If you need to prepare a 0.1% polymer solution using 30 gallons of water, how many pounds of polymer are needed?

To prepare a 0.1% polymer solution using 30 gallons of water, it is important first to understand what a 0.1% solution means in terms of weight concentration. A 0.1% solution indicates that there are 0.1 grams of polymer for every 100 milliliters of solution.

Since there are 3.78541 liters in a gallon, 30 gallons of water is equivalent to about 1135.62 liters, or 1,135,620 milliliters. To find out how many grams of polymer are needed for a 0.1% solution, you can set up a proportion based on the total volume of water.

Calculate the required grams of polymer:

0.1 grams/100 mL = x grams/1,135,620 mL

To solve for x, you can multiply both sides by 1,135,620 mL:

x = (0.1 grams/100 mL) × 1,135,620 mL = 1135.62 grams

Now, since there are 453.592 grams in a pound, convert grams to pounds:

1135.62 grams ÷ 453.592 grams/pound = approximately