Question

in which situation did the car achieve the greatest efficiency? assume the cars all have the same mass

a car that traveled 80 kilometers on 5.0 liters of gas
a car that traveled 50 kilometers on 4.0 liters of gas
a car that traveled 90 kilometers on 6.0 liters of gas
a car that traveled 70 kilometers on 5.0 liters of gas

Answer 1

To find out which car achieved the greatest efficiency, we can calculate the fuel efficiency (in kilometers per liter) for each car. Fuel efficiency can be calculated using the formula:

\[ \text{Efficiency} = \frac{\text{Distance traveled (km)}}{\text{Liters of gas used}} \]

Now, let's calculate the efficiency for each car:

1. **Car 1**:
- Distance: 80 km
- Fuel: 5.0 L
- Efficiency = \( \frac{80}{5.0} = 16 \) km/L

2. **Car 2**:
- Distance: 50 km
- Fuel: 4.0 L
- Efficiency = \( \frac{50}{4.0} = 12.5 \) km/L

3. **Car 3**:
- Distance: 90 km
- Fuel: 6.0 L
- Efficiency = \( \frac{90}{6.0} = 15 \) km/L

4. **Car 4**:
- Distance: 70 km
- Fuel: 5.0 L
- Efficiency = \( \frac{70}{5.0} = 14 \) km/L

Now, comparing the efficiencies:

- Car 1: 16 km/L
- Car 2: 12.5 km/L
- Car 3: 15 km/L
- Car 4: 14 km/L

The car that achieved the greatest efficiency is **Car 1**, which has an efficiency of **16 km/L**.