Help with two chem questions?

Question

In 1989, the oil tanker Exxon Valdez ran aground in Prince William Sound as it departed Alaska with more than 50 million gallons of crude oil. About 11 million gallons spilled into the sound.


1. How many liters of crude oil were spilled? (express in scientific notation).

2. Financial news reprts keep us updated on the price of oil in dollars per barrel. A barrel is a unit of measure equivalent to 42 gallons. In early 2006, crude oil was trading at about $60 per barrel. What would be the current value of the oil spilled in Prince William Sound in 1989?

Please be specific and detailed so you can explain to me not only the answers, but HOW you got them. Thanks.

Answer 1

These questions require you to set up conversions. The keys to setting up conversions are:
1.) Always show all your units, so that when you multiply and divide, you ensure that your units appropriately cancel. This helps you avoid mistakes.

2.) If you need to cancel a unit, remember that you may need to flip the fraction.

Example: if a barrel of oil is $60 and there are 42 gallons, write it as 60 $/barrel * 1/42 barrels/gallon = $1.43/gallon

1.) 1 US gallon = 3.7854118 L
11 million gallons * 3.7854118 L / gallon = 4.16 * 10^7 L

2.) 11 million gallons * 1/40 barrels/gallon * 60 $/barrel = $16.5 million