Question

A 2.1−mL volume of seawater contains about 4.0 × 10−10 g of gold. The total volume of ocean water is about 1.5 × 1021 L. Calculate the total worth of all the gold in the world's oceans if the price of gold is $20.44 per gram.

Answer 1

Total worth of gold in the ocean = $5,840,000,000,000,000

Step-by-step explanation:

As stated in the question above, 4.0 x 10^-10 g of gold was present in 2.1mL of ocean water.

Therefore, In 1 L of ocean water there will be,

(4.0 x 10^-10)/0.0021

= 1.9045 x 10^-7 g of gold per Liter of ocean water.

So in 1.5 x 10^-21 L of ocean water, there will be

(1.9045 x 10^-7) * (1.5 x 10^-21)

= 2.857 x 10^14 g of gold in the ocean.

1 gram of gold costs $20.44, that is 20.44 dollars/gram. The total cost of the gold present in the ocean is

20.44 * (2.857 x 10^14)

= $5,840,000,000,000,000