Diffusion Through Cell Membranes Lab Smithco 1

Diffusion Through Cell Membranes Lab

Madie Smithco
Honors Biology Period 4
Cardinal Wuerl North Catholic High School
April 30, 2018
Diffusion Through Cell Membranes Lab Smithco 2

Introduction

Passive transport is the movement from a high concentration to a low concentration with

no extra energy to help the movement. The simulated cell, or the dialysis tubing in this lab, is

selectively permeable, meaning that it only allows certain things to flow through while keeping

other things out. The simulated cells in the water are all in different osmotic environments.

[ CITATION Big12 \l 1033 ]

Osmosis happens when water is diffused through a selectively permeable membrane.

Osmosis occurs through three different type of environments including hypotonic, isotonic, and

hypertonic. A hypotonic environment occurs when the water concentration is higher on the

outside of the cell and the water wants to move in. An isotonic environment occurs when the

pure water concentration is equal on the inside of the cell and on the outside. A hypertonic

environment occurs when the pure water concentration is higher on the inside of the cell than the

outside. In this environment, the water wants to move outside of the cell or the cell would end up

shriveling. [ CITATION Big12 \l 1033 ] Osmosis is an important thing to understand in the real world

because there are many situations that osmosis occurs in. For example, osmosis is the reason that

people get pruned fingers or toes. If a person is in water for a long period of time, then their body

will start out as the higher concentration of water and the outside water will try to move into the

body to reach equilibrium. This will then cause the fingers and toes to look pruned. [ CITATION

Gem14 \l 1033 ]

Within in this lab, there were purposes to explore. The first part of the lab showed how

osmosis slows down as time goes on because the pure water concentrations are reaching

equilibrium. The different concentration gradients also effect the rate of osmosis because it

would occur more quickly if there is a bigger difference between the high concentration and the
Diffusion Through Cell Membranes Lab Smithco 3

low concentration. The second part of the lab showed that the simulated cell was permeable to.

(Diffusion Through Cell Membranes)

The setups for the lab represented different osmotic environments. Setup one represented

a simulated cell in an isotonic environment. Setup two represented a simulated cell in a

hypotonic environment. Setup three represented a simulated cell in a hypotonic environment.

Setup four represented a simulated cell in a hypotonic environment. Setup five represented two

simulated cells. The first one represented a hypertonic environment and the second simulated cell

represented a hypotonic environment. [ CITATION Dif \l 1033 ]

In part one of the lab, the dependent variable was the mass of the simulated cell because

the independent variable was the amount of glucose in the environment. The control group was

the water in water and the experimental groups were the other five setups. The constants in this

part were the type of dialysis tubing and how they were tied, the amount of solution, the way that

they were timed, and the way that they were dried.[ CITATION Dif \l 1033 ] In part two of the lab,

the dependent variable was the color change because the independent variable was the placement

of starch. The control group was the original setup where there was white starch in the simulated

cell was placed into a yellow water. The experimental group was after when there was clear

water and a dark purple color in the simulated cell. (Diffusion Through Cell Membranes)

If a simulated cell with pure water is placed into a beaker with pure water, then there will

be little mass change. If a simulated cell with a 20% glucose solution is placed into a beaker with

pure water, then the simulated cell will have an increase in mass change. If a simulated cell with

a 40% glucose solution is placed into a beaker with pure water, then the simulated cell will have

an increase in mass change. If a simulated cell with a 60% glucose solution is placed into a

beaker with pure water, then the simulated cell with an increase in mass change. [ CITATION Dif \l
Diffusion Through Cell Membranes Lab Smithco 4

1033 ] If a simulated cell with water and another simulated cell with an 80% glucose solution are

placed into a beaker with a 60% glucose solution, then the simulated cell with water will have a

decrease in mass change and the simulated cell with a 60% glucose solution will have an

increase in mass change. If a simulated cell with starch is placed into a beaker with water and

iodine, then the simulated cell will be in a lower concentration gradient and the water and iodine

will move into the simulated cell. (Diffusion Through Cell Membranes)

Part 1 Materials

 Dialysis tubing

 5 Beakers

 Pipettes

 Graduated cylinders

 Water

 String

 20% Glucose

 40% Glucose

 60% Glucose

 80% Glucose

 Paper Towels

Part 2 Materials

 Dialysis tubing

 Beaker
Diffusion Through Cell Membranes Lab Smithco 5

 Water

 Starch

 Paper Towels

 Iodine

 Spoon

Part 1 Procedure

1. Obtain materials and fold dialysis tubing down by 1-2 cm and then across and down

again. Take the string and tie a knot around the folds until secure. Repeat this step for the

other 5 dialysis tubing to create the 6 simulated cells.

