Name: Jana Aldossari Date: November 13, 2022

Student Exploration: Diffusion

Vocabulary: absolute zero, controlled experiment, diffusion, dynamic equilibrium, Kelvin scale,
kinetic energy

Prior Knowledge Question (Do this BEFORE using the Gizmo.)

Have you ever smelled microwave popcorn? The oddly enticing scent can fill a whole house.

How do you think the smell of popcorn spreads through the air? The gas particles bounce in the
air going from high concentration to low concentration areas.

Gizmo Warm-up
Smells are carried by tiny particles that move through
the air. The Diffusion Gizmo shows gas particles in a
chamber that is divided into two regions by a partial
wall. Click Play ( ) and observe.

1. Describe the motion of the gas particles. The gas

particles constantly in rapid motion, bouncing off
the walls. Many particles move from Side A (high
concentration) to side B (low concentration).

2. Over time, what is happening? Overtime, the two sides reach an equilibrium.

This process, in which particles move from an area of high concentration (region A) to an
area of low concentration (region B), is called diffusion.

3. Select the BAR CHART tab, and observe the chart for a few minutes. After the first 30
seconds or so, how much do the numbers of particles in each region change?

The numbers of particles in each region does not change drastically. In side B it only
increased by 10.

When the numbers don’t change much, the particles are said to be in dynamic equilibrium.

4. Click Pause ( ), and select the GRAPH tab. What does the graph tell you about the

number of particles in region A? This graph shows that the number of particles in region A

decreases with time.

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 Activity A: Get the Gizmo ready:
Temperature and  Click Reset ( ).
diffusion  Set the Wall to 100%.

Introduction: In this Gizmo, temperature is measured on the Kelvin scale. On this scale, 0 K
represents absolute zero, the coldest possible temperature. Water freezes at 273.15 K (0 °C),
and water boils at 373.15 K (100 °C).

Question: How does temperature affect the rate of diffusion?

1. Observe: Set the temperature (Temp.) to 100 K, and press Play. Observe the motion of
particles. Click Reset. Then set the temperature to 600 K, click Play, and observe.

How does the temperature of the gas relate to the motion of the particles? The hotter the
temperature, the faster the particles diffuse.

The temperature of a gas is a measure of the average kinetic energy of a set of particles.
Kinetic energy (KE) depends on the velocity and mass of the particles (KE = mv2 / 2).

2. Form hypothesis: How do you think temperature will affect the rate of diffusion? If the
temperature is hotter, then the particles will diffuse much faster.

3. Experiment: Click Reset. Set the Wall to 50%, x in A to 100, y in B to 0, Temp. to 100 K,
and Particle mass to 15 amu (atomic mass units). Select the TABLE tab. Press Play.

Click Pause when x in A first reaches 55% or below. Record this Time to reach
equilibrium in the left table below.

Repeat four more times at 100 K, and then run five trials with the temperature set to 600 K.

Temp = 100 K experiment

Trial Time to reach equilibrium

1 249
2 469
3 355
4 296
5 421

Temp = 600 K experiment

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 Trial Time to reach equilibrium
1 86
2 138
3 98
4 170
5 132

(Activity A continued on next page)

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Activity A (continued from previous page)

4. Calculate: Find the average time to reach equilibrium for each experiment:

A. Average time to reach equilibrium at 100 K: 358

B. Average time to reach equilibrium at 600 K: 125

5. Draw conclusions: Compare the average times to reach equilibrium for each temperature.

A. How did temperature affect the rate of diffusion? The hotter the temperature was, the
less time it took for the process to reach equilibrium.

B. Why do you think this was the case? Hotter temperature enables particles to move
faster because it increases their energy. That makes the time to reach equilibrium
much faster.

6. Extend your thinking: Why do you think the experimental results were different for each trial?

The movement of the particles is random, so there might be differences.

7. On your own: In our lives, we rarely experience temperatures that are above 373 K (100 °C)
or below 273 K (0 °C). Investigate how much diffusion rates differ between these two
temperatures. Describe the results of your experiments below.

The diffusion rates are higher for higher temperatures and lower for low temperatures.

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 Activity B: Get the Gizmo ready:
Rates of diffusion  Click Reset.

Introduction: The Diffusion Gizmo allows you to manipulate five variables: the Wall, the
number of x particles in region A, the number of y particles in region B, the temperature, and
the Particle mass.

Question: How do factors other than temperature affect the rate of diffusion?

1. Choose a variable: Pick a variable to investigate. Which one did you choose? Surface area

2. Form hypothesis: How do you think this variable will affect rates of diffusion? The rate of
diffusion will increase as the surface area increases.

3. Set up experiment: In a controlled experiment, only one variable is manipulated, or

changed. Set up your experiment so that there is just one difference between set-up A and
set-up B. List the Gizmo settings you will use for each set-up below.

Set-up A Set-up B
Wall 40 Wall 80
x in A 60 x in A 60
y in B 0 y in B 0
Temp. 600 Temp. 600
Particle mass 15 Particle mass 15

4. Gather data: Use the Gizmo to fill in each table. As before, the “time to reach equilibrium” is
the time it takes for the number of x particles in region A to reach 55% or lower.

Set-up A 3 86
Trial Time to reach equilibrium 4 70
1 110 5 51
2 67 Set-up B

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 Trial Time to reach equilibrium
1 203
2 307
3 349
4 224
5 330

(Activity B continued on next page)

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Activity B (continued from previous page)

5. Calculate: Find the average time to reach equilibrium for each experiment:

A. Average time to reach equilibrium for set-up A: 77

B. Average time to reach equilibrium for set-up B: 283

6. Draw conclusions: Compare the average times to reach equilibrium for each set-up.

A. How did the variable you investigated affect the rate of diffusion? The one with a
greater surface area (smaller wall) had a faster rate of diffusion than the one with
less surface area to pass (larger wall).

B. Why do you think this was the case? The molecules move faster as they have more
space to diffuse.

7. On your own: Investigate the remaining variables. Record all experimental results in your
notes. Summarize your findings in the space below.

The larger the molecule, the more difficult it is for it to diffuse across a membrane. As a
result, the rate of diffusion tends to decrease with molecule size. Molecule polarity: Although
small polar molecules can pass membranes, their rates of diffusion are typically lower
compared to those of non-polar molecules of the same size. Molecule or ion charge:
Generally, charged molecules and ions cannot diffuse across a cell membrane. At higher
temperatures, molecules have more energy and move faster, increasing the rate of
diffusion. Higher pressures force molecules across the membrane, increasing the rate of
diffusion.

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