The Effect of Salt Solution Concentrations and Water On the Mass of Potatoes
Research Question
What happens to the mass of the diced potatoes when submerged in varying concentrations of salt solutions and water in 10 minute intervals? This experiment will compare the mass of the diced potatoes submerged in distilled water, 1% salt solution, 5% salt solution, and 10% salt solution respectively in 10 minute intervals.
Background Information
Potatoes first originated in South America and were later introduced to Europe by Spanish explorers. Now, potatoes have become an important staple food item to have in the kitchen. They are packed with more energy than any other vegetable. A potato is made of potassium, vitamin C, fiber, starch, water, and fat. The concentration of each component is as follows: 18% starch, 78% water, 2-5%protein, and 1% fat.
Hypothesis
If the concentration of the salt solution increases then, its mass will decrease. This is because water molecules move from a higher concentration to a lower concentration in a process called osmosis. Potatoes are made of mostly water and because of the salt solution concentration the water molecules in the potato will move out of it. The higher the concentration, the more water molecules move out of the potato.
Variables
The independent variable is the salt solution concentration. The dependant variable is the mass of the potato. The control variable is the distilled water.
Control of Variables
Another controlled
My prediction is that as the concentration increases, the potato cell will lose more weight. This is because of the osmosis of water particles from the potato cell cytoplasm to the solution, resulting in a loss of weight. As the concentration decreases, the potato will lose less weight until a certain point where the osmosis of particles in and out of the potato cells will be equal. I also predict that as the salt
As the Concentration of the Sucrose Solution decreases, the more the potato’s mass increases. This is due to the solution being hypertonic. So, as the solute concentration gets lower, the potato’s water concentration will get higher, therefore more water particles from the solution will absorbed by the potato. Some changed very little in mass because the concentrations of the H2O molecules in the potato and outside the potato were equal. This equality in concentration is called Isotonic.
_An experiment on the effect of surface area to volume ratio on the rate of osmosis of Solanum tuberosum L._
Though the theory following the hypothesis is correct and the experiment was carried out with as much attention as possible in a high school laboratory, the results obtained were still indicative of a few errors and did not support the predicted hypothesis. From the results obtained it can be concluded that as the concentration of sucrose increases the average percentage change in mass decreases. This is because the salt concentration inside the potato cubes of 10%, 15% and 20% concentration is less that in the salt concentration on the sucrose solution, thus the three cubes submerged in the 10% - 20% concentrated solution lost mass (hypertonic). However the cube submerged
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Van’t Hoff’s Law suggests that the osmotic potential of a cell is proportional to the concentration of solute particles in a solution. The purpose of this experiment was to determine if there are any differences between the osmolalities, the no-weight-changes of osmolalities, and the water potentials of potato cores in different solutions of different solutes. The percent weight change of the potato cores was calculated through a “change in weight” method. The potato core’s weight was measured before and after they were put into different concentrations of a solute for 1.5 hours. In our experiment, there were no significant differences from the osmotic potentials of our results and the osmotic potentials of other scientists work. Ending with chi square values of 2.17 and 2.71, and p values of 0.256 and 0.337, concluding that there is no difference in water potentials of potato cores in different solutions of different solutes at varying concentrations.
Osmosis is defined as the tendency of water to flow through a semipermeable membrane to the side with a lower solute concentration. Water potential can be explained by solutes in a solution. The more positive a number is more likely it will lose water. Therefore should water potential be negative the cell the less likely it will lose water. In using potatoes the effects of the molarity of sucrose on the turgidity of plant cells. According to Clemson University, the average molarity of a White potato is between .24 M and .31 M when submerged in a sorbitol solution. This experiment was conducted with the purpose of explaining the relationship found between the mass in plants when put into varying concentrations of sucrose solutions. Should the potatoes be placed in a solution that contains 0.2M or .4M of sucrose solution it will be hypotonic and gain mass or if placed in .6M< it will be hypertonic and lose mass instead. Controlled Variables in this lab were: Composition of plastic cups, Brand of Russet Potatoes, Brand of Sweet Potatoes and the Temperature of the room. For independent variable that caused the results recorded it was the different Sucrose concentrations (0.0M, 0.2M, 0.4M, 0.6M, 0.8M, 1M). The dependent variable was the percentage change from the initial weighs to the final. The cup with .4 molarity was the closest to an isotonic solution and was used as the control group for the lab. Water potential is the free energy per mole of water. It is
Showing an example of diffusion with the water molecules equally back and forth the semi-permeable membrane of the potatoes and the saucer of water. The hypertonic solution of salt water has given an example of osmosis. The water molecules passed through the semi-permeable membrane out of the potatoes but weren’t able to get back in as easily due to the salt blocking the membranes passage. This left the potatoes in the salt water saucer feeling flexible and spongy almost leaving the potato a little
Once the hour was over, the potato slices were removed from the solution, dried off in a paper towel, and weighed once again. In the 0.0, 0.1, and 0.2 M of sucrose concentrations the final mass of the potato increased. Therefore H2O enters the potato cell because the solution is hypotonic. In the 0.3, 0.4, and 0.5 M of sucrose concentration the final mass of potato decreases. The solution is hypertonic which causes H2O to exit the potato cells through the semipermeable phospholipid bilayer. The results prove that the different molarities of concentration affect the mass of the potato in different ways; the mass of potato either increased or decreased depending on the molarity of sucrose concentration.
When dealing with glass objects such as a glass beaker or thermometer, be sure to hold the item. In instances where glass is broken during the experiment, do not clean up the area yourself! Notify your instructor immediately.
Although Salt to the Sea is a story about things that have been lost and people enduring extreme hardships, it is also a story about hope, family and love. In the book Salt to the Sea by Ruta Sepetys, almost all of the main characters go through extremely tragic and terrible events. However, these characters also experience family moments and happy times. Despite the fact that in times of war there is hardship, violence and death, love and family shines through the tragedy. It is the two youngest members of the group, Klaus and Emilia, who eventually find a family to love.
The potato cells, took in, or gave out the water depending on the concentration of the solution it is surrounded in. The results were fine and by looking at the mass measured before the experiment, you can see that there is no reading which seems to be out of the line. As the weights before the experiment range between 2.31g and 2.46g, this tells us that the potato pieces were cut well, and I believe accurate enough. The results show that: - Osmosis actually took place in the experiment.
How do different concentrations of sucrose solutions (0M, 0.2M, 0.4M, 0.6M, 0.8M, 1M) affect the mass of potato cores when in sucrose solution?
This would happen by using similar sizes and lengths of potato cylinders and applying the into different concentrations of sucrose (0,10%,30%, 50%, 70%) in foam cups then measuring the change in mass of the potato cylinders afterwards. Maintaining all variables unchanged such as pH, same size, covered solutions, and a constant temperature. The time taken for all potato cylinders will be 24 hours.
Osmosis is when water passes through a cell membrane, it is also form of a diffusion, which is a form of passive transport. Osmosis will continue to until an equilibrium is reached which is when the solutions are isotonic. This means that the solution has the same amount of solute on both sides. If the solution is hypertonic, it has more solute in the solution. In this situation water will move towards it. if the solution is hypotonic, it has less solute in the solution. Whereas in this situation, water will move out of the solution.