Introduction:

Plants gain the nutrients that they need to grow through photosynthesis.
Photosynthetic pigments absorb light energy to carry out this process. Water molecules
are split by light energy, thus releasing oxygen and later creating glucose and fructose
molecules. Sugars then combine to form starches that store photosynthetic products in the
roots and the stems of the plant. Most plants do not rely on other organisms to gain what
they need to survive. Plants are autotrophs, meaning they carry out photosynthesis to
produce the nutrients that they require. Plants that do not contain photosynthetic
pigments, such as parasitic plants, do not carry out photosynthesis. These organisms
obtain nutrients from host species, so these plants are called heterotrophs. Three types of
photosynthetic pigments are chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b, and carotene. Green plants
contain a large amount of chlorophyll, and approximately seventy five percent of a
typical plants chlorophyll is type a. The rest of the chlorophyll is chlorophyll b. When
plants begin to break down and change color, it is clear that they contain other pigments
because their presence is no longer masked when the plant begins to degrade. Some
plants continue to mask the presence of some pigments because they are high in pigments
that mask chlorophylls for the entire growing season. Each pigment absorbs light from a
certain wavelength. Chlorophyll a absorbs blue and red light, while chlorophyll b absorbs
light from blue-green and orange- red wavelengths. Carotenoids absorb blue and bluegreen light. The color that is reflected is the color that is seen by the human eye.
Chlorophyll is green because it reflects green light and absorbed light is not seen.
Chlorophyll a is found in all photosynthetic plants except bacteria that carry out
photosynthesis. Chlorophyll b, an accessory pigment is found in other organisms. In
green plants, chlorophyll b makes up about twenty five percent of the chlorophyll.
Chlorophyll a and b absorb different wavelengths, allowing the plant to absorb more
wavelengths for photosynthesis. The excited molecule that chlorophyll b produces
transfers its energy to chlorophyll a, which turns it into chemical energy.
Carotenoid pigments are red, orange, and yellow that are found in all chloroplasts
and in the blue- green prokaryotic algae. There are two types of Carotenoids carotenes
and xanthophylls. Carotenes do not contain oxygen but those that do are called
xanthophylls. Carotenoids are masked in green leaves because they contain a large
amount of chlorophyll. Carotenoids are seen in ripe tomatoes and orange flower petals
because they are the dominant pigments. When leaves break down in the fall, the
carotenes and the xanthophylls are seen. Carotenoids are not soluble in water so they are
found in the cytoplasm and are bound to proteins within the plastids. Only some
Carotenoids are accessory pigments, but either way they are important in photosynthesis
in green plants.
Plants lose water through transpiration, through the leaves, and evaporation, from
the surface of the leaves or the soil. Evapotranspiration is the total amount of water that is
lost through both methods. Leaves can close pores called stomata, using guard cells to
limit the amount of water lost through transpiration. This also limits the transfer of air
and other gases that also travel into or out of the cell through the stomata. So, this process
may limit photosynthesis. Plants adapt to this by capturing light energy during the day
but storing until night. Less water is lost at night because of lower temperatures. The
light phase of occurs in the presence of light that stimulates the photosynthetic pigments,

while the dark reactions can occur in the dark. A spectrophotometer is used to measure
the absorption rate of each wavelength. The absorption spectrum is different from the
action spectrum because the action spectrum graphs how efficient different wavelengths
are when promoting different photoresponse.
Chromatography is a method of separating mixtures of gases or liquids. Dissolved
substances can also be separated, such as chlorophyll pigments. Paper chromatography
uses absorption and capillary action to separate the pigments. The mixture that is to be
separated is placed at the bottom of a piece of chromatography paper and is held there
through absorption. The paper is then placed in a chromatography solution which drags
the liquid up the paper and dissolves the mixture as if moves. The components of the
mixture move at different rates because of their solubility in the solvent and their
attraction to the cellulose in the chromatography paper. This causes the different pigments
to show up as colored streaks across the paper. The pattern of the streaks is known as a
chromatogram. To establish the rate that each pigment moves the Rf value should be
calculated. The Rf value is the ratio of the distance traveled by each pigment to the
distance that the solvent moved. To calculate this use the formula:
Rf =

