I. Abstract: The purpose of the diffusion and osmosis lab is to get a better understanding of osmosis. Osmosis is a special type of diffusion. Osmosis is the movement of water across a cell membrane. Diffusion is the movement of any substance from an area of high concentration to an area of low concentration. Both diffusion and osmosis are forms of passive transport, which means that neither of them require energy to move across the plasma membrane. The plasma membrane is selectively permeable, it allows some materials to move freely while restricting other materials. In our lab for diffusion and osmosis we obtained a core from a fresh potato and cut it into two equal sections. The potato was a representation of the cell. We placed one section in distilled water and the other one in a salt solution that was 40% NaCl for about a hour. The potato core that was in the distilled water increased in both length and diameter. However, the potato core that sat in the 40% NaCl decreased in both length and size. II. Introduction: …show more content…
Molecules are always moving but there will be no net movement when there is a dynamic equilibrium that is reached. Osmosis is the movement of water across a selectively permeable membrane. There are three types of tonicity when it comes to diffusion which is: isotonic, hypotonic, and hypertonic. Isotonic is a solution that does not cause osmotic flow of water in or out of a cell. A hypotonic solution has less solutes and loses water through osmosis. A cell in a hypotonic solution will gain water and rupture. A hypertonic solution is opposite of a hypotonic solution because it has more solutes and gains water by osmosis. A cell in a hypertonic solution loses water and will