High School

You are provided with three beakers: Beaker A, Beaker B, and Beaker C, containing the following entities:

(i) Beaker A contains RBCs suspended in water.
(ii) Beaker B contains RBCs suspended in concentrated sugar solution.
(iii) Beaker C contains dead RBCs suspended in concentrated sugar solution.

Explain the behavior of RBCs in these three beakers after a few hours. Define the phenomenon responsible for such behavior.

Answer :

Final answer:

In beaker A, RBCs remain intact in water. In beaker B, RBCs shrink in concentrated sugar solution due to osmosis. In beaker C, dead RBCs don't show any behavior.

Explanation:

In beaker A, where RBCs are suspended in water, the RBCs will remain intact and distribute evenly throughout the water because water is the universal solvent and can keep the RBCs moist. In beaker B, where RBCs are suspended in concentrated sugar solution, the RBCs will shrink or crenate because water will leave the cells, causing the cells to lose water and shrink. In beaker C, where dead RBCs are suspended in concentrated sugar solution, the RBCs will not show any behavior as they are already dead.

The behavior of RBCs in these three beakers can be explained by osmosis. Osmosis is the movement of water from an area of low solute concentration to an area of high solute concentration through a semi-permeable membrane. In beaker B, the concentrated sugar solution has a higher solute concentration than the RBCs, causing water to leave the cells through osmosis. The primary topic of this question is the behavior of red blood cells in different solutions and the phenomenon of osmosis.

Learn more about Behavior of red blood cells in different solutions here:

https://brainly.com/question/34102673

#SPJ11