Gas exchange

and respiration
Combined science
Learning objectives
 Gas
exchange
GAS EXCHANGE
● Needed to supply oxygen for respiration in cells and to remove the
waste product of respiration – carbon dioxide
● These gases are exchanged at surfaces by diffusion
An effective gas exchange surface has:
● Large surface area to allow faster diffusion of gases across the
surface
● Thin walls to ensure diffusion distances remain short
● Good ventilation with air so that diffusion gradients can be
maintained
● Good blood supply to maintain a high concentration gradient so
diffusion occurs faster
The alveolus is the gas exchange surface in humans
Structures in the human breathing system
alveoli
● At the alveoli (singular:
alveolus) in the alveoli
covered by tiny blood
capillaries,
● The alveoli are where
oxygen and carbon dioxide
diffuse into and out of the
blood
● The movement of air across
the alveolar surface is called
ventilation
The alveoli are adapted for efficiency in exchanging
gases by diffusion.
● thin permeable walls, which keep the distance over which diffusion of gases
takes place between the air and blood to a minimum
● a moist lining, in which the gases dissolve before they diffuse across the cell
membranes
● a large surface area – there are hundreds of millions of alveoli in a human
lung, giving a surface area of around 70 m2 for diffusion
● high concentration gradients for the gases, because the blood is continually
flowing past the air sacs, delivering excess carbon dioxide and taking on
additional oxygen, and because of ventilation of the lungs, which refreshes the
air in the air sacs.
The alveolus is the gas exchange surface in humans
The composition of inspired and expired
air
The composition of inspired and expired air changes because:
● Oxygen is removed from the blood by respiring cells and used for cellular
respiration, so blood returning to the lungs has a lower concentration of oxygen than
blood leaving the lungs
● carbon dioxide is produced by respiration and diffuses into the blood from
respiring cells; the blood transports the carbon dioxide to the lungs, where it diffuses
into the alveoli
● water vapour concentration increases because water evaporates from the
moist linings of the alveoli into the expired air as a result of the warmth of the body.
Inspired air and expired air
● Air that is breathed in and air that is breathed out has different amounts of gases in it
due to exchanges that take place in the alveoli
● The air we breathe out contains more water vapour than when we breathe it in, and
the temperature of exhaled air is higher than inhaled air
Composition of Air
Investigating the Differences in Inspired & Expired
Air ● When we breathe in, the air is drawn through boiling
tube A
● When we breathe out, the air is blown into boiling
tube B
● Lime water is clear but becomes cloudy (or milky)
when carbon dioxide is bubbled through it
● The lime water in boiling tube A will remain clear,
but the limewater in boiling tube B will become
cloudy
● This shows us that the percentage of carbon dioxide
in exhaled air is higher than in inhaled air
Cells acts on gas exchange
● Goblet cells produce mucus which traps dust,
dirt and bacteria to prevent them entering the
lungs.
● Cilia are small hairs which beat to push the
mucus back up the trachea so it can be
swallowed and destroyed in the stomach.

