Trapping Energy
Have you ever used a solar-powered calculator? No matter where you go, as long as you have a light source, the calculator works. You never have to put batteries in it.
Section 8-2
Interest Grabber
• 1. A solar-powered calculator uses solar cells that are found in rows along the top of the calculator. Into what kind of energy is the light energy converted so that the calculator works?
• 2. Recall that plants use light energy from the sun to make food. Into what kind of energy is the light energy converted by plants?
• 3. Most plants, no matter what size or shape they are, have some parts that are green. Which parts of a plant are usually green?
• 4. What does the green color have to do with the plant’s ability to convert light energy into the energy found in the food it makes?
Interest Grabber continued
Chapter 8.2Photosynthesis: An Overview
Photosynthesis
• Plants use energy of sunlight to convert water and carbon dioxide into high-energy carbohydrates – sugars and starches – and oxygen– Oxygen is considered a
waste product of photosynthesis
Light Energy
Chloroplast
CO2 + H2O Sugars + O2
Section 8-2
Photosynthesis: Reactants and Products
Jan van Helmont
• Experiment find out if plants grew by taking material out of the soil
• Determined mass of dry soil and seedling• Watered seed regularly
– After 5 years – mass of tree changed, while mass of soil remained unchanged
• Concluded that increase in mass was due to the water– Accounts for “hydrate” in carbohydrate– Carbon from carbon dioxide accounts for
“carbo” in carbohydrate
Van Helmont’s Experiment
Joseph Priestly
• Experimented with fire in a jar with a sprig of mint– Fire needed oxygen to keep burning– Putting a jar over the flame put the fire
out– If mint was placed in jar, fire would
keep burning
• Concluded that plants gave off oxygen
Summary:burning candle + bell jar → candle goes out + add a mint plant → candle can be relit mouse + bell jar → dead mouse + add a mint plant → mouse lives
Questions:1. Why did the candle burn out when placed under bell jar? 2. Why could the candle be relit after allowing it growth with a mint plant? 3. Why does a mouse die when it is placed under a bell jar? 4. Why was the mouse able to survive when placed in the jar with a mint plant?
Jan Ingenhousz• Showed that the experiment done by
Priestly only occurred if the plant was in light– Light is needed to produce oxygen
• Put all three scientists together:Put all three scientists together:– In the presence of light, plants transform In the presence of light, plants transform
carbon dioxide and water into carbon dioxide and water into carbohydrates, and they also release carbohydrates, and they also release oxygenoxygen
Photosynthesis Equation
6CO6CO22 + 6H + 6H22O O LIGHTLIGHT C C66HH1212OO66 + 6O + 6O22
Light
• Light is a form of energy that travels in waves– White light is a mixture of light of
different wavelengths• When broken down, white light produces the
visible spectrum (400nm – 750 nm)• ROY G. BIVROY G. BIV
– Red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet– Red has a longer wavelength than violet
Pigments of Plants
• PigmentsPigments – light absorbing pigments– Because light is energy – energy is absorbed
by the pigments• Their electrons get excited to a higher energy level
• ChlorophyllChlorophyll – main light absorbing pigment of plants– Two types: chlorophyll a and chlorophyll b– Absorbs light in the blue-violet and red
regions; reflects green light
Absorption of Light byChlorophyll a and Chlorophyll b
V B G Y O R
Chlorophyll b
Chlorophyll a
1. How does the color spectrum at the bottom relate to the graph?
2. In what region of the spectrum does chlorophyll a absorb light best?
3. In what region of the spectrum does chlorophyll b absorb light best?
4. In what region of the spectrum do neither types of chlorophyll absorb light well at?
Pigments of Plants
• CarotenoidsCarotenoids – red, orange, and yellow pigments in plants– Absorb light in the other regions of the
spectrum
• Leaves change color because the chlorophyll molecules fade away and the carotenoids are left over
Photosynthesis Video
• Photosynthesis
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