Osmosis in roots
Osmosis moves water through roots, the concentration gradient across root membranes that lets a plant take up the nutrients dissolved in soil water.
The science behind this experiment
Osmosis is the movement of solvent molecules through a semi-permeable membrane due to a gradient of concentration between two solutions. This phenomenon is responsible for the absorption of nutritive substances through roots.
Equipment used
- Beaker 500 ml — HEA-003
- Cork borer — PLA-023
- Dropping pipette with teats — PLA-003+PLA-019
- Glass delivery tube — PLA-006
- Carrot
- Toothpicks
Chemicals and reagents
- Concentrated sucrose solution
- Methyl blue dye — R:20/21/22
Questions for students
- Report your observations, trying to explain why the liquid level rises.
What to expect
After an hour the level of the liquid rises due to osmotic pressure. The concentration of sucrose is higher in the carrot and water therefore will tend to enter. The absorption of water stops when the weight of the liquid column balances the osmotic pressure.
Disposal
Drain the carrot into the acids and bases waste container.
Run this experiment in your classroom
This experiment is part of ATP Volta — a self-contained mobile science lab that turns an ordinary classroom into a working STEM laboratory, with over 200 experiments in physics, chemistry, biology, robotics and engineering. Gali, the AI tutor built into ATP Connect, guides students through each step and answers their questions at the bench.
See the ATP Volta mobile science labTalk to our team