James Clein T.

Tang
12-STEM

Assignment 4: Diffusion

Conduct a research about the following:

1. What is diffusion?
Diffusion is the process of movement of molecules under a concentration
gradient. It is an important process occurring in all living beings. Diffusion helps in the
movement of substances in and out of the cells. The molecules move from a region of
higher concentration to a region of lower concentration until the concentration becomes
equal throughout.
Liquid and gases undergo diffusion as the molecules are able to move randomly.

Diffusion is the net passive movement of molecules or particles from regions of

higher to regions of lower concentration. For diffusion to occur there must be a
concentration gradient. The dissimilarity in the amounts of solutes, particles, or molecules
between the two regions will cause them to move between the two regions. To define
diffusion in the biological context, imagine the ions, respiratory gases, glucose, or other
particles that move randomly between the crowded and the less-crowded regions (fluids),
often across a semipermeable membrane. The unequal concentration of the particles
between two fluids will generate a gradient that will incite them to move in order to equalize
the disparity in concentrations. Nevertheless, the movement of solutes during the diffusion
process is not a one-way route. There could be movements to and fro. However, the
movement is inclined towards the area of lower concentration. Thus, diffusion is
characterized by a net movement of the particle down their concentration gradient — or in
other words, from the area of greater concentration to an area of lower concentration. The
net movement of oxygen and carbon dioxide across the alveolar-capillary membrane of
mammalian lungs and the net movement of glucose down the concentration gradient are
diffusion examples in biological systems.
James Clein T. Tang
12-STEM

2. List down 5 real life examples of Diffusion.

BREATHING
Oxygen only gets into our bloodstream when the O2 molecules we breathe in diffuse into
deoxygenated blood. Breathing in and out is a mechanical action, not diffusion, but the
oxygen actually enters your bloodstream through diffusion.
SODA
Sodas go flat through diffusion. Air has a lower concentration of that bubbly carbon
dioxide than the drink does, so the CO2 molecules depart the beverage and spread into
the air.
AIR POLLUTION
Air in its natural state consists of approximately 78% nitrogen, 21% oxygen, 1% argon,
0.04% carbon dioxide and trace amounts of other gases. Many agricultural, industrial
and mechanical processes rely on the ability to produce other stuff as waste. That waste
diffuses into the air and consequences ensue.
PERFUME
When perfume (or air freshener, cigarette smoke, or just about any other strongly
scented substance) is produced in one part of a room, it spreads to the rest through
diffusion. There are fewer of the scent-producing chemicals in the further parts of the
room, so the molecules naturally spread out.
LEAVES
Specifically, leaves at night. During the day, plants breathe in carbon dioxide and breathe
out oxygen through osmosis, which opens and closes stomata, the small holes in the
leaf’s surface. At night, however, the stomata simply remain open and CO2 enters the
plant through diffusion.

Sources:
https://byjus.com/biology/diffusion/
https://www.biologyonline.com/dictionary/diffusion
https://examples.yourdictionary.com/examples-of-diffusion.html
James Clein T. Tang
12-STEM