Pipeline Project

My Companys CEO,
After reviewing the costs of the different options for the pipeline project, I feel
I have come to a conclusion as to the most cost-effective choice.
The options are as follows:
a) BLM land only
i. Running west, south, then east to the refinery
ii. Running east and drilling through the mountain, then south to
the refinery
b) Use private land
i. A straight line at an angle to the refinery
ii. Straight south, then east on BLM land to the refinery
c) -Take an angle through private land, then east on BLM land to the refinery

a. BLM Land only

i. Running west, south, then east to the refinery

$30,720,000

ii. Running east, drilling through the mountain, then south

to the refinery

$28,940,000

b. Private Land
i. A straight line at an angle to the refinery

$30,052,753.62

ii. Straight south, then east on BLM land to the refinery

$28,800,000

c. Angle through Private to BLM

P = Miles on private land

B = Miles on BLM land
X = Distance in miles from pipeline intersecting BLM land to refinery

(Use the Pythagorean Theorem, solve for the missing side of the triangle
to find miles on private land

(This is your cost function)

(This is your derivative, used to find the minimum

cost)

(Set the derivative equal to 0 to find the minimum, which gives you the distance
from the refinery the pipeline intersects BLM land)

(Use the inverse of the Cosine function to find the angle at which the
pipeline leaves the well)

$26,389,560.28

(Red line is the cost function, Blue line is the derivative of the cost function)
(This shows the zero point from the derivative, giving the minimum value for the
cost function.)

In summation, the final costs are as follows:

a) BLM land only
i. Running west, south, then east to the refinery
1. $30,720,000.00
ii. Running east and drilling through the mountain, then south to
the refinery
1. $28,940,000.00
b) Use private land
i. A straight line at an angle to the refinery
1. $30,052,753.62
ii. Straight south, then east on BLM land to the refinery
1. $28,800,000.00
c) -Take an angle through private land, then east on BLM land to the refinery
1. $26,389,560.28

As the angle through private land, then east on BLM land is the cheapest option by just
over $2.5 million, I would recommend the company proceeds in that direction.
Thank you,
Jacob Andes

Reflection:
Ive learned just how useful Calculus is in describing the world around us. I knew it was
useful before coming in to this class, but I had no idea the extent of the applications. As a
Physics major this subject is especially useful and interesting to me as it was developed in
relation to physics. When you can take derivatives and find not only what graphs look like,
but velocity and acceleration, calculus becomes a much easier tool than trying to do line
after line of math to get to the same place.