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Title: Examine the relationship b/n surface area:volume ratio & rate of diffusion? Post by: FerielCullen on Sep 12, 2010 Experiment: Examine the relationship between surface area to volume ratio and the rate of diffusion?
This was done with pink agar blocks of varying dimensions.Ive recorded the data (time and dimensions) keeping the volume of acid constant. How do I calculate the rate of diffusion with that data?For example 2 x 2 x 1 cm3 took 7minutes 39 seconds in 5cc of HCl. Any help is appreciated!! Title: Re: Examine the relationship b/n surface area:volume ratio & rate of diffusion? Post by: bio_man on Sep 12, 2010 Without doing the experiment...
Recall that for a block of agar: Volume = surface area x height and that the rate of diffusion depends on the density of the agar, not the dimensions. For a cell: If two cells with equal volumes but differing surface areas are placed in a solution, the one with a higher surface are will experience a greater rate of diffusion. in a simplistic model, the surface area is what really matters when it comes to diffusion. So, in general: As the surface area and volume increase, the speed of diffusion slows down. This is because the more surface area you have, the farther the food and waste must travel to get to the membrane. After it gets too big, diffusion stops and the cell dies because of starvation and buildup of waste. |