Question 1
Graph the effects of changing pH on enzyme activity. In humans, what is the pH for optimal activity of most enzymes?
Question 2
Carbon dioxide and water readily combine to form carbonic acid. The change in pH as the acid dissociates can be demonstrated with an indicator dye that changes color at a particular pH. In your physiology lab, you perform this experiment in two beakers containing room-temperature water and indicator, labeled as A and B. CO
2 is bubbled into solutions A and B from a pressurized tank for 10 seconds. A stopwatch was used to measure how long it took for the solutions to change color. The data below were generated by the students.
Student | Time for reaction (seconds): Solution A | Time for reaction (seconds): Solution B |
1 | 62 | 1 |
2 | 58 | 2 |
3 | 57 | 3 |
Write the chemical equation for this reaction. Determine average values for each beaker. Explain how the reaction times differed. What may be present in beaker B that is absent from beaker A?