Final answer:
The rate of change of the height of the cylinder at the instant when the height is 7 centimeters is approximately -4.777 cm/min.
Step-by-step explanation:
To find the rate of change of the height of the cylinder, we can use the formula for the volume of a cylinder: V = πr²h.
Since the volume remains constant at 174 cubic centimeters, we can write the equation as 174 = π(r²)(h).
We can differentiate both sides of the equation with respect to time to find the rate of change of the height:
dV/dt = 0 = 0 + π(2r)(dr/dt)(h) + π(r²)(dh/dt).
Given that the radius is increasing at a constant rate of 8 centimeters per minute, dr/dt = 8. We can substitute this into the equation and solve for dh/dt:
0 = π(2r)(8)(7) + π(r²)(dh/dt).
simplifying, we get dh/dt = -112/(πr²).
Substituting the radius r = 0.75 cm, we find dh/dt ≈ -4.777 cm/min.