Trapezoidal rectangular and pyramidal troughs are frequently

used in agriculture and heavy industry. Troughs may be either

trapezoidal prisms with two sides that are at right angles to the
base, or they may be pyramidal with all fours sides slanting
toward the base.
If you know the width (W) and length (L) of the top of the trough,
the width (a) and length (b) of the trough's base, and the height
(H) of the object, then you can calculate its volume with a simple
polynomial formula.
The formula for the volume of a trough is derived by breaking up
the solid region into simpler pieces. There is a rectangular prism
in the center, triangular prisms on the sides, and pyramids at the
corners (depending on the shape). Once you compute the
volumes of the simpler shapes, you can add them to find the
volume of the entire trough.The volume formula in terms of W, L,
a, b, and H is
V = H[ab + 0.5(W-a)b + 0.5(L-b)a + (1/3)(W-a)(L-b)]
= (H/6)[6ab + 3Wb - 3ab + 3La - 3ba + 2WL + 2ab - 2Wb - 2aL]
= (H/6)[2WL + Wb + La + 2ab]
= (H/6)[WL + (W+a)(L+b) + ab]

Example: A trough has a base width of 30 cm and a base length

of 60 cm. The top of the trough is 40 cm wide and 100 cm long.
If the height is 25 cm, what is the volume of the container?
We have a = 30, b = 60, W = 40, L = 100, and H = 25. The
volume is thus
V = (25/6)[40*100 + 70*160 + 30*60]
= (25/6)[17000] = 70833.33 cm3.
Notes: When W = a or L = b, the trough is a trapezoidal prism. If
W/a = L/b (or equivalently W/L = a/b), the trough is a pyramidal
frustum. In the case of a pyramidal frustum the volume formula
can be written as

V = (H/3)[WL + sqrt(WLab) + ab].