Surface Area to Volume Ratio

Aim: To use a model to investigate the effect of: a) Size on SA/V ratio b) Shape on SA/V ratio c) SA/V ratio on the rate of diffusion into an object Risk Assessment:

Identify: Acid may irritate eyes if splashed, scalpel may cut someone, and skin may start to be
eaten away by agar.

Assess: Acid may irritate or hurt eye if in contact with eye after splashing, scalpel may injure
someone if misused, and skin may become irritated due to touching the agar.

Control: Wear goggles and be careful when turning the cubes in the acid not to splash, take care
when using the scalpel to cut and do not hold in dangerous positions when walking around with one, and wear gloves while handling the agar. Results: Part A: Cube side (cm) 3 2 1 Part B: Shape Sphere Cylinder Cube Sheet Part C: Cube Side (cm) Volume (cm3) SA/V Depth of penetration (cm) 0.2 0.2 0.3 Volume left coloured (Vc)(cm3) 17.576 4.096 0.064 C% Percentage peretrated (P%) 100C% 34.90 48.8 93.6 Volume (cm3) 27 27 27 27 SA (cm2) 43.5 50 54 78 SA/V 1.61 1.85 2.00 2.89 SA 54 24 6 V 27 8 1 SA/V 2 3 6

3 2 1 Discussion:

27 8 1

2 3 6

65.10 51.2 6.4

1. State in words: a. The effect of size on SA/V ratio.

The effect of the size on the SA/V ratio is that as the size increases, the SA/V ratio decreases.

b. The effect of shape on SA/V ratio.

The shapes that were the flattest and had the largest surface area also had the greatest SA/V ratio.

2. What is the effect of SA/V on the rate of diffusion of materials into an object?
The greater the SA/V, the greater the percentage of diffusion there is on the object. The smaller the SA/V ratio is, the smaller the percentage of diffusion is.

3. What is the significance of these results for living cells?

The significance of these results for living cells is that if a cell requires the ability of diffusion to survive, it must maintain a SA/V ratio that will increase its diffusion capabilities. For example, instead of a cell being a sphere shape, it may become flat to be able to have a much larger SA/V ratio which in turn will increase the rate of diffusion. This information here describes why many living cells may have adapted to make the best of their diffusion capabilities (one example of this may include the leaves on plants which are flat allowing them to catch more sunlight to photosynthesise).

4. Describe another example where SA/V ratio has an important role to play.
SA/V has a very important role to play when a cell is excreting waste products. If the SA/V ratio is too small, the wastes may not all be able to be excreted so there may be a waste build up in the cell which could be very harmful.

5. What are the main limitations of the jelly models?

The main limitation of the jelly models is that they cannot accurately be made into some shapes such as the sphere or cylinder to test the diffusion of those shapes. Another limitation is that it is relatively difficult to cut the cubes exactly in the correct size. The jelly models also only show the effects of the acid going into the cube, but neglects to show the effects of anything in the cube going out (such as waste excreted from a cell). Conclusion: The effects of size on SA/V ratio, shape on SA/V ratio and SA/V ratio on the rate of diffusion into an object were observed through the use of models.