To answer this question, let's go through each option to understand which SQL functions can operate on any datatype:
Option A) TO_CHAR - This function is used to convert a value to a character datatype. It is typically used to convert numerical or date values to a character representation. However, it cannot operate on any datatype, as it requires a specific datatype as input.
Option B) LOWER - This function converts a string to lowercase. It can operate on string datatypes, but not on any datatype.
Option C) LPAD - This function is used to pad a string with a specific character to a specified length. It can operate on string datatypes, but not on any datatype.
Option D) MAX - This function returns the maximum value from a set of values. It can operate on any datatype, including numerical, string, and date datatypes. Therefore, the correct answer is D) MAX.
The correct answer is D) MAX. This option is correct because the MAX function can operate on any datatype.