DIFFUSION AND OSMOSIS

How do we know when someone is cooking in the kitchen without actually going there? Why are we able to smell the food being cooked there?

The aroma (smell) of food is actually a kind of vapor molecule that move about randomly. They bump into each other and in effect spread out quickly.

Diffusion

 This process of spreading is known as Diffusion or the overall movement of molecules from regions of higher concentration to regions of lower concentration

VIDEO CLIP A

VIDEO CLIP B

Diffusion in non-living system

 How do molecules move from a region of higher
Let us study diffusion in non-living system .
 Solution A and B are separated by

concentration to a region of lower concentration?

a permeable membrane. A permeable membrane allows both small and large molecules to pass through. Both the solvent (water) and the solutes (the dissolved sugar molecules) can pass through it. There is a two-way movement of both types of molecules across the membrane as particles are in constant random motion.

Since solution A has a

higher concentration of sugar, more sugar molecules will diffuse from solution A to solution B. In solution B, there is a higher concentration of water molecules. Therefore, more water molecules will diffuse from solution B to solution A. Hence, there is a net (overall) movement of sugar molecules from A to B, and a net movement of water molecules from B to A.

 Eventually, both solutions will have the same concentration of sugar and water molecules.

Some other examples of diffusion we see everyday.

Food Coloring diffusing in water

Sugar molecules dissolving in hot water

The movement of molecules would be :

A.] DIFFUSION IN ONE SOLUTE

B.] DIFFUSION IN TWO SOLUTE

Diffusion in living organisms

Diffusion in the absence of membranes Diffusion occurs during photosynthesis in the absence of membrane

air space

high concentration of oxygen

low concentration of carbon dioxide carbon diffuses through stomata Oxygen diffuses through stomata

Diffusion of Carbon Dioxide and Oxygen inside the leaves

Carbon dioxide enters the leaves through the stomata, moving into air spaces in the leaves. This is because the carbon dioxide concentration is higher outside the leaves than in air spaces inside the leaves. Why is the concentration of carbon dioxide in leaves lower than outside the leaves in the presence of light ?
Similary, oxygen given off during photosynthesis diffuses out of leaf air spaces as there is a lower concentration of oxygen outside the leaves.

Diffusion through a partially permeable membrane

A partially permeable membrane is a membrane that allows some molecules to pass through but not others.
Carbon Dioxide diffuses out of the bloodstream and into the air sac.

bloodstream

Blood entering blood vessel with high CO2 and low O2.

Blood leaving blood vessel with high O2 and low CO2.

Lungs
Gaseous exchange in the lungs occurs by diffusion.

Oxygen diffuses out of from the surrounding air into the air sac and blood stream.

Osmosis
is the movement of a solvent, such as water, through a semipermeable membrane.
A solvent is the major component of a solution, the liquid in which something else is dissolved.

A semi-permeable membrane is a material that allows some materials to flow through it but not others. They contain very small holes. Osmosis always moves a solvent in one direction only, from a less concentrated solution to a more concentrated solution. As osmosis proceeds, pressure builds up on the side of the membrane where volume has increased.

OSMOSIS in non-living systems

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THERE WILL BE NO NET MOVEMENT OF WATER MOLECULES.

Sucrose molecule Water molecule

Solution A

Solution B

During Osmosis, the water molecules will flow from solution B

with higher concentration to solution A with lower water concentration. As water molecules flow, the volume of solution A rises and the volume of solution B drops. When the concentrations of both A and B are the same, there will be no net movement of water molecules.

Osmosis in living organism

 

3.

OSMOSIS IN PLANTS
Osmosis contributes to the movement of water through plants.

Solute concentrations (the ratio of solutes to solvents in a solution) increase going from soil to root cells to leaf cells. The resulting differences of osmotic pressure help to push water upward. Osmosis also controls the evaporation of water from leaves by regulating the size of the openings (stomata) in the leaves' surfaces. Watch video

What happens when animal and plant cells are placed in concentrated solution?
Concentration of water molecules outside the cells is lower than that in the cytoplasm.

Cell shrinks and becomes soft. It is hydrated.

If cells are placed in a concentrated solution of sugar and salt, water leaves the cells by osmosis.

When the concentration of water molecule of the cytoplasm and cell sap is higher than that of the surrounding solution, water leaves the plant cell by osmosis.
Concentration of the water molecules outside the cell is lower than that in the cell sap. Cells content pull away from the cell walls and the cell becomes flaccid. The vacuoles will shrink and the cell contents will pull away from the cellulose cell walls. The plant cells lose turgor pressure and become flaccid (soft)

Why do plant cell gets bigger in distilled water?

Plant cells placed in distilled water will also absorb water by osmosis but the cell wall prevents them from swelling. Water enters the cells by osmosis because the concentration of the solution inside the cells is higher than that of the 'solution' outside. Water always moves by osmosis from a dilute solution to a concentrated solution (when they are separated by a membrane which lets water through but not dissolved substances).

Plant cells will expand and becomes turgid. The rigid cellulose cell wall expands slightly only which prevents it from bursting. This occurs because osmosis takes place. There is higher water potential outside the cell than that inside of the cell sap therefore, causing water to enter. Therefore, as water flows in, the cell presses on the cell wall creating pressure on the cell wall also known as Turgor pressure that keeps plant tissues firm.

What happens to plant cells placed in distilled water?

Animal cells have elastic cell membranes. When water molecules flow in the animal cells, it will swell and eventually burst.

If animal cells are placed in distilled water they will absorb water by the process called osmosis. This will make the cell swell and, if it does not stop, it eventually burst.

WHAT DID WE LEARN TODAY?

DIFFUSION
The process of spreading is known as Diffusion or the overall movement of molecules from regions of higher concentration to regions of lower concentration .

OSMOSIS is the movement of a solvent, such as water, through a semi-permeable membrane.

Why are osmosis & diffusion important?

All living things have certain requirements they must satisfy in order to remain alive maintain homeostasis. These include exchanging gases (usually CO2 and O2), taking in water, minerals, and food, and eliminating wastes. These tasks happen at the cellular level. Molecules move through the cell membrane by diffusion.