Osmosis in Carrots

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Osmosis in Carrots

Background

Osmosis is the diffusion of water from a dilute solution to a more

concentrated solution through a partially permeable membrane, which

allows the pass of water molecules but not solute molecules.

[IMAGE][IMAGE][IMAGE][IMAGE][IMAGE][IMAGE][IMAGE][IMAGE]If a cell is

placed in a less concentrated solution water enters because the less

concentrated solution will have a high concentration of water than the

inside of the cell. Once the cell takes in maximum water the cell

becomes turgid.

If the cell was to be placed in a high concentrated solution, water

would leave the cell because the cell would contain a low concentrated

solution. So in the low concentrated solution there will be a high

concentration of water and in the high concentrated solution there

will be a low concentration of water. So what is happening is water is

moving from a high concentration, i.e. a dilute solution to a more

concentrated solution.

Preliminary Work on Osmosis

I am going to test carrots in a small osmosis experiment to see how

the experiment works with carrots and salt solution and water.

Variables

1) Temperature - Keep the same

2) Number of days left soaking - Keep the same

3) Size of beaker - Keep the same

4) Size of carrots - Keep the same

5) Concentration of salt solution - Change

Apparatus

Top Pan Balance - to weight carrots

Measuring Cylinders - to measure solution and distilled water

Dropper Pipettes - to ensure accurate measuring of solutions

Distilled Water - to test how osmosis works in carrots

1M Salt Solution - to test how osmosis works in carrots

Carrots Disks - to weigh carrot mass in

Beakers - to soak carrots in

Goggles - to protect eyes

Diagram

Method

Using a measuring cylinder and dropper pipette I accurately measured

50cm³ of distilled water and 1M solution of sodium chloride then

separately poured them into two separate beakers. The beakers were of

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