Egg Diffusion Lab

In this lab we asked the question, "How and why does a cell's internal environment change, as it's external environment changes?" We tested how hypertonic and hypotonic solutions affect a raw egg. First, we soaked an egg in vinegar. Next, in the hypotonic solution, the egg grew in size. This happened because the water entered the egg, increasing its size.Then we soaked the egg in the hypertonic solution, fructose corn syrup, the egg shriveled and decreased in size. The egg got smaller because the water exited out of the membrane, causing the shrinkage.

Placing the egg in vinegar did not change the shape or size of the egg, it did however change it's texture and changed it into a balloon-like substance. The water increased the size of the egg, because the water went into it. When soaked in sugar, the egg shrank and shriveled into a deformed egg, which appeared to have dents in the surface.

The mass of the egg changed -47.15% when soaked in the sugar concentration. The circumference decreased -24.24%. The solvent of sugar created indentations into the egg.

The internal environment of the egg changed when it was soaked in vinegar. Vinegar in the external environment caused the egg to become almost balloon-like. Water caused the egg to increase in size, and sugar water caused the egg's size to decrease.

This lab demonstrates the principle that hypertonic, isotonic, and hypotonic solutions cause a solute to change from its original state.

I think that foods such as pickles are kept in a jar with vinegar in order to preserve them. This concept applies to many different foods and how they are preserved.

Based on this experiment, I would like to test the affects of vinegar on other foods.