INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY (IU)

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY – HCMC

SCHOOL OF BIOTECHNOLOGY (BT)
-------------------------------------------

LABORATORY REPORT 3

PHOTOSYNTHESIS
TRANSPIRATION
Instructor: Tong Thi Hang
Instructor: Tong Thi Hang

TRẦN VĨNH BẢO NGỌC BTBTIU21228

LÊ HOÀNG GIA HÂN BTFTIU21104
NGUYỄN PHAN TƯỜNG VI BTBTIU21273

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LÊ HÀ PHƯƠNG LY BTBTIU21220

TABLE OF CONTENTS

I. INTRODUCTION..................................................................3
II. PHOTOSYNTHESIS..............................................................4
Introduction........................................................................................................4
Task 1 – Examination of Oxygen Formation..........................................5
Materials and procedure....................................................................................5
Material..............................................................................................................................5
Procedure...........................................................................................................................5
Expected result....................................................................................................6
Task 2– Examination of Oxygen Formation...........................................5
Materials and procedure....................................................................................5
Material..............................................................................................................................5
Procedure...........................................................................................................................5
Expected result....................................................................................................6
Discussion............................................................................................................9
III. TRANSPIRATION...............................................................10
Introduction......................................................................................................10
Materials and procedure..................................................................................11
Materials..........................................................................................................................11
Procedure.........................................................................................................................12
Expecting result.................................................................................................12
Discussion..........................................................................................................13
V. REFERENCES:.....................................................................18
VI. SUMMARY.......................................................................18

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 I. INTRODUCTION

1. Most life on Earth depends on photosynthesis. The process is carried out by

plants, algae, and some types of bacteria, which capture energy from
sunlight to produce oxygen (O2) and chemical energy in the form of
sugars.During photosynthesis, photoautotrophs use energy from the sun,
along with carbon dioxide and water, to form glucose and oxygen. The
overall equation for photosynthesis is:
12H2O + 6CO2  C6H12O6 + 6O2 + 6H2O

2. Transpiration is the process through which plants expel water from their
bodies in the form of moisture or water vapor. Trees absorb water primarily
through their roots and then, water travel up the plant through the plant
system. The majority of the water absorbed by a plant's roots- as much as
99.5 percent- is not used for growth or memetaboli. This superfluous water
departs the plant via transpiration. Transpiration is vital because it
functioning in reducing water loss in plants, especially on hot days or when
the temperature is high. Furthermore, transpiration is critical for maintaining
environmental moisture levels. Plant transpiration accounts for up to 10% of
the moisture in the Earth's atmosphere.

This report will introduce how to identify two major processes in plants:
photosynthesis and transpiration in three experiments.

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II. PHOTOSYNTHESIS

1. Introduction
The majority of life on Earth is reliant on photosynthesis. Plants, algae, and
some bacteria are involved in the process, which take energy from the sun to
produce oxygen (O2) and chemical energy stored in glucose (a sugar).
Herbivores get their energy from plants, whereas predators get theirs from
herbivores.
Plants take CO2 and H2O from the air and soil during photosynthesis. Water
becomes oxygen, and carbon dioxide becomes glucose as a result of this
process. The plant then exhales the oxygen and stores the energy in the
glucose molecules.
Photosynthesis can be divided into two categories: light-dependent reactions
and light-independent reactions. The light-dependent reaction occurs within
the thylakoid membrane and requires a constant stream of sunlight to occur.
The chlorophyll absorbs energy from light waves and converts it into
chemical energy in the form of ATP and NADPH molecules. The Calvin
Cycle, also known as the light-independent stage, occurs in the stroma, the
space between the thylakoid and chloroplast membranes, and does not
require light. Energy from the ATP and NADPH molecules is used to
assemble carbohydrate molecules, such as glucose, from carbon dioxide
during this stage.

Figure 1: Diagram of photosynthesis [1]

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 Task 1 – Examination of Oxygen Formation

2. Materials and procedure

2.1. Material
 Waterweed
 Water
 Beaker, test tube
 Match, lighter
2.2. Procedure
1. Prepare one beaker with two thirds of water.
2. Turn down the funnel to the beaker.
3. Put 10 waterweed branches into the funnel.
4. Cover the tunnel end with the test tube filled with water and bring this
beaker to the light.
5. Observe the formation of coming up bubbles and record the level of
water goes down every 3 days up to 2 weeks.
6. After the incubation time, take out the test tube from the funnel while
keep it at the original orientation, cover the test tube by hand and upturn
this test tube.
7. Remove hand and immediately test the gas in test tube with the burned
match.
8. Observe what happens with the fire from match.