Distance pigment traveled

Distance solvent traveled

Each molecule has a different Rf value so this calculation can be used to identify a
molecule.
Photosynthesis is the process by which plants use light to produce oxygen and a
carbohydrate. Autotrophs, such as plants, fuel the entire ecosystem because they are the
primary producers. Photosynthesis can be observed by observing whether a substrate
disappears while something else is produced. The equation for photosynthesis is: 2 H2O +
CO2 + light carbohydrate (CH2O) + O2 + H2O. Leaves usually float in water because
they contain gases such as oxygen and carbon dioxide. If these gases are removed from
the leaves, they will be denser than the water and sink. Even if these gases are removed,
the leaves can still carry out photosynthesis if they are placed in a carbon dioxide source
such as a solution with bicarbonate ions. When placed in this solution, the leaves will
carry out photosynthesis and produce oxygen. The accumulation of oxygen will cause the
leaves to be less dense than the water, and they will once again float. By observing this
process, the rate of photosynthesis can be indirectly studied. However, it is crucial to
keep in mind that cellular respiration is occurring at the same time as photosynthesis.
This means that oxygen that is produced in photosynthesis is then used in cellular
respiration to produce carbon dioxide. This means that this experiment is actually
measuring the net rate of photosynthesis and the production of oxygen.

Procedure 2:
Number of Leaf Chads that Were Floating After Each Minute In the Different Solutions
With Varying Amounts of Light
Minute
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20

Water +
Light
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1

CO2 + Dark
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0

CO2 +
Light
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
3
4
6
6
7
8
10
10
10
10
10
10
10
10

CO2 +
Red light
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
2
2
2
4
4
4
4
5

15 Questions:
Procedure 2:
7. What was the function of the sodium bicarbonate in this experiment?
The sodium bicarbonate was a carbon dioxide source. It added more CO2 to the water so
that the leaf chads could carry out photosynthesis.
8. Explain the process of carbon fixation.
CO2 is combined with RuBP through the ribulose enzyme. It creates three six- carbon
molecules that are very unstable. Carbon fixation fixes this molecule by stabilizing it. It
does so by rearranging the carbons into six three- carbon molecules.
9. Explain the process that causes the leaf disks to rise.
When water in the leaf chad is hit with light, it is split into H+, O2, and electrons. The O2
is released through the guard cells and the stomata of the leaf. The release of the oxygen
causes the leaf to be less dense than the water so it rises to the top of the water. The leaf is
less tightly packed than the water so it floats.

10. Which trial worked the best? Explain

The leaf chads that were placed in the CO2 and the light had the fastest and greatest
results. This is due to the fact that the increased CO2 in the water allowed the leaf chads
to photosynthesize faster because there was more of the reactant needed for
photosynthesis to occur. Additionally, light is needed to carry out photosynthesis because
it breaks the water molecule and causes it to split. The light energy gives the electrons the
energy that they need to travel through the plant cell and carry out photosynthesis. The
regular water did not contain enough CO2 for the leaf chads to carry out photosynthesis.
There was only enough CO2 for one leave chad to photosynthesis in the regular H2O.
11. What is the effect of the darkness on photosynthesis? Explain
Light is needed to split the water molecule to begin photosynthesis. If there is no light
energy, then photosynthesis will not occur. Light also energizes the electrons in the leaf
so that they can travel through the cell to and start the process of ATP synthase. Light
causes the electrons to help carbon molecules rearrange in the dark reactions.
12. If the leaf disks were to be boiled, what kind of results would you expect?
Explain.
Boiled leaf chads would not carry out photosynthesis because the leaf is no longer living
and can no longer carry out the processes of photosynthesis. The dead leaf cannot
function or carry out any of the processes that produce what it needs to survive.
13. How does light intensity affect the rate of photosynthesis?
Light intensity increases the rate of photosynthesis while all other organelles are
functioning properly. Ultimately, the rate will plateau when other limiting factors are
added. When the chlorophyll absorbs an increased amount of photons of light more
NADH and ATP are produced, thus increasing the rate of photosynthesis.
14. How does light intensity and the rate of photosynthesis relate to the position of
the sun, both during the day and during the year?
During the day, when the light intensity is at its peak, the sun is directly overhead and
closest to the Earth. During the year, the light intensity is greatest in the summer in the
Northern Hemisphere because the days are longer and the sun is closest to the Earth.
During the winter in this region, the days are shorter which means the light intensity
overall is lessened. During winter, the Northern Hemisphere is slightly tilted away from
the sun so the light must travel a slightly greater distance to reach the Earth.
15. Using your chosen variable to test the rate of photosynthesis, explain the results
and explain your results.

We chose to study the affect of red light on photosynthesis. The red light caused the
leaves to have a slower rate of photosynthesis than the regular light. This is because the
pigments absorb red wavelengths and reflect green light. Because the red light is only one
wavelength, the pigments will only absorb one wavelength rather than all of the
wavelengths excluding the green wavelengths. This means that there are fewer
wavelengths in the red light so there is a decreased light source and photosynthetic rate.