The Effect of Copper on the Respiration Rate of

PeasBraver, Samantha; Kaul, Eshan; Le, Evey

Experimentation supervisor and sponsor:Dr. Sue Fenstemaker, PeahD

Statement of Problem

• Waste has become a problem in the environment. One prominent example of waste is heavy metals.

• The effect of copper on the germination of peas, representing the potentially negative effect waste has on plants in general was examined.

• If the peas are exposed to a copper environment, then their respiration rate will be lower than that of those without copper.

Background

• Anthropogenic activities, such as mining, smelting operation, and agriculture have greatly increased the levels of heavy metals such as Cd, Co, Cr, Pb, As, and Ni in the soil

• Heavy metals are persistent, and get accumulated in soils and plants

• These metals can have detrimental effects on plants, such as growth inhibition, structure damage, and declines in the normal functions of plants.

Procedures – Prep Period

• Procedures used were similar to that of AP Lab Investigation 6.

• 16 g of copper was cut into strips of about 1 inch

• 2 cups were prepared– Cup 1: 25 peas, 72 ml of water.– Cup 2: 25 peas, 72 ml water, 16 g copper

• Cups left to sit for 3 days in identical conditions

Procedure – Data Collection

• 3 days passed. Water was drained from 2 cups • Peas put into test tubes through methods

explained by AP Lab Investigation 6 – 15 drops KOH on absorbent cotton– non-absorbent cotton above absorbent– Peas on top

• Pressure test set-up followed (Vernier)• Data collected through Logger Pro

Baseline Data

Peas

Glass Beads

Experimental Data

Copper Exposed PeasNon Copper

Peas

-.0003893 kPa/s

1.446e-005 kPa/s

Discussion & Conclusion

• Peas that are exposed to a copper environment have a lower respiration rate than that of those without copper.

• Since copper represents the metal waste in the environment, and the copper was detrimental to the peas’ growth, we infer that increases in metal waste would correlate with decreases in positive plant growth