Question

A contractor brought 10.8 ft^2 of sheet metal. She has used 3.7 ft^2 so far and has $127.80 worth of sheet metal remaining. The equation 10.8x-3.7x=127.8 represents how much sheet metal is remaining and the cost of the remaining amount. How much does sheet metal cost per square foot?

Answer 1

`\$18`

Explanation:

Let the cost of sheet metal per square feet be
`x`

Amount of sheet metal bought is
`10.8\ \text{ft}^2`

Amount of sheet metal used is
`3.7\ \text{ft}^2`

Remaining value of the sheet metal is
`\$127.8`

So we get the equation

`10.8x-3.7x=127.8\\\Rightarrow 7.1x=127.8\\\Rightarrow x=(127.8)/(7.1)\\\Rightarrow x=18`

So, cost of sheet metal per square feet is
`\$18`.