● Clean air then enters the two bronchi, one

bronchus going to each lung. The bronchi in
the lungs split into smaller and smaller tubes
called bronchioles. These end in microscopic
air sacs called alveoli.
Investigating the Effects of Physical
Activity on Breathing
• Exercise increases the frequency and depth of breathing
• This can be investigated by counting the breaths taken during one minute
at rest and measuring average chest expansion over 5 breaths using a tape
measure held around the chest
• Exercise for a set time (at least 3 minutes)
• Immediately after exercising, count the breaths taken in one minute and
measure the average chest expansion over 5 breaths
• Following exercise, the number of breaths per minute will have
increased and the chest expansion will also have increased
The effects of physical activity on rate and
depth of breathing
● The rate and depth of breathing increase with level of activity because as the
muscles contract faster they respire faster and so make carbon dioxide more
quickly.
● Carbon dioxide is an acidic gas that dissolves easily in water-based solutions
● The more carbon dioxide there is in solution the more acidic the solution.
● A change in pH can affect the activity of many cell enzymes, so it is important
that carbon dioxide is removed from the cells and the body as quickly as
possible
● The removal can be done by increase in the rate and depth of breathing
The effects of physical activity on rate and
depth of breathing
● depth of breathing increases due to increased carbon
dioxide concentration in the blood because, rate of
respiration increases CO2 is a product of respiration
The effect of tobacco smoking
Smoking tobacco can cause chronic pulmonary obstructive diseases (COPD),
such as bronchitis and emphysema.
● The tar in tobacco smoke is a mixture of chemicals that form a black sticky
substance in the lungs. This sticky layer can coat the tiny hair-like cilia lining
the tubes in the lungs, it can lead to irritation and infection and cause a disease
called bronchitis
The effect of smoking
● Continued coughing, in order to clear tar and smoke particles from lungs, over
a long time damages the alveoli, breaking down the divisions between them
and so reducing their surface area.
● This causes a disease called emphysema, in which the patient has difficulty
getting through enough oxygen into their blood for any kind of activity.
The effect of smoking
● Smoking can caused lung cancer
● People who smoke are more likely to suffer a heart attack or heart
pains (angina) than people who do not smoke.
● Tobacco smoke contain carbon monoxide, reduces the amount of
oxygen that gets to tissues, - can result breathlessness
● Nicotine in tobacco smoke alters people’s moods – smokers often say
they feel more relaxed but alert after smoking.
● Nicotine is also highly addictive, which makes it difficult for smokers
to give up.
Respiration
Respiration
● State the uses of energy in the body of humans limited to: muscle
contraction, protein synthesis, growth and the maintenance of a
constant body temperature
● State the word equation for aerobic respiration as glucose + oxygen →
carbon dioxide + water
● Define aerobic respiration as the chemical reactions in cells that use
oxygen to break down nutrient molecules to release energy
● State the balanced chemical equation for aerobic respiration as
C6H12O6 + 6O2 → 6CO2 + 6H2O
Respiration
● We talk about respiration – cellular respiration not the breathing (or
ventilation)
● Respiration is the breakdown of chemical bonds in food molecules
such as glucose to release energy
● Note: that we usually refer to glucose as the nutrient molecule or food
molecule that is broken down in respiration. This is because it is the
molecule most commonly used in this reaction in the body. If glucose
is in short supply, then other molecules may be used instead from the
breakdown of fats or proteins.
In human cell energy is used as?
● to produce the contraction of muscle cells
● to produce new chemical bonds during the synthesis (formation) of
new protein molecules
● to produce new chemicals needed for cell division and for the growth
of cells
● for the active transport of molecules across cell membranes
● for the maintenance of a constant core body temperature.
● Respiration is a series of reactions and, like other reactions in cells,
these are controlled by enzymes. So any change in a cell that affects
enzymes (such as a change in temperature or pH) will affect the rate of
respiration.
● Respiration can take place with oxygen (aerobically) or without
oxygen (anaerobically). Much less energy is released for each glucose
molecule broken down anaerobically compared to the energy released
when it is broken down aerobically
Aerobic respiration
● Aerobic respiration – respiration that uses oxygen to release energy
from glucose. [in short supply of glucose we can use fats or proteins]
● Water and carbon dioxide are produced as waste product
● Enzymes controls the respiration process
Aerobic respiration can be summarised by a word equation:
● glucose + oxygen → water + carbon dioxide (+energy)
Symbol equation
● C6H12O6 + 6O2 → 6H2O + 6CO2 (+energy)
Aerobic respiration

● the oxygen needed for respiration comes for the air (except for a small
proportion in photosynthesising plants, which comes from
photosynthesis)
● The carbon dioxide from cellular respiration released to the air
● The water is either used in the body or excreted through the kidneys