The figure given is the hanger diagram, in order to balance both sides of the hanger, we equate the sum of the expressions on the left side of the hanger diagram with that on the right side of the diagram.
Therefore,
[tex]\begin{gathered} x+4.5+x+4.5+x+4.5=36 \\ collect\text{ like terms} \\ x+x+x+4.5+4.5+4.5=36 \\ =3x+13.5=36 \\ =3(x+4.5)=36 \end{gathered}[/tex]The equation which represents the hanger diagram is
[tex]3(x+4.5)=36[/tex]Solve for x:
[tex]\begin{gathered} 3x+13.5=36 \\ 3x=36-13.5 \\ 3x=22.5 \\ x=\frac{22.5}{3} \\ x=7.5 \end{gathered}[/tex]Therefore, x = 7.5