Plant Pigments
In this lab, students will extract pigments from spinach leaves and analyze their samples using chromatography and colorimetry.
Students will use paper chromatography to separate the extract's pigments for identification. The colorimeter is used to determine the relative absorbance of four different colors of light (blue, green, orange, and red). Finally, students relate their chromatography results to their colorimetric data to refine their understanding of how plants capture light for photosynthesis. If available, a spectrometer can be used to view the full absorbance spectrum for spinach leaves.
Source: Advanced Biology Through Inquiry
Preview DownloadStudent Files
| ADVBIO_10_Plant_Pigments_S.docx | 1.27 MB | |
| ADVBIO_10_Plant_Pigments_S.pdf | 876.58 KB | |
| ADVBIO_10_Plant_Pigments_pt1.spklab | 5.69 KB |
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Standards Correlations
| IB Topics | AP Topics |
|---|---|
| 2.9 | 2; 4 |
Featured Equipment
Wireless Colorimeter & Turbidity Sensor
This sensor can function as a turbidimeter or colorimeter and is capable of measuring absorbance and transmittance at six different wavelengths.
Wireless Spectrometer (VIS)
Measure intensity, absorbance, transmittance across the visible spectrum, and fluorescence at 405nm and 500nm.
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