Question

Answer the questions on the basis of the data given in the two charts below.

Sodium carbonate, also called soda ash, is an important ingredient for glass, soap, detergents and many other products. There are two ways to produce soda ash. The first is producing soda ash from trona, which is obtained naturally; this is called natural soda ash. The second is producing soda ash from common salt through the Solvay process; soda ash made this way is called synthetic soda ash. Tata Chemicals was one of the largest producers of soda ash. The charts below show Tata Chemicals' own production of the two varieties of soda ash, and the world's total production of the two varieties.

69. Suppose the total global production increased, year on year, from 2006 to 2008 by the same amount that Tata Chemicals' synthetic production increased, year on year, over the same period. By what percentage did the total global production increase from 2007 to 2008?

• A. Cannot be calculated at all from the tables above.
• B. Increased by 10.16%.
• C. Increased by 9.48%.
• D. Did not increase at all.

Hint:

Find how much Tata's synthetic soda ash output changed from 2007 to 2008, since the world total is defined to move by the same amount in the same year.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is D

Step 1: Read Tata Chemicals' synthetic soda ash figures.
From the Tata Chemicals chart, synthetic soda ash production was \(0.7\) MT in 2006, \(2.2\) MT in 2007 and \(2.2\) MT again in 2008.

Step 2: Find the year-on-year change used in the question.
The question states that the world's total production increases, year on year, by exactly the amount Tata's synthetic production increases, year on year, in the same period. From 2007 to 2008, Tata's synthetic production goes from \(2.2\) MT to \(2.2\) MT, a change of \(2.2-2.2=0\) MT.

Step 3: Apply this to the world total.
Since the world's total is assumed to rise, year on year, by the same amount as Tata's synthetic change, and that change from 2007 to 2008 is \(0\) MT, the world's total production for 2008 must equal the world's total for 2007.

Step 4: Find the percentage change.
A change of \(0\) MT out of any nonzero base is a \(0\%\) change, so the world's total production did not increase at all from 2007 to 2008. \[ \boxed{\text{Did not increase at all}} \]