To find the surface area of a triangular prism, we need to find the area of both triangular bases and the area of the three rectangular faces.
The area of the first triangular base is (1/2) x base x height = (1/2) x 2 in. x 2.5 in. = 2.5 in².
The area of the second triangular base is also 2.5 in².
To find the area of the rectangular faces, we need to find the perimeter of the base and multiply it by the height of the prism. The perimeter of the base is:
2 in. + 2.5 in. + sqrt((2 in.)^2 + (2.5 in.)^2) ≈ 8.28 in.
So the area of each rectangular face is 8.28 in. x 1.5 in. = 12.42 in².
Therefore, the total surface area of the triangular prism is:
2 x 2.5 in² + 3 x 12.42 in² = 39.18 in².