Dissolved Oxygen with Varying Depth,Temperature, and Salinity

Date: August 27, 2015

Lab Partners: Patrisha Carter, Kylar Hanley, Andrea Jansen, and