I HAVE A COIL OF SHEET METAL WEIGHING A TOTAL OF 40,000 POUNDS, IT WEIGHS 6.875 POUNDS PER SQUARE FOOT, IT IS 84" WIDE... WHAT IS THE LENGTH OF MATERIAL

Question

i need help with this math question>>>>I HAVE A COIL OF SHEET METAL WEIGHING A TOTAL OF 40,000 POUNDS, IT WEIGHS 6.875 POUNDS PER SQUARE FOOT, IT IS 84" WIDE... WHAT IS THE LENGTH OF MATERIAL 

Answer 1

To solve this problem, you will need to set up an equation to find the length, where the length is a variable L.

First, pay attention to the units given. The question gives you most of the units in feet, but the width is given to you in inches. Since the other values are in feet, you want to convert the inches to feet before you do any calculations. Therefore, you need to divide the inches by 12 (1 foot contains 12 inches) in order to convert your inches to feet.

1 ft =12 inch
84 in / 12 in = 7 ft

Now, the units you know for the sheet metal are that it has a 7 ft width, a weight of 6.875 pounds per square foot, and 40,000 pounds total weight. You are missing the length in feet.

Based on the units you're given, you can find the length by using the formula for area, which we'll find in units of square feet. The formula to find the area of an object is length times width (A = L x W). Your width, W, is 7 ft, and you are solving to find the length, L, so one piece of your equation should read 7L.

Now how do the 6.875 pounds per square foot and the total weight help you with finding the area? Understand that when you multiply the sheet metal's area (7L) by the pounds per square foot (6.875), you will find the total weight (40,000). When you set up the equation, that translates to the following:

Area x Pounds per sq ft = Total Weight

7L x 6.875 = 40,000
Or
6.875(7L) = 40,000

Now you have an equation you can solve to find L.

 

Answer 2

We can get the total area by dividing:

40,000 lb/6.875lb/ft² = 5818.2 ft²

Since 84" = 7 ft, then the length must be 5818.2/7 = 831.2 ft