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Difficulty: MediumFuel Efficiency and Range

A cargo transport truck travels from a central depot to a regional distribution center 120120 miles away and returns to the depot along the same route. The truck operates with a fuel efficiency of 1515 miles per gallon. If diesel fuel costs $3.50\$3.50 per gallon, what is the total fuel cost for this complete round trip?

  1. A
    $28.00\$28.00
  2. B
    $5.60\$5.60
  3. $56.00\$56.00Answer
  4. D
    $16.00\$16.00

Answer

The total fuel cost for the complete round trip is $56.00\$56.00.
The total distance for the round trip is twice the one-way distance (240240 miles). Dividing this distance by the fuel efficiency (1515 miles per gallon) gives the total fuel consumed, which is 1616 gallons. Finally, multiplying the 1616 gallons by the unit price of $3.50\$3.50 per gallon results in the correct total cost of $56.00\$56.00.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Calculate the total distance driven for the round trip.
120×2=240120 \times 2 = 240 miles
The truck travels to the center and returns along the same route, so the one-way distance must be doubled.
2
Calculate the total amount of fuel consumed.
240÷15=16240 \div 15 = 16 gallons
Dividing the total distance by the fuel efficiency (miles per gallon) gives the total volume of fuel used.
3
Calculate the final monetary cost of the fuel.
16×$3.50=$56.0016 \times \$3.50 = \$56.00
Multiplying the total gallons consumed by the price per gallon yields the total cost.

Key Concept

Fuel Efficiency and Range

Alternative Method

You can also calculate the fuel cost per mile first: $3.50\$3.50 per gallon ÷15\div 15 miles per gallon = $0.2333...\$0.2333... per mile. Then multiply this per-mile cost by the total round-trip distance of 240240 miles to arrive at the $56.00\$56.00 total.
Estimated Time:45s
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Topics

Fuel Efficiency and Range

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