Diffusion and osmosis
Grade 9 Science Worksheet

Circle the best answer.
Read this first
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Lab card (model data). Coloring particles in two chambers joined by a membrane they can cross. Table with 3 rows. Columns: Time (minutes) | Left chamber | Right chamber. Rows: 0 | 24 | 0; 5 | 16 | 8; 10 | 13 | 11. A teacher ran the test; read about only.
Ari's class reads counts of food-coloring particles in two chambers joined by a membrane they can cross. What will the counts be after a long time?
- About 12 in each chamber, with particles still crossing both ways
- About 24 in the right chamber, because particles end up on the far side
- About 12 in each chamber, though no particle crosses back to the left
- About 12 in each chamber, with particles no longer crossing
Lab membrane drawing (model, not to scale). Dots of one substance can cross the membrane. Bo watches a model: side 1 holds 18 dots and side 2 holds 6. A teacher adds 12 dots to side 2. What happens next?
- There is no net movement, though the dots keep moving both ways
- The dots move from side 2 to side 1, because side 2 was added last
- The dots stop moving, since the two sides are equal
- The dots keep moving from side 1 to side 2 until side 2 holds more
No proteins are drawn. Esme reads a drawing with two gases near a cell membrane. Each gas crosses the bilayer alone. Which statement predicts the net movement?
Membrane drawing (model, not to scale). A bilayer of phospholipids with watery fluid outside the cell above and watery fluid inside the cell below. No proteins are drawn. Outside the cell: 12 oxygen molecules and 2 carbon dioxide molecules. Inside the cell: 3 oxygen molecules and 10 carbon dioxide molecules. Membrane drawing (model, not to scale). A bilayer of phospholipids with watery fluid outside the cell above and watery fluid inside the cell below. No proteins are drawn. Outside the cell: 12 oxygen molecules and 2 carbon dioxide molecules. Inside the cell: 3 oxygen molecules and 10 carbon dioxide molecules. Membrane drawing (model, not to scale) watery fluid outside the cell (above) 12 oxygen molecules; 2 carbon dioxide molecules bilayer of phospholipids O2 O2 O2 O2 O2 O2 O2 O2 O2 O2 O2 O2 CO2 CO2 watery fluid inside the cell (below) 3 oxygen molecules; 10 carbon dioxide molecules CO2 CO2 CO2 CO2 CO2 CO2 CO2 CO2 CO2 CO2 O2 O2 O2 - Oxygen moves in and carbon dioxide out, each down its own gradient
- Oxygen moves out and carbon dioxide moves in, because gases swap places
- Both gases move in, because the outside holds more molecules in total
- Oxygen moves in, and the cell spends energy to move carbon dioxide out
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Lab card (model data). Time for food coloring to spread to the far side of a cup. Table with 2 rows. Columns: Water | Time to spread (seconds). Rows: warm water | 30; cold water | 90. The cups were the same size and held the same amount of water. A teacher ran the test; read about only.
Jun's class drops food coloring into two cups of water and times how long the color takes to reach the far side. What does the card show?
- Warmer water slows diffusion, because particles crowd together
- Warmer water speeds diffusion, because particles have more thermal energy
- Cold water spreads color faster, because dense water pushes particles along
- The cups match, because diffusion is passive and needs no energy
Kira compares two cells where oxygen crosses the bilayer alone. Which cell has the faster net diffusion, and why?
Two membrane drawings (model, not to scale), each a bilayer of phospholipids with no proteins. Cell 1: 16 oxygen molecules outside and 2 inside. Cell 2: 8 oxygen molecules outside and 4 inside. The cells and the temperature are the same. Two membrane drawings (model, not to scale), each a bilayer of phospholipids with no proteins. Cell 1: 16 oxygen molecules outside and 2 inside. Cell 2: 8 oxygen molecules outside and 4 inside. The cells and the temperature are the same. Cell 1 Cell 2 outside: 16 oxygen molecules outside: 8 oxygen molecules inside: 2 oxygen molecules inside: 4 oxygen molecules The cells and the temperature are the same. - Cell 1, because a larger difference in concentration speeds diffusion
- The rates match, because both cells have more oxygen outside
- Cell 1, because the cell spends more energy when the gradient is steep
- Cell 2, because molecules move faster when the sides are closer to equal
Use this
Lab card (model data). Time for each substance to spread across a tank. Table with 2 rows. Columns: Substance | Molecule mass | Time to spread (seconds). Rows: L | lighter | 40; H | heavier | 100. Both tanks held the same warm water and the same starting gradient. A teacher ran the test; read about only.
