INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL OF ACCRA

BIOLOGY

PRACTICAL Date:

VENUE: BIOLOGY LAB

NAME OF STUDENT………………………………………………………………………………………………. GRADE: …………..

TITLE: ESTIMATION OF OSMOLARITY

Osmosis is the net movement of solvent molecules through a semi-permeable membrane into a region of
higher solute concentration (low water potential), in the direction that tends to equalize the concentration of
the solutions on the both sides. The osmolarity of a solution is the total concentration of osmotically active
solutes.

The osmolarity of a tissue can be estimated by placing it in solutions of different concentrations and
calculating the percentage change in mass of the tissue after a given period.

In this experiment, you will be estimating the osmolarity of potato, cactus and pawpaw tissues by placing
pieces of known length and weight in salt solutions of different concentrations.

Procedure

 Measure the mass and length of each of potato piece using the electronic balance and ruler
respectively.
 Place three pieces of potato in each of the solutions provided.
 Remove the potato pieces from the solutions after 30 minutes, blot it with tissue paper and weigh.
 Record the new masses
 Repeat steps two and three for two consecutive times.
 Repeat the procedure using cactus and pawpaw pieces.

Analysis

Create a table and record your results.

On the same graph sheet, plot a graph of mass against concentration for the three tissues.

Using your graph, answer the following questions

1. What is the osmolarity of the tissues used in the experiment?

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 2. State whether water moved into or out of the tissues at at o.omoldm3 of sodium chloride solution
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3. State whether water moved into or out of the tissues at at 0.2moldm3 of sodium chloride solution
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4. Deduce which tissue had the lowest solute concentration in its cytoplasm ( explain your answer)
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5. Suggest reasons for the differences in solute concentrations between the tissues.
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