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3. Result

 After a certain time, air bubbles emerge

from the cut ends of the plant's stem.
These air bubbles rise down the funnel's
tube and finally collect at the test tube's top
end. As the same time, the water level
decrease and is also equivalent to the
change in the amount of oxygen produced
by the waterweed. (Figure 2).

Figure 2

 Test the gas in test tube with the burned

match, observe that the match burns
stronger and lighter. (Figure 3).
 This shows that the gas released by the
waterweed and collected in the test tube is
oxygen.
 As a result, this experiment reveals that
oxygen is produced during photosynthesis
in green plants.

Figure 3

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 Task 2 - Examination of Starch formation

2. Materials and procedure:

2.1. Material
Sample plant pot, a piece of black paper, test tube, water bath,
ethanol solution, Iodine solution, petri dish, forceps, scissors, and
something to fix the paper on the leaf.
2.2. Procedure
1. Choose one leaf on a growing tree. Clean this leaf with water and tissue
paper and then dry. 
2. Use a piece of black paper or cotton to cover the middle half of this leaf,
make sure that no light can penetrate this part. Leave it for at least two
weeks. (*should not use electric tape – to stick to remove without
breaking the leaf) 
3. On the day of doing the experiment, pick this leaf from the tree. 
4. Remove the cover (paper or cotton). Notice the color difference between
the two areas of the leaf.
5. Put this leaf into the boiling water for 5 minutes. 
6. Use forceps to take out the leaf from hot water and put it into the test tube
with ethanol 70%, put this test tube with leaf into boiling water, continue
to boil until the green color disappears. 
7. Take out the leaf from a test tube, wash with water and stretch it out on a
Petri dish, dry the leaf with absorbent paper and then add Lugol solution
into the dish. 
8. Observe the color in 2 areas of the leaf.

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 3. Expected result

Colour observation
Leave Original After 1- week
After boiling After Lugol
sample color of covering
Uncovered
Green Green Yellow-brown Dark yellow-brown
part
Covered part Green Green Yellow-brown Yellow-brown

Figure 4: Sample plant pot [3]

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Figure 5 [3]
Cover the middle half of one leaf with a piece of black paper. The paper is cut with the letter T
in the middle to make this experience more interesting (left). Left the sample plant pot outside
for a week. After one week, remove the leaf from the tree (right)
 

Figure 6: Boiling the leaf in the tube with the alcohol solution until the green color on
the leaf is removed [3]

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 Figure 7: The leaf after boiling has no green color. [3][4]

Figure 8: The phenomenon was observed when the leaves were soaked in the Iodine solution
[3]

4. Discussion

a) Explain the phenomenon in lowering level of water in

experiment

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 Because oxygen was created during the photosynthesis process, the water
level fell. Light energy transports electrons from water to carbon dioxide,
resulting in the formation of carbohydrates. CO2 is "reduced," while H2O
is "oxidized." Oxygen is eventually created with glucose. As a result, the
water level dropped.

b) What will happen if we get the burned match to meet the O 2,

CO2, H2?
- If a burnt match comes into contact with O 2, it will continue to burn
because O2 is a "burning gas" and burning is the process of interacting
with oxygen to create energy.
- If the burnt match meets H2, it may cause an explosion with popping
sound since H2 is comparably simple with O2 in the burning process, but
H2 has more potential energy.
- If a burnt match interacts with CO 2, nothing changes since the burning
process cannot continue.
c) Explain why the color of 2 areas (covered and uncovered) is
different.
The color of 2 areas (covered and uncovered) after soaking the leaf in
Iodine solution is different because: 
The covered part is covered by black paper so it does not receive the
sunlight which is necessary for photosynthesis. So the covered part does
not photosynthesize to make Oxide and starch. Therefore, when the leaf
is soaked in an Iodine solution, the color of the covered part (does not
contain starch) is unchanged. 
The uncovered part receives the sunlight and photosynthesizes normally.
So it produces starch, which leads to the changing color on the uncovered
part of the leaf when the leaf is soaked in Iodine solution.

III. TRANSPIRATION

1. Introduction
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 Transpiration is the process of water movement through a plant and its
evaporation from aerial parts, such as leaves, stems and flowers. Water is
necessary for plants but only a small amount of water taken up by the roots
is used for growth and metabolism. Adaptation through evolution has made
the leaf surface covered by a cuticle layer to avoid water evaporation.
However, the leaves also contain stomata which is important for
photosynthesis. Carbon dioxide and oxygen can only enter or pass out
through stomata. Stomata also allow gas to enter and leave the leaf.
Unfortunately, a great deal of water is also lost though the same way.

