Final answer:
To make 2 gallons of a 20% salt solution, you would need to combine approximately 0.86 gallons of a 12% salt solution with 1.14 gallons of a 26% salt solution.
Step-by-step explanation:
To find out how much of a 12% salt solution must be combined with a 26% salt solution to make 2 gallons of a 20% salt solution, we can set up an equation using the equation:
Amount of salt in solution 1 + Amount of salt in solution 2 = Amount of salt in the final solution
Let x be the amount of the 12% salt solution to be combined:
0.12x + 0.26(2 - x) = 0.20(2)
Simplifying the equation, we get:
0.12x + 0.52 - 0.26x = 0.40
Combining like terms:
-0.14x + 0.52 = 0.40
Subtracting 0.52 from both sides:
-0.14x = -0.12
Dividing both sides by -0.14:
x = 0.86
Therefore, you would need to combine approximately 0.86 gallons of the 12% salt solution with 1.14 gallons of the 26% salt solution to make 2 gallons of a 20% salt solution.