Photosynthesis Lab Report

Based on the prompt above, “Investigate how light and darkness contribute to the cycling of carbon through both cellular respiration and photosynthesis of a plant” we devised a hypothesis that states, If we place the two test tube, one with carbonated water and the other regular water, with the Elodea inside a dark environment it will perform cellular respiration as it will not receive enough light energy to perform photosynthesis. From the result of our experiment we found that the test tube with tap water and Elodea changed from its original color of Blue to a more faded shade of blue. The result showed that cellular respiration occurred as it used up the oxygen which caused the bromothymol blue indicator to fade a bit as the concentration
In order to fully understand why each test tube had a change in color 3 factors must be fully comprehended: photosynthesis, cellular respiration and the limiting factors. Photosynthesis occurs in all plants. Photosynthesis is the process which plants and other organisms perform to convert light energy into chemical energy (Bassham 2017). There are two cycles that contribute to photosynthesis: calvin cycle and the light dependent reaction. The light dependent reaction is a process which occurs in the thylakoid. The light absorbed by the chlorophyll is used to energize the electron atoms inside the thylakoid which leads to the energized electrons moving through the electron transport chain and ultimately producing NADPH from the reaction of NADP+ and an energized electron (Biggs). The energized electrons also contribute to the existence of hydrogen ions inside the thylakoid membrane. The hydrogen ions is then moved down a concentration gradient through the ATP synthase to maintain homeostasis. The energy accumulated from the hydrogen ions passing through combined with ADP creates another substance, ATP. During this entire process water is also moved into the thylakoid space and the light energy absorbed helps splits the