Objective: Examine the evaporation of water in the leaf by using the

indicator from Co2+. The Co2+ ion can form the complex with absorbed
water and change its original color (blue) to the color of its conjugate with
water (pink).

2. Materials and procedure

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 2.1. Materials
 3 different kinds of leaves
 3% CoCl2 solution
 Absorbent paper
 Scissors
 Sticking tape
 Forceps
 Petri dish
 Desiccator

2.2. Procedure
1. Cut the absorbent paper into small piece
2. Soak these paper pieces into 3% CoCl2 solution for two minutes. Then
dry these paper in a desiccator till dried.
3. Clean and dry leaves completely. The paper turns blue.
4. Use forceps to take out the dried piece and place it on a sticking tape
5. Quickly and tightly apply this tape onto a leaf to ensure that no moisture
from the air can enter to the paper
6. Check the color of paper frequently and notice the time needed for this
color change, compare the results from different kinds of leaves, if
possible.

3. Expected result

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Figure 9: Absorbent papers after are soaked in CoCl2 solution. [5]

Figure 10: Absorbent papers turn blue when dried. [5]

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Figure 11: There is almost no color change in the upper surface of the leaf. [5]

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 Figure 12: There is color change in the lower surface of the leaf. [5]

4. Discussion
a) Explain the phenomenon: Why the lower surface of the leaf
changes the absorbent paper while the upper surface does not
change.
The upper surface of the leaf does not change the color of the absorbent
paper while the lower surface changes. Because the lower surface of the
leaf contains more stomata than the upper surface. Therefore, water
evaporates through the lower surface much more than the upper surface.
So the absorbent paper of the lower surface changes color.

b) Different trees will have different levels of water-out through

transpiration. Based on the character(s) of the leaf, we can tell
the level high or low. What is that character(s)? Explain your
answer.
Trees tend to transpire more with increased temperatures, sunlight
intensity, water supply, and size. When it gets too hot, though,
transpiration will shut down.
Many factors influence transpiration rates, including leaf shape, size,
pores (stomata), and waxiness of the leaf surfaces. [6]

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 The smaller the leaf is, the faster the leaf water loses in a temperate
forest. We examined the right-skewed distributions of leaf size, leafing
intensity, stomatal size and stomatal density across species. Leafing
intensity was significantly negatively correlated with leaf size,
accounting for 4 and 12% of variation in leaf area and leaf mass,
respectively. Leaf area and leaf mass accounted for 38 and 30% of
variation in total leaf water loss, respectively. Leaf water loss rate (k) was
significantly different among tree species and markedly linearly
decreased with increasing leaf area and leaf mass for simple-leaved tree
species. [7]

IV. REFERENCES
[1] Photosynthesis review. Khan Academy. Retreived from:
https://www.khanacademy.org/science/ap-biology/cellular-energetics/
photosynthesis/a/hs-photosynthesis-review.
[2] Oxygen is liberated during Photosynthesis Practical Experiment (2020).
Youtube. Retreived from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=3RBl3xqnCrc&ab_channel=ThomasTKtungnung.
[3] Light is essential for Photosynthesis Practical Experiment (2020). Youtube.
Retreived from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YtvyFOvbgu8.
[4] Aseel Samaro (2016). Exploring how plants make food. SlidePlayer.
Retreived from: https://slideplayer.com/slide/9189661/.
[5] Cobalt Chloride Experiment to demonstrate Transpiration (2020). Youtube.
Retreived from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-BUNiDP5HuQ.
[6] Transpiration rates for different plants. Science Project. Retreived from:
https://www.scienceprojects.org/transpiration-rates-for-different-plants/.
[7] Cunguo Wang, Junming He, Tian-Hong Zhao, Ying Cao, Guojiao
Wang, Bei Sun, Xuefei Yan, Wei Guo, and Mai-He Li (2019). The Smaller
the Leaf Is, the Faster the Leaf Water Loses in a Temperate Forest. From
Plant Sci. NCBI. Retreived from:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6369174/

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VI. SUMMARY
To sum up, photosynthesis and transpiration is both important processes of
plants. During photosynthesis, green plants can create O2 and energy in the
form of starch using carbon dioxide and water. To identify O2 and starch
created through this process, we use the oxygen test and the Lugol test. In the
other hand, transpiration help plants to decrease their temperature by evaporing
the excess water. We can easily identify this water by using the absorbent
paper.

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