid for Mammals ? ''. The American Naturalist. 156 ( 4 ) : 390 -- 415. doi : 10.1086 / 303400. JSTOR 10.1086 / 303400. Jump up ^ Millien, Virginie ; Lyons, S. Kathleen ; Olson, Link ; et al. ( May 23, 2006 ). `` Ecotypic variation in the context of global climate change : Revisiting the rules ''. Ecology Letters. 9 ( 7 ) : 853 -- 869. doi : 10.1111 / j. 1461 - 0248.2006. 00928. x. Jump up ^ Fitzpatrick, Katie ( 2005 ). `` Gigantothermy ''. Davidson College. Archived from the original on 2012 - 06 - 30. Retrieved 2011 - 12 - 21. External links Sizes of Organisms : The Surface Area : Volume Ratio National Wildfire Coordinating Group : Surface Area to Volume Ratio Previous link not working, references are in this document, PDF Further reading On Being the Right Size, J.B.S. Haldane Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Surface-area-to-volume_ratio&oldid=828131797 '' Categories : Chemical kinetics Cell biology Physiology Ratios Hidden categories : Pages containing links to subscription - only content Articles needing additional references from February 2014 All articles needing additional references All articles with unsourced statements Articles with unsourced statements from January 2018 Talk Contents About Wikipedia Català Deutsch Español Galego Simple English Edit links This page was last edited on 28 February 2018, at 19 : 10. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution - ShareAlike License ; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia ® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization. About Wikipedia

Question: what geometric surface encloses the maximum volume with the minimum surface area
Answer: sphere