PHOTOSYNTHESIS

Photosynthesis

The process by which plants make food using energy from the sun

Chlorophyll

A green pigment found in chloroplasts

They trap (chlorophyll)

Light energy from the sun and convert it to chemical energy

Photosynthesis Diagram

Word Equation of Photosynthesis

Water + Carbon Dioxide Sunlight ~> Chlorophyll Glucose + Oxygen

Reactants

What's at the start of a reaction

Ex. (reactants)

Water and Carbon Dioxide

Products

What's made during a reaction

Ex. (products)

Glucose and Oxygen

Chemical Equation of Photosynthesis

6H2O + 6CO2 Sunlight ~> Chlorophyll C6H12O6 + 6O2

How leaves are adapted for photosynthesis

Sun - Thin - Chlorophyll - Size

Sun

Plants move to face the sun

Thin

Leaves are thin and have small openings to allow CO2 in and O2 out

Chlorophyll

Leaves contain lots of chlorophyll

Size

Flat and large to absorb sunlight

3 Factors affecting Photosynthesis

Light intensity, carbon dioxide concentration, temperature

Rate of Photosynthesis Experiment

Place a piece of

Pondweed that hasn’t been exposed to light in a tank of water, then position a lamp to face it

As the

Light intensity increases, the rate of photosynthesis should increase too

This can be

Observed by counting the oxygen bubbles produced over a minute or so

Pondweed is used

Because, in water, the oxygen bubbles from photosynthesis are more visible than in typical land plants.

Independent Variable

Light Intensity

Dependent Variable

Rate of Photosynthesis

Fixed Variable

Temperature