Exercise 7

Cellular Transport Mechanisms:

Diffusion, Imbibition and
Osmosis

A living cell is a highly dynamic cell. Substances move in and out of the cell in a very precise and
organized manner. Two major processes make these movements possible, one move without
expenditure of energy referred to as passive transport and the other requires energy termed,
active transport. This exercise, describes two passive transport processes namely: diffusion and
osmosis.

Objectives:
After the exercise, the students must be able to:
1. Virtually demonstrate the process of diffusion.
2. Explain the concept of osmosis based on the learnings from household
observations.

Materials:
Clear drinking glass
Coffee granules
cut gelatin
Brown sugar solution
Cellophane
rubber bands
6 inches stick (a size of a barbecue stick)
Video link for Osmosis:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jTDATlaBV-o

Procedure:
A. Diffusion
Fill a clear drinking glass with tap water halfway. Take photo. Place gently a small amount
of coffee granules (1 tsp). Allow it to stand for 15- 30 minutes. Take a photo. Note a
change in color of the water. Record your observations.

Figure 1. Figure 2. Figure 3.

Drinking glass half-filled Coffee granules are Coffee granules are
with tap water poured into the water completely diffused
 • What process is demonstrated in this experiment?

- The process demonstrated in this experiment is diffusion. Diffusion is defined as

the net movement of individual molecules of a substance through a
semipermeable barrier from a higher concentration area to lower concentration
area (Pal et al., 2013).

• Explain the changes observed

- Upon pouring the coffee granules into the water, the coffee granules rapidly
diffused since they are highly concentrated. The coffee molecules started to
spread in between water molecules, creating a net movement of molecules from
a higher concentration to a lower concentration, causing the water to transform
from translucent to brownish. After letting it sit for around 15-20 minutes, the
fully changed into a dark brown color.

B. Imbibition:
This process is described as the adherence of water molecules to an organized body. In plants
this is exemplified by the adherence of water molecules to the cell wall.

Measure the dimension of the cut gelatin and place it on a plate/dish with water. Allow it to
stand for 20 minutes. After soaking, measure the dimension and compare it with the original.

Figure 4. Figure 5. Figure 6.

Cut gelatin measures Cut gelatin is soaked in Cut gelatin increased in
2.70 cm x 2.90 cm water size and measures 2.80
cm x 3.10 cm

• Explain this result:

- The process demonstrated in this experiment is called imbibition. After 20 minutes of

soaking the cut gelatin in water, the volume of the cut gelatin increased noticeably from
its initial size. This is because the gelatin absorbs the water surrounding it, causing it to
swell. Its initial dimensions of 2.70 cm × 2.90 cm were increased to 2.80 cm x 3.10 cm by
the end of the experiment.
C. Osmosis
1. Observe the process of osmosis demonstrated in the video using potatoes.

D. Questions:
1. What is the reason why water moved through the semipermeable membrane?

- In order to be at equilibrium and have an equal concentration on either side of the

membrane. The movement of water across cell membranes by diffusion, is a process known
as osmosis

2. Observe what happen with the potato strips. Understand the explanation of the
changes in length as presented in the table and finally the graph.

A. In order for the plant to absorb more water what should be the type of solution
outside it? B. What happen if the solution outside the cell is hypertonic?

- For the plant to absorb more water, the type of solution outside it should be a
hypotonic solution, which indicates less solute in the solution for it to be of higher
water potential and the water gets into the cell causing it to increase in size.

- If the solution outside the cell is hypertonic, the water from inside the cell will move
out, causing it to reduce in size. Because there is more water potential inside the cell
than the outside. The outside has a high concentration, resulting in less water
potential.

B. What happen to the plant if the solutions on both sides (intra and extracellular) is
isotonic?
- If the solution is isotonic, the plant would not undergo any changes in size and will
stay in its normal state. This is because there is no net movement of water molecule
inside and outside of the cell.

3. What is an osmotic potential?

- The potential of water molecules to move from a hypotonic solution (more water,
less solutes) to a hypertonic solution (less water, more solutes) across a semi
permeable membrane (Biology Online, 2022).
 References:

Biology Online. (2022, June 16). Osmotic Potential - Definition and Examples - Biology Online
Dictionary. Biology Articles, Tutorials & Dictionary Online. Retrieved September 29,
2022, from https://www.biologyonline.com/dictionary/osmotic-potential

Pal, K., Paulson, A. T., & Rousseau, D. (2013). Biopolymers in Controlled-Release Delivery Systems.
Handbook of Biopolymers and Biodegradable Plastics, 329–363.
https://doi.org/10.1016/b978-1-4557-2834-3.00014-8