Biology 240W, Section 003 Jefferson Nicolas

The effects of wind and heat conditions on the rate of transpiration

Abstract:

Transpiration is the process by which water is carried from the roots to the stomatal pores, where it
changes to water vapor and is released to the atmosphere, resulting in water loss. The rate of
transpiration is affected by the environmental conditions such as humidity, temperature, moisture, and
wind. The purpose of this experiment was to determine the effect of heat and wind conditions on the
rate of transpiration. We hypothesized that the heat would increase the rate of transpiration to a higher
degree than wind. Three potted plants were obtained and their baseline weights were recorded. All
plants were wrapped with saran wrap to prevent water leakage from the soil. Each plant was randomly
assigned to control, wind, and heat conditions. Every ten minutes for sixty minutes, the weight of each
plant was recorded. Data were collected from eighteen groups and the mean change weight was
calculated. The percent change in mass is proportional to the mass of water loss from the plant. A higher
change in mass corresponds to a higher rate of transpiration than lower change in mass. The plant
placed in wind condition had a 0.85% loss of mass, the plant placed in heat conditions had a 0.47% loss
of mass, and the plant under control condition had a 0.22% loss in mass. These results suggest that wind
increased the rate of transpiration to a higher degree than heat. Since air currents cause the boundary
layer surrounding the leaf to diminish, more water vapor can diffuse through it until it reaches the
atmosphere. Under heat conditions, water evaporates more rapidly, but the rate of transpiration is not
as high due to the presence of the boundary layer.
Biology 240W, Section 003 Jefferson Nicolas

-0.1

-0.2
Percent change in mass (%)

-0.3

-0.4

-0.5
Control

-0.6 Wind

-0.7 Heat

-0.8

-0.9
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70
Time (minutes)

Figure 1: Percent change in mass of plants under heat, wind, and control conditions. Data are expressed
as mean change in mass at each point.