Balaban, Liam 11/4/13 Period 2 H-bio

Lab-Light & Photosynthesis

Introduction: Photosynthesis is the process by which plants, some bacteria, and some protistans use the energy from sunlight to produce sugar. The conversion of unusable sunlight energy into usable chemical energy is associated with the actions of the green pigment chlorophyll. Most of the time, the photosynthetic process uses water and release the oxygen that is absolutely necessary for our survival. Basically, green plants take carbon, hydrogen and oxygen from the molecules of carbon dioxide and water, and then recombine them into a new molecule called glucose. Purpose: We want to see how much oxygen will come out of a stem of Elodea. We got to see the photosystems and how they were able to oxidize oxygen. Materials: Elodea, test tube, baking soda, water, ring stand, flex cam, gross spot, and clamp. Data: Time Min. 1 1 1 Light Distance cm. 5cm 10cm 20cm Number of Bubbles O2 36 23 22

Data Analysis: The first time we opened up the plant the oxygen was rapidly leaving the plant. After a minute it started to slow down to a pace that was able to be recorded. When we doubled the distance to 10 cm. half of the amount of the original number of bubbles that was exerted. I believed that the pattern would continue as we moved the light further from the plant. My hypothesis was wrong and at the third distance it only decreased by one. Conclusion:

Balaban, Liam 11/4/13 Period 2 H-bio

Plants use green pigments called chlorophylls to trap light energy. The chlorophylls give a plant its green color. Inside the cells light energy is used to make a simple sugar called glucose. The process by which plants use light energy to make glucose is called photosynthesis. During this process of sugar production, carbon dioxide combines with water to form glucose and oxygen is released. Oxygen that is produced in photosynthesis is given off as a gas. If a lot of oxygen is being given off, photosynthesis is occurring rapidly. If little oxygen is being given off, photosynthesis is occurring slowly. The amount of trapped light energy and the amount of carbon dioxide available affects the rate of photosynthesis. The purpose of adding sodium bicarbonate powder to the water increases the amount of carbon dioxide in the water.