Question

Melisande collected 14 bottles on Saturday and 9 bottles on Sunday for recycling. On Monday, she took all the bottles to the recycling center, where they paid her a certain amount, b, for each bottle. However, she had to pay the recycling center a one-time service fee of $0.25. If she left there with $3.20 for the bottles, what is the value of b?
$0.14
$0.15
$0.23
$0.69

Answer 1

Given

net proceeds of $3.20 after paying $0.25 fee

14 + 9 bottles were recycled

Find

the payment (b) received for each recycled bottle

Solution

The amount of bottle credit before the fee was

... credit - fee = proceeds

... credit - 0.25 = 3.20

... credit = 3.45

This was for a total of 14 + 9 = 23 bottles.

The credit was ...

... credit = 23b

... 3.45/23 = b = 0.15 . . . . . fill in the credit amount; divide by the coefficient of b

The value of b is $0.15.

Answer 2

-- Melisande left the recycling center with $3.20 AFTER paying the one-time service fee of $0.25 .  So they must have paid her ($3.20 + $0.25) = $3.45 for the bottles she brought in.

-- We know that she brought in (14 + 9) = 23 bottles, and they paid her ' b ' for each bottle.   So the total amoun that they paid her was  23b .

-- Now we know that  23b  =  $3.45

Divide each side by  23 :   b = $0.15

Pelleas will be pleased when Melisande arrives home with the money.