Membrane Lab Practice Questions

Question 1-3 refer to the figure below in which a dialysis-tubing bag is filled with a mixture of 3 percent
starch and 3 percent glucose and placed in a beaker of distilled water with KI indicator. After one hour,
the solution inside the dialysis bag has turned a dark blue, while the solution in the beaker has remained
clear.

1. Which of the following is an accurate conclusion that can

be made only from the observed results?

a) the dialysis tubing bag weighs less.

b) glucose has not diffused across the dialysis-tubing

membrane.

c) The dialysis tubing bag is selectively permeable.

d) A net movement of water into the beaker has occurred.

2. The change in solution color to blue is a positive indicator by KI for the presence of starch. Based
only on the results, which of the following conclusions can be made?

a) The dialysis tubing bag is permeable to starch.

b) The pores in the dialysis tubing are larger than KI ions.

c) The dialysis tubing bag is not permeable to glucose.

d) A net movement of water into the dialysis tubing bag has occurred.

3. Which of the following best describes the system after it reaches equilibrium?

a) Water will have a net movement into the dialysis tubing bag.

b) the osmotic pressure inside the dialysis tubing bag will be the same as the osmotic pressure in
the surrounding solution

c) KI will have a net movement into the dialysis tubing bag.

d) Glucose will have a net movement into the dialysis tubing bag.
 4.An iodine solution (KI or Lugol’s solution) turns from yellow-
brown to blue when it reacts with starch, but not when it
reacts with glucose. A bag made from a selectively permeable
material and containing iodine solution is placed into a beaker
containing a solution of glucose and starch. Using only this
information, which of the following can be correctly
concluded if the solution in the beaker turns blue but the
contents of the bag remain unchanged in color?

a) Glucose moved from the beaker into the bag.

b) The bag is permeable to KI, but not to starch.

c) The bag is permeable to KI, and glucose, but not to starch.

d) The bag is permeable to KI, but not to starch and glucose

5. The need for cellular efficiency limits

a) cellular respiration b) numbers of organelles c) surface:volume ratio

d) types of organelles

6. A cellophane bag with 2 M sucrose that is only permeable to water is placed in a beaker with
distilled water. After one minute one would observe

a) the bag expanding b) the bag shrinking c) nothing happens

d) the bag expands, then shrinks

7. During osmosis, water will move from a hypotonic solution to

a) the isotonic solution b) a cell with greater osmotic pressure

c) a hypertonic solution d) a hypotonic solution

8. The movement of water out of a cell resulting in the collapse of the plasma membrane is called

a) endocytosis b) bulk flow c) cell lysis d) plasmolysis

9. If a plant cell is immersed in a solution having higher potential than the cell, which of the
following will occur?

a) Osmotic loss from the cell will cause the cell to become flaccid.

b) The cell wall will break down.

c) Osmotic uptake of the water will cause the cell to swell.

d) The plant cell will be crushed due to the water pressure.

10. Due to osmosis, a cell that is hypertonic to its environment, will eventually

a) enlarge b) shrink c) decrease its number of intracellular solute particles

d) increase its number of intracellular solute particles

11. Active transport differs from facilitated diffusion because

a) active transport can only move certain solutes

b) facilitated diffusion requires the cell to expend its own metabolic energy

c) facilitated diffusion maintains steep concentration gradients

d) facilitated diffusion moves solutes from higher to lower concentrations

12. A saturated suspension of starch is enclosed in a bag formed from dialysis tubing, a material
through which water can pass, but starch cannot. The bag with the starch is placed in a beaker
of distilled water. All of the following are expected to occur EXCEPT

a) There will be a net movement of water from a hypotonic region to a hypertonic region.

b) There will be a net movement of solute from a hypertonic region to a hypotonic region.

c) The dialysis bag will gain weight.

d) No starch will be detected outside the dialysis bag.

Membrane Labs Grid In Questions (temperature = 25⁰C)
1. What is the solute potential of a 0.60 M solution of sucrose? Express your answer in the correct
number of significant digits.

𝜓 𝑚𝑜𝑙𝑒𝑠 𝐿𝑏𝑎𝑟𝑠
𝑠𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛= −(1)(0.60 )(0.0831 )(298𝐾)= −15 𝑏𝑎𝑟𝑠
𝑙𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑟 𝑘𝑚𝑜𝑙

2. A cell is isotonic with 0.15 M solution of sodium chloride. The concentration of NaCl inside the
cell is 0.20 M. What is the pressure potential inside the cell?

𝜓 𝑚𝑜𝑙𝑒𝑠 𝐿𝑏𝑎𝑟𝑠
𝑠𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛= −(2)(0.15 )(0.0831 )(298𝐾)= −7.4 𝑏𝑎𝑟𝑠
𝑙𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑟 𝑘𝑚𝑜𝑙

𝜓 𝑚𝑜𝑙𝑒𝑠 𝐿𝑏𝑎𝑟𝑠
𝑐𝑒𝑙𝑙= −(1)(0.20 )(0.0831 )(298𝐾)= −9.3 𝑏𝑎𝑟𝑠
𝑙𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑟 𝑘𝑚𝑜𝑙

Ψsolution = ψp + ψcell

- 7.4 bars = x -9.3 bars

ψp = 1.9 bars

3. What is the solute potential of a 0.60 M solution of KCl? Express your answer in the correct
number of significant digits.

𝜓 𝑚𝑜𝑙𝑒𝑠 𝐿𝑏𝑎𝑟𝑠
𝑠𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛= −(2)(0.60 )(0.0831 )(298𝐾)= −30 𝑏𝑎𝑟𝑠
𝑙𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑟 𝑘𝑚𝑜𝑙
4. A student measured the change in mass of potato cores and graphed her information. Her
results are shown below.

a) Determine the apparent molar concentration of the potato cells. Approximately 0.5 M

b) Explain what would happen if she had placed animal cells in 0.0 M sucrose and 1.0 M
sucrose, and explain your prediction.

In pure water (0 M sucrose) the cells would explode from the flow of water from a
hypotonic medium to a hypertonic medium. There is no cell wall to prevent lysis.

In 1.0 M sucrose, water would stream out of the cell, which is hypotonic compared to the
concentrated sucrose solution. Plasmolysis would occur.