PHOTOSYNTHESIS

Treshana Taylor

SC211PRB: Science for Primary Teachers 2

Primary Education, The St Joseph’s Teachers College

Keisha Foster-McFarlane

October 18, 2022

Aim: To investigate if chlorophyll is necessary for photosynthesis.

Materials and Apparatus:

Iodine, variegated leaf, ethanol, boiling tube, beaker, heater, dropping pipette, boiling tube

holder, forceps, petri-dish

Method:

A variegated leaf was removed from a plant and drawn to show the variegated potion.

Approximately 200cm3 of water was measured and poured in a beaker. The water was brought

to a boil (water bath). The leaf was placed in the water bath for 1 minute after which 20cm3 of

ethanol was measured and poured into a boiling tube. The variegated leaf was placed in the

boiling tube with the ethanol, and the boiling tube was placed in the water bath for 5 minutes.

After 5 minutes, the leaf was carefully removed from the tube and rinsed under running tap water

for 30 seconds. The leaf was then spread on a petri dish against a white background, and a few

drops of iodine was added to cover the entire leaf. Observations of the changes in the leaf was

recorded and the leaf drawn after the completion of the experiment.
Observation/Results:

Table showing observations at different steps/intervals of the experiment.

STEPS/INTERVALS OBSERVATIONS

While removing the leaf from the plant The leaf was a bright dark green colour at the

edge of the leaf and cream in the middle/center.

While placing the leaf in boiling water The water changed from crystal clear to a light

yellow colour.

While placing the boiling tube containing the The ethanol changed from a crystal clear to a

leaf and ethanol in the water bath bright green colour.

After carefully removing the leaf from the The leaf changed bright dark green colour at the

boiling tube edge to a light green colour. The cream center

had a see through colour and the leaf became

fragile and thin.

After adding the few drops of iodine The green areas on the leaf changed to blue-

black and the cream areas remained the colour

of the reddish-brown iodine.

Photosynthesis is the process by which plants make food by using carbon dioxide and

water in the presence of light energy and chlorophyll. An experiment was carried out to

investigate if chlorophyll (the green-pigmented part of the plant) is necessary for photosynthesis.

At the beginning of the experiment, the leaf was placed in hot water to kill the leaf cell, disrupt

the cell membrane, and soften the cell wall. Observations showed that the water changed from a

crystal clear liquid to a pale yellow colour. Ethanol was then placed in a tube along with the leaf

and boiled, and the ethanol changed from a crystal clear liquid to a bright green colour. The

ethanol helped to remove the chlorophyll from the cell because the ethanol can break the already

soft cell wall of the leaf to extract the chlorophyll. Evidence of the ethanol changing to bright

green colour proved that the green seen was the chlorophyll that was removed and mixed with

ethanol. After rinsing the leaf, iodine, used to test for the presence of starch, was added to the

leaf.

Before adding the iodine, the leaf was light green at the edges and cream and thin in the

middle, however, after adding the iodine to the leaf, the dark green part turned blue-black, and

the white part turned a reddish-brown colour. Iodine is an indicator that turns blue-black in the

presence of starch and remains reddish brown when no starch is present. The green part of the

leaf turned blue-black and had chlorophyll present, which demonstrates that the leaf has been

performing photosynthesis and forming starch. Starch consists of glucose molecules, a product of

photosynthesis. For photosynthesis to occur, certain conditions and raw materials must be

present. The plant already has carbon dioxide and water as the raw materials and chlorophyll as a

condition. However, light energy is another condition, and it is the chlorophyll that is present that
traps the light energy to begin the process of photosynthesis. So if no chlorophyll is present in

plants, no photosynthesis can occur.

Some issue that was present was some parts of the leaf remained green. Two factors that

could have influenced this are enough iodine reaching these areas, or the hot water did not touch

those areas of the leaf to soften the cell wall properly.

Conclusion:

Based on the observations conducted, it could conclude that the green part of a plant contains

chlorophyll. The chlorophyll is necessary for photosynthesis as plants need to have chlorophyll

which is a condition needed to absorb light energy (another condition needed) and start the

process of making their own food known as photosynthesis.

Reference

Photosynthesis - Definition and Examples - Biology Online Dictionary. (2022, July 15). Biology

Articles, Tutorials & Dictionary Online. Retrieved October 13, 2022, from

https://www.biologyonline.com/dictionary/photosynthesis

Test for Starch in Plants. (2021, July 27). Home Science Tools Resource Center. Retrieved

October 13, 2022, from https://learning-center.homesciencetools.com/article/test-for-

starch-photosynthesis/

Testing a leaf for starch - Photosynthesis – WJEC - GCSE Biology (Single Science) Revision -

WJEC. (n.d.). BBC Bitesize. Retrieved October 13, 2022, from

https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/guides/zpcvbk7/revision/3