2024 AMC 12A Problem 24

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Concepts:3D geometryHeron’s Formula

Difficulty rating: 2520

24.

A disphenoid is a tetrahedron whose triangular faces are congruent to one another. What is the least total surface area of a disphenoid whose faces are scalene triangles with integer side lengths?

3\sqrt3

3153\sqrt{15}

1515

15715\sqrt7

24624\sqrt6

Solution:

A disphenoid exists (as the tetrahedron formed by the face-plane midpoints of a box) exactly when the common face triangle is acute, and its total surface area is 44 times one face's area. We want the smallest-area acute scalene integer triangle. The candidates (2,3,4)(2,3,4) and (3,5,6)(3,5,6) are obtuse, and (3,4,5)(3,4,5) is right (giving a degenerate flat figure), but (4,5,6)(4,5,6) is acute since 42+52>62.4^2+5^2\gt6^2. By Heron with s=152,s=\tfrac{15}2, its area is 152725232=1574.\sqrt{\tfrac{15}2\cdot\tfrac72\cdot\tfrac52\cdot\tfrac32}=\tfrac{15\sqrt7}{4}. The total surface area is 41574=157.4\cdot\tfrac{15\sqrt7}{4}=15\sqrt7. Thus, the correct answer is D.

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