Question

Estelle is helping at a community food drive by boxing up cans of soup. There are two sizes of boxes, large and small. Estelle fills 3 large boxes and 5 small boxes with 170 soup cans total. The boy working next to her fills 4 large boxes and 4 small boxes with 184 soup cans total. How many cans does each small box hold?

Answer 1

Answer:

The small box contains 21 cans

Step-by-step explanation:

Represent the small box with S and the large with L.

For Estelle:

$3L + 5S = 170$

For the boy:

$4L + 4S = 184$

Required

Determine the cans in the small box

$3L + 5S = 170$ --- (1)

$4L + 4S = 184$ --- (2)

Divide (2) through by 4

$L + S = 46$

Make L the subject

$L = 46 -S$

Substitute 46 - S for L in (1)

$3L + 5S = 170$

$3(46 - S) + 5S = 170$

Open bracket

$128 - 3S + 5S = 170$

$128 + 2S = 170$

Collect Like Terms

$2S = 170-128$

$2S = 42$

Divide both sides by 2

$S = 21$

Hence, the small box contains 21 cans

Answer 2

Answer:

16

Step-by-step explanation:

I just did it