Study of Osmosis Along A Free-Energy Gradient

STUDY OF OSMOSIS ALONG A FREE-ENERGY GRADIENT USING SUCROSE AND DIALYSIS TUBING ABSTRACT Osmosis is diffusion of water across a differentially permeable membrane in living organisms and is vital to the functioning of living cells. Osmosis can be simulated by using dialysis tubing; each bag represents an individual cell. This experiment was to determine the flow of osmosis in various types of environments: hypertonic, hypotonic, and isotonic. In order to do this, each dialysis bag …

…throw off the weights; and electrical errors in the scale. In conclusion, the experiment was successful, because it verified the hypothesis. Bag A with its hypotonic solution lost weight, Bag B with its isotonic solution remained at relatively the same weight, and Bags C & D with their hypertonic solutions gained weight. Thus, the experiment supports the theory that osmosis flows from areas of low concentration to areas of high concentration, from hypotonic to hypertonic solutions.