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Enzyme Lab: Kalyn & Casias

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What are Enzymes: Enzymes are efficient specific catalysts.  Enzymes can speed up chemical processes that would otherwise run very slowly, if at all. Each enzyme can break down one particular compound. Enzymes are necessary for life and are present everywhere within organisms because enzymes are proteins.
 
 Experiment:1 The concentration of the enzyme effected the speed (rate) and amount of gas produced (end result). Our data showed a steady increase in the amount of gas produced for about six minutes and then it leveled off.
Data Found:
LEVEL                            DIFFERENCE (Start Lv. & Findings)
1.)    2.25                                        1.) .05
2.)    2.4                                          2.) .15
3.)    2.45                                        3.) .2
4.)    2.5                                          4.).25
5.)    2.6                                          5.).35
6.)    2.85                                        6.).6
7.)    2.9                                          7.) .65
8.)    3                                              8.).75
9.)    3.1                                          9.).76
10.) 3.1                                          10.).76
11.) 3.1                                          11.).76
 
Experiment 2: General observations learned as a class. Similar findings to experiment one with more enzyme present producing a faster breakdown rate.
Experiment 3: PH yielded a similar “U” shaped relationship as the temperature experiment. When a solution is more acidic or basic it carries a very high or very low concentration of Hydrogen ions making it difficult for the enzymes to react at a rapid speed.
Experiment#4: We found a “U” shaped curved graph effect between enzyme rate and temperature. Room temperature produced the fastest times, cold temperature yielded medium speeds and hot produced the slowest results. Enzymes only work on specific substrates so maybe heating hydrogen peroxide and the enzyme altered their structure of effectiveness towards each other. 
Data For Temperature:
Cold Trials
8 seconds
9 seconds
8 seconds
 
Room Temp.
7 seconds
7 seconds
4 seconds
6 seconds
 
Hot Trails
1:02
1:15
1:15
Final Analysis: Temperature and pH level directly effect the rate of a reaction. Temperature affects the speed of which molecules are forced into contact with each other. For our data, room temperature yielded the fastest rates of reaction. This might mean that a slight increase in temperature could yield faster results in another testing. The heated trails yielded the slowest temperatures. This suggests that an enzymes effectiveness as a catalyst is altered once it reaches a certain temperature. In this case we would guess extreme temperatures would yield the leveling off effect of a catalyst such as freezing or boiling points. We think extreme temperatures create such an effect because they probably succeed in altering the structure of the enzyme itself and therefore change the enzymes function. Similar to temperature, we think an extreme acidic solution or basic solution stop the optimal function of a enzyme. Instead, I think the room temperature or 7.0 pH are the best conditions for a enzyme to function.
 

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