2. Fill each simulated cell with their specific contents. Simulated cell 1 should have 5 mL of

water, simulated cell 2 should have 5 mL of 20% glucose, simulated cell 3 should have

40% glucose, simulated cell 4 should have 5 mL of 60% glucose, simulated cell 5 should

have 5 mL of water, and simulated cell 6 should have 80% glucose.

3. After filling each simulated cell, fold the dialysis tubing on the open side down by 1-2 cm

and then across and down again. Take the string and tie a knot around the folds until

secure.

4. Wash each simulated cell off with water and dry with a paper towel.

5. Obtain a paper towel and number it one through six. Then place the bags onto the towel

to avoid mixing the simulated cells.

6. Take the simulated cells and weigh each one in grams and record the masses in table 1.

7. Obtain five beakers and fill the first four with pure water. Place simulated cell 1 into the

first beaker, simulated cell 2 into the second beaker, simulated cell 3 into the third beaker,
Diffusion Through Cell Membranes Lab Smithco 6

and simulated cell 4 into the fourth beaker. Fill the fifth beaker with 200 mL of a 60%

glucose solution and put simulated cell 5 and 6 into the solution.

8. Set a timer for three minutes and remove the simulated cells at the end of the period and

dry off each bag and then find the mass of the simulated cells. Make sure to not mix up

the simulated cells. Record their new mass onto the table. Repeat this step for two more

three-minute intervals.

9. Record all data into table and calculate the mass changes from each three-minute interval.

[ CITATION Dif \l 1033 ]

Part 2 Procedure

1. Obtain the materials and take one dialysis tubing and fold it down by 1-2 cm and then

across and down again. Take a piece of string and tie a knot around the folds until secure.

2. Open the tubing and fill it with half of a spoonful of starch and fold the open end down

by 1-2 centimeters and then across and down again. Take a piece of string and tie a knot

around the folds until secure to form the simulated cell.

3. Rinse the simulated cell off with water to clean and dry it with a paper towel and let it sit

on the paper towel for a few minutes.

4. Obtain a beaker and fill it half way with pure water. Then take the iodine and add 20

drops into the beaker. Then take the simulated cell and place it into the beaker and record

the color in the simulated cell and the beaker.

5. Allow the simulated cell to sit in the beaker for 48 hours and then remove it and dry it off

with a paper towel.

6. Observe the color changes to the simulated cell and the water and iodine in the beaker

and record it. [ CITATION Dif \l 1033 ]

Diffusion Through Cell Membranes Lab Smithco 7

Results

In part one, there were five different setups to complete the results. The first setup that

included a simulated cell with water in a beaker with water had a slight increase to the change in

mass. In the first three minutes it increased by 208 milligrams. In the following three minutes, it

increased by 291 milligrams and by 249 milligrams in the last three minutes. The second setup

showed a simulated cell with a 20% glucose solution in a beaker of water. It increased by 317

milligrams in the first three minutes. In the following three minutes, it increased by 534

milligrams and then by 701 milligrams in the final three minutes. The third setup used a

simulated cell with a 40% glucose solution in a beaker of water. It increased by 408 milligrams

in the first three minutes. In the following three minutes, it increased by 800 milligrams and then

by 1180 milligrams in the final three minutes. The fourth setup included a simulated cell with a

60% glucose solution in a beaker of water. It increased by 567 milligrams in the first three

minutes. In the following three minutes, it increased by 1009 milligrams and then by 1409

milligrams in the next three minutes. The fifth setup included two simulated cells. The first

simulated cell used water in a beaker of 60% glucose solution and decreased by 150 milligrams

in the first three minutes. In the next three minutes, it decreased by 533 milligrams and then by

783 milligrams in the following three minutes. The second simulated cell used an 80% glucose

solution in a beaker of 60% glucose solution and increased by 241 milligrams in the first three

minutes. In the following three minutes, it increased by 316 milligrams and then by 399

milligrams in the next three minutes. These results were recorded below in the table, showing

their mass at zero minutes and how they changed over the time intervals. This data was also

recorded in the graph below to show the relation between the change in mass and the time of the

simulated cells.
Diffusion Through Cell Membranes Lab Smithco 8

Table 1: Mass Changes over a 9 Minute Period

Water in 20 % in 40% in 60% in Water in 80% in

Time Water Water Water Water 60% 60%

0 0 0 0 0 0 0
3 208 317 408 567 -150 241
6 291 534 800 1009 -533 316
9 249 701 1108 1409 -783 399

In the table are the recorded results from part one of the lab. The numbers that were found were
done by forming five setups. The setups are listed in columns two through seven. The first setup
contained a simulated cell with five milliliters of pure water being placed into a beaker with 200
milliliters of pure water. Setup two represents five milliliters of a 20% glucose solution in a
simulated cell being placed into a beaker containing 200 milliliters of pure water. Setup three
shows five milliliters of 40% glucose solution in a simulated cell placed into a beaker with 200
milliliters of pure water. Setup four represents five milliliters of a 60% glucose solution in a
simulated cell placed into a beaker with 200 milliliters of pure water. In setup five, two different
simulated cells were placed into 200 milliliters of a 60% glucose solution. The first simulated
cell showed five milliliters of pure water placed into the 60% glucose solution. The second
simulated cell showed an 80% glucose solution placed into the 60% glucose solution. In the first
column is the total amount of time. After each time interval, the dialysis tubing was removed
from the beakers and their changes in mass were recorded. The numbers were recorded from
several groups in three classes. These numbers were then averaged and recorded to be used for
the results contained in the table.

Figure 1: Effect of Concentration on Rate of Diffusion Graph

Diffusion Through Cell Membranes Lab Smithco 9

Mass Change vs. Time The changes in mass by

2000 the three-minute time
intervals are shown in the
Mass Change (milligrams)

1500
Water in Water graph above. The dark
1000 20% in Water blue line shows the first
40% in Water
500 setup with a simulated
60% in Water
Water in 60%
cell with water in water.
0
0 3 6 9 80% in 60% The graph shows the
-500 slight increase of mass
-1000 change after every time
Time (minutes) interval, but also how the
mass change was smaller
as time went on. The
orange line shows the second setup with a simulated cell with a 20% glucose solution in water
and its’ slight increase through each time interval. The gray line shows the third setup with the
40% glucose in the simulated cell. The graph shows how this simulated cell’s mass change
increased throughout every time interval. The yellow line shows the fourth setup with the 60%
glucose solution in the simulated cell in water and its’ increase in mass change throughout each
time interval. The light blue line shows the first simulated cell with water in a 60% glucose
solution in the fifth setup. The graph shows the decrease in mass change throughout every time
interval. The green line represents the second simulated cell with an 80% glucose solution in a
60% glucose solution in the fifth setup. The graph shows the increase in mass change over the
time intervals.
In part two of the lab, the simulated cell with starch in a beaker of water with 20 drops of

iodine changed colors. When the simulated cell was first placed into the beaker, it was white and

the outside substance in the beaker was yellow. After the 48 hours, the simulated cell turned to a

dark purple color and the outside substance in the beaker was clear.

Discussion

In part one, most of the bags had a mass gain, while one had a decrease in mass change.

This mass change was due to the type of environment that the dialysis tubing was placed into. In

the first setup, the simulated cell with water was placed into a beaker with water and experienced

a slight mass change because the dialysis tubing was in an isotonic environment. This meant that

the concentration was equal both inside and outside the simulated cell. In the second setup, the

simulated cell with the 20% glucose solution was placed into a beaker with water and
Diffusion Through Cell Membranes Lab Smithco 10

experienced a mass gain because there was a higher concentration of pure water on the outside.

This meant that the simulated cell was in a hypotonic environment, causing the water to move

inside to reach equilibrium. In the third setup, the simulated cell with the 40% glucose solution in

water experienced an increase in mass change because it was in a hypotonic environment. This

meant that there was a higher concentration of water outside the simulated cell, causing the water

to want to move inside the simulated cell until it reached equilibrium. In the fourth setup, the

simulated cell with the 60 % glucose solution in water experienced an increase in mass change

because there was a higher concentration of pure water outside the simulated cell, causing the

water to move inside the simulated cell. This meant that the simulated cell was in a hypotonic

environment. In the fifth setup, there was a simulated cell with water and another one with an

80% glucose solution that were both placed into a 60% glucose solution. The simulated cell with

water in the 60% glucose solution experienced a decrease in mass change because it was in a

hypertonic environment. This caused the water to move outside of the simulated cell because

there was a higher concentration of pure water inside the simulated cell and to be able to reach

equilibrium, the water would have to move to a lower concentration. The movement from the

simulated cell caused there to be a decrease in mass because there was less substance inside the

simulated cell as time increased. In the simulated cell with the 80% glucose solution in a 60%

glucose solution experienced an increase in mass change because the simulated cell was in a

hypotonic environment. This meant that there was a higher concentration of pure water outside

of the simulated cell, causing the water to move inside the simulated cell to reach equilibrium.

This caused an increase in mass because the simulated cell was filled with more pure water as

time increased.
Diffusion Through Cell Membranes Lab Smithco 11

The rate of osmosis was different for each setup. This happened because as the simulated

cells got closer to equilibrium, the rate slowed down due to less substance having to move in and

then eventually they equaled out and osmosis was not needed. The rate of osmosis was also

different due to the different concentration gradients. When there was a higher concentration of

water outside of the simulated cells, there was more water that tried to move inside. Osmosis

happens faster when there are higher amounts of substance trying to reach the lower

concentration gradient.

From the labs, it was found that the simulated cell was permeable to water and iodine.

When the simulated cells were in a hypotonic state or a hypertonic state, it would allow the water

and/or iodine to move into or out of the simulated cells to reach equilibrium.

From the lab, it was found that the 80% glucose solution in the 60% glucose solution did

not gain as much weight from zero to three minutes as the 20% glucose solution in the water.

This was due to the substances that the dialysis tubing was permeable to. In the 20% glucose

solution in water, there was a higher concentration on the outside compared to the 80% glucose

solution in the 60% glucose solution because the dialysis tubing was permeable to water. There

was less water in the 60% glucose solution to move into the 80% glucose solution, causing the

rate of osmosis to be slower. With the amount of water on the outside of the 20% glucose

solution, osmosis happened quicker due to the high amount of water.

In part two of the lab, the simulated cell with starch in it started as white but at the end of

the time, it changed to blue. This happened because the higher concentration was outside of the

simulated cell and it contained water and iodine. The iodine mixed with the water and formed the

higher concentration of pure water, meaning that it was in a hypotonic environment and the
Diffusion Through Cell Membranes Lab Smithco 12

water would move into the lower concentration gradient. The iodine caused the color blue and as

it moved in with the water, it changed the simulated cell to blue as it reached equilibrium.

In the two labs, there were multiple sources of error that could have impacted the results.

In the first lab, the simulated cells were placed into the beakers for a short period of time. This

could have affected the change in mass because there would have been more time to reach

equilibrium. Another source of error could have happened when the simulated cells were taken

out of their environment. After this, they were supposed to be dried off, but some could have had

extra liquid that did not get dried off, affecting the mass. The next source of error could have

come from the measurements. When using the glucose solutions, some of it stuck to the

graduated cylinders and did not allow for equal amounts of glucose for the simulated cells. The

last source of error could have happened when the simulated cells were taken out of the beakers.

The error could have happened because they were all not taken out at the same exact time,

causing one or two simulated cells to have more time to reach equilibrium.

Due to the sources of error, I think that an important change to make the lab better could

happen by allowing the simulated cells to stay in the beakers for longer periods of time. This

would have changed the mass change and would have let the simulated cells get closer to

equilibrium. This would have affected the results and made them more accurate.

In conclusion, my hypotheses were supported. The lab showed the effects of osmosis and

the mass change to cells under osmosis.

References
Diffusion Through Cell Membranes Lab Smithco 13

Biggs, A., Hagins, W. C., Holliday, W. G., Kapicka, C. L., Lundgren, L., MacKenzie, A. H., . . . Zike, D. (2012).
Biology. Columbus: The McGraw-Hill Companies.

Diffusion Through Cell Membranes. (n.d.).

Gemma, W. (2014). 7 Examples of Osmosis in Everyday Life. Udemy.