Luz's class reads a card with two substances in the same warm tank. A third substance, M, has molecules heavier than L's but lighter than H's. Predict M's time.
- Exactly 40 seconds, since the same gradient gives the same time
- Between 40 and 100 seconds, since heavier molecules diffuse more slowly
- Under 40 seconds, since heavier molecules diffuse faster
- Exactly 140 seconds, since the two times add together
model, not to scale. Chloride ions cross a cell membrane through channel protein H, from 14 molecules outside to 5 inside. Milo classifies the transport. Which label fits?
Membrane drawing (model, not to scale). A bilayer of phospholipids with watery fluid outside the cell above and watery fluid inside the cell below. Letter H points to a protein that reaches all the way across the bilayer, with a tunnel shaped to fit chloride ions. Outside the cell: 14 chloride ions. Inside the cell: 5 chloride ions. Membrane drawing (model, not to scale). A bilayer of phospholipids with watery fluid outside the cell above and watery fluid inside the cell below. Letter H points to a protein that reaches all the way across the bilayer, with a tunnel shaped to fit chloride ions. Outside the cell: 14 chloride ions. Inside the cell: 5 chloride ions. Membrane drawing watery fluid outside the cell 14 chloride ions phospholipids H watery fluid inside the cell 5 chloride ions - Facilitated diffusion: through a protein, using energy from the cell
- Simple diffusion: passing between the tails, down the concentration gradient
- Osmosis: chloride ions crossing toward the side with more water
- Facilitated diffusion: passive, through a protein, down the gradient
Noah sorts four transport events shown on a membrane drawing. Which event is simple diffusion?
Membrane drawing (model, not to scale). A bilayer of phospholipids with watery fluid outside the cell above and watery fluid inside the cell below. Letter L points to a channel protein and letter M points to a carrier protein, both reaching all the way across the bilayer. Oxygen: 12 outside and 3 inside. Chloride ions: 10 outside and 4 inside. Glucose: 9 outside and 2 inside. Carbon dioxide: 3 outside and 11 inside. Membrane drawing (model, not to scale). A bilayer of phospholipids with watery fluid outside the cell above and watery fluid inside the cell below. Letter L points to a channel protein and letter M points to a carrier protein, both reaching all the way across the bilayer. Oxygen: 12 outside and 3 inside. Chloride ions: 10 outside and 4 inside. Glucose: 9 outside and 2 inside. Carbon dioxide: 3 outside and 11 inside. Oxygen: 12 Chloride ions: 10 Glucose: 9 Carbon dioxide: 3 watery fluid outside the cell Oxygen: 3 Chloride ions: 4 Glucose: 2 Carbon dioxide: 11 watery fluid inside the cell Membrane drawing (model, not to scale) L M - Carbon dioxide slips between the tails, powered by cell energy
- Oxygen slips between the tails, down its gradient, with no protein
- Glucose binds carrier M, which spends cell energy to change shape
- Chloride ions pass through channel L, down their gradient
Lab membrane drawing (model, not to scale). Pia reads a drawing of aquaporin channels in a lab membrane. Water crosses, but solute cannot. Which label fits the water movement?
Lab membrane drawing (model, not to scale). A selectively permeable membrane with fluid on side 1 above and fluid on side 2 below. Letter A points to an aquaporin, a channel protein that lets water cross. Solute dots cannot cross. Side 1 holds 4 solute dots and side 2 holds 10 solute dots. Lab membrane drawing (model, not to scale). A selectively permeable membrane with fluid on side 1 above and fluid on side 2 below. Letter A points to an aquaporin, a channel protein that lets water cross. Solute dots cannot cross. Side 1 holds 4 solute dots and side 2 holds 10 solute dots. fluid on side 1 fluid on side 2 aquaporin water A selectively permeable membrane Solute dots cannot cross. - Facilitated diffusion: the cell spends energy to open the aquaporin
- Osmosis: passive movement of water toward the side with less solute
- Osmosis: passive water movement toward the side with more solute
- Osmosis: movement of water that the cell powers with its energy
Use this
Lab drawing (model, not to scale). A U-tube with a selectively permeable membrane across the bottom. Water crosses it; sugar dots cannot. The left arm holds 2 sugar dots and the right arm holds 7 sugar dots. Both arms hold the same volume of fluid at the start.
Ren's class reads about a U-tube with a membrane at the bottom that passes water but not sugar. The arms start at the same level. Which arm's level rises?
- Neither arm, because water stops moving when the arms start level
- The right arm, because the sugar dots cross to the right
- The left arm, because water moves toward the side with less sugar
- The right arm, because water moves toward the side with more sugar