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Project Summary
| Difficulty | 8 |
| Time required | Average (about one week) |
| Safety | Adult supervision is recommended for this project. |
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Sponsor
| Sponsored by a generous grant from the Camille and Henry Dreyfus Foundation |
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| * Note: This is an abbreviated project idea, without notes to start your background research or a procedure for how to do the experiment. You can identify abbreviated project ideas by the asterisk at the end of the title. If you want a project idea with full instructions, please pick one without an asterisk. |
Abstract
Yeast contains an enzyme, called catalase, that acts as a catalyst for the reaction that breaks down hydrogen peroxide into oxygen and water (2H2O2 → 2H2O + O2). Safety note: oxygen is a highly reactive gas, adult supervision recommended for this project. For your background research, be sure that you understand substrate, catalyst, reaction rate, catalase, enzyme saturation and protein denaturation. Use a solution of 3% H2O2 for the substrate. Construct an apparatus that allows you to collect and measure the oxygen gas produced (for a description, see: An Aerobic Exercise: Yeast Metabolism with and without Aeration). Here are some questions you might try to answer with your project: What evidence do you have that the gas you are collecting is oxygen? How does the reaction rate depend on the amount of substrate? At what substrate concentration does the reaction show evidence of enzyme saturation? How does the reaction rate depend on temperature (try increments of 10°C)? At what temperature does the reaction show evidence of protein denaturation? How does the activity of yeast catalase compare to catalase from potato extract or liver extract? How does it compare to the activity of iron oxide? (Gardner, 1999, 97–99; Hamamah, 2005)Bibliography
- Gardner, R., 1999. Science Projects About Kitchen Chemistry. Berkeley Heights, NJ: Enslow Publishers.
- Hamamah, A. A., 2005. "How Do Substrate Amount, Temperature, pH, Enzyme Amount, and Inhibitor Affect Catalase Activity?" California State Science Fair 2005 Project Summary [accessed January 18, 2006] http://www.usc.edu/CSSF/Current/Projects/J0406.pdf.
Variations
- For more science project ideas in this area of science, see Chemistry Project Ideas.
Last edit date: 2006-12-27 18:10:31
Career Focus
If you like this project, you might enjoy exploring careers in Chemistry.
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Chemist Everything in the environment, whether naturally occurring or of human design, is composed of chemicals. Chemists search for and use new knowledge about chemicals to develop new processes or products. |
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Chemical Engineer Chemical engineers solve the problems that affect our everyday lives by applying the principles of chemistry. If you enjoy working in a chemistry laboratory and are interested in developing useful products for people, then a career as a chemical engineer might be in your future. | |
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Chemical Technician The role that the chemical technician plays is the backbone of every chemical, semiconductor, and pharmaceutical manufacturing operation. Chemical technicians conduct experiments, record data, and help to implement new processes and procedures in the laboratory. If you enjoy hands-on work, then you might be interested in the career of a chemical technician. | |||
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