Question

a candle maker has 4 1/2 pounds of wax. He wants to cut the wax into pieces that are 2/3 pound each. How many 2/3 pound pieces can he divide the wax into?

Answer 1

10 1/8 is your answer

Answer 2

`6(3)/(4)` pieces.

Explanation:

Let x represent number of pieces.

The amount of wax used in making x pieces would be
`(2)/(3)x`.

We have been given that a candle maker has 4 1/2 pounds of wax. We can represent this information in an equation as:

`(2)/(3)x=4(1)/(2)`

`(2)/(3)x=(9)/(2)`

`(3)/(2)*(2)/(3)x=(3)/(2)*(9)/(2)`

`x=(27)/(4)`

`x=6(3)/(4)`

Therefore, the candle maker can make
`6(3)/(4)` pieces.