WORD COUNT:1200
Amman Ilyas Chuhan | 9K
DIFFUSION LABORATORY REPORT
RESEARCH QUESTION:
How does increasing the temperature of a certain amount of water
affect the rate of diffusion of a substance?
INTRODUCTION:
Diffusion is the natural process by which molecules diffuse throughout a certain substance, such
as water or air. It is the movement of particles down the diffusion gradient, from an area of high
concentration to an area of low concentration. The aim of this investigation or experiment is to
determine the effect of increasing the temperature on a substances diffusion rate. Although, the
experiment me and my partner planned is a straightforward experiment, it is designed to be
really clear in giving us the information to come up with a logical conclusion which we can
support with hardcore evidence. The materials and apparatus required in order to conduct this
experiment are as listed below.
HYPOTHESIS
While thinking about the experiment and diffusion, I
came up with three possible outcomes for what
changing the temperatures effects would be. I have 3
predictions as to what the outcomes of this
experiment will be and how increasing the water
temperature will affect the rate of diffusion.
1. Increase Rate of Diffusion
I hypothesize that increasing the temperature of the solvent will result in an increase in the rate
of diffusion. This is because, as the temperature increases, the water molecules move around
faster and more vigorously causing the solute to be moved around faster, or in other words,
increase the rate of diffusion.
2. Decrease Rate of Diffusion
Another hypothesis that I have is that increasing the temperature might actually increase the
time it takes to diffuse. I believe this might be true because the since the water will be warmer
the Potassium might stay at the top, decreasing pressure and causing slower diffusion rates.
3. Diffusion Rate Remains Constant
My last hypothesis is that it might not have any significant result at all. I talked about how the
water molecules move faster in a higher temperature of water and how that might affect the rate
of diffusion to increase. However, I realized the increased movement might not have any
significant effect as the water molecules may be too small to create any significant results.
However, I believe the first hypothesis is probably the most logical hypothesis.
VARIABLES
As in every other experiment, there were several variables, some of which were kept constant
while others were either studied or changed.
Controlled Variables (Variables that remain constant throughout the experiment)
- Beaker Size (40 ml beaker)
- Solvent (Water)
- Solvent Source (Tap)
- Amount of Solvent (40 ml)
- Solute (Potassium Permanganate)
- Amount of Solute (0.03g)
Independent Variable (Variable that will be changed to test its effects on Dependent Variable)
- Temperature
Dependent (Variable that will be a result of change in independent variable)
- Diffusion Rate
METHOD / EXPERIMENT PROCESS
1. Fill the 40 mL beaker
with 15C water, and using the
thermometer to confirm the
temperature.
2. Using a precise scale,
measure out 0.03g of
Potassium Permanganate.
3. Start recording on the
camera (optional).
4. Simultaneously, start the stopwatch and add the 0.03g of Potassium
Permanganate to the water.
5. Stop the stopwatch when the Potassium Permanganate has evenly diffused
around the base of the beaker.
6. Record the Results.
7. Repeat steps 1 to 6 for water temperatures of 25C, 70C.
TEST TRIALS
Before actually conducting the final trials, me and my partner conducted a few test trials in order
to decide certain factors, such as the size of the beaker and the amount of Potassium
Permanganate we would use for the final trails.
First Test Trial
During the first test trial we used a significantly large beaker of 1000 mL or 1L and an excessive
amount of Potassium Permanganate, about 3 grams. While conducting the first trial we figured
out that our beaker was excessively large and that the amount of Potassium Permanganate we
should use needs to be much less than 3 grams.
Second Test Trial
During the second test trial we used a smaller 200ml flask and filled it with room temperature
water. During this trial we also reduced the amount of Potassium Permanganate we use to 1
gram. However, the moment we started the trial, I realized that even 1 gram was more than
required for the experiment. In addition, I also realized that waiting for the Potassium
Permanganate to fully diffuse would require me to observe for way more than one period,
possibly several hours. I also deduced that using the 200ml flask might also be not the best
option.
Third Test Trial
During the last test trial, me and Manato settled down on the smallest beaker, the 40 ml beaker.
We decided that this would definitely be the best choice as it would be the fastest and most
efficient. We also decided to come up with another technique to measure the rate of diffusion.
Initially, we were leaning towards using a time limit and comparing the two at the end of the
timer. However, we wanted to be able to use some numbers to represent the distance and so
we decided to measure how long it would take for the Potassium Permanganate to evenly
diffuse around the base. Then we could actually, measure the difference in seconds. For the
amount of Potassium Permanganate we decided to use 0.5 grams. But then, we realised that
0.3 grams would be a better choice as it would diffuse faster with 0.3 grams rather than 0.5
grams.
Our final decision was to use a 40 ml beaker with 0.03g of Potassium Permanganate
measuring the time it takes it to fully diffuse around the base.
TEMPERATURE AND DIFFUSION TRIALS
Water Temp. Trial 1 Trial 2 Trial 3 Images
(s) (s) (s) (Trial 1)
15C (40ML) 2:10 2:03 2:10
25C (40ML) 0:55 1:00 1:03
70C (40ML) 0:33 0:30 0:27
The information was really interesting and it can be better understood or represented if shown
on a graph. I will be using the three trials average value for the graph.
15C Average
Step 1: Record Data
15C (40ML) 2:10 2:03 2:10
Step 2: Convert time into Seconds
15C (40ML) 130s 123s 130s
Step 3: Add time measurements:
130+123+130=387
Step 4: Divide by number of values previously added: (Final Value for Average)
387/3 129 s
25C Average
Step 1: Record Data
25C (40ML) 0:55 1:00 1:03
Step 2: Convert time into Seconds
25C (40ML) 55s 60s 63s
Step 3: Add time measurements:
55+60+63=178
Step 4: Divide by number of values previously added: (Final Value for Average)
178/3 59 s
70C Average
Step 1: Record Data
70C (40ML) 0:33 0:30 0:27
Step 2: Convert time into Seconds
70C (40ML) 33s 30s 27s
Step 3: Add time measurements:
33+30+27=90
Step 4: Divide by number of values previously added: (Final Value for Average)
Using the average values, I calculated the following information:
Temperature Avg. Time
15C 129s
25C 59s
70C 30s
70C is 29 seconds faster than 25C and 99 seconds faster than 15C.
I also used this average calculated data to graph this Temperature vs Rate of Diffusion graph.
The Temperature vs. Diffusion Rate graph represents the rate of diffusion as time passes by. I
used a line of best-fit to connect the dots in order to be able to actually predict what some other
value might be without any experimentation.
CONCLUSION / DISCUSSION
After conducting the trials and collecting the data I was able to answer the initial research
question:
How does increasing the temperature of a certain amount of water
affect the rate of diffusion of a substance?
Increasing the temperature of a certain amount of water affects the diffusion rate by decreasing
the amount of time it takes for the Potassium Permanganate to fully diffuse around the base, or
in other words increase the rate of diffusion by speeding up the process. If you think about it, it
makes sense now. Increasing the temperature causes the diffusion rate to increase because it
has a similar effect to when the water is manually mixed with outer interference. The mixing
motion causes the water particles to move around faster. And quite literally the same thing
happens when water temperature is increased; the molecules move around faster causing the
Potassium Permanganate to diffuse faster than it would at a lower temperature. This explains
why drinks such as coffee, which require mixing, are put together at higher temperatures in
order to increase the diffusion rate and make it more efficient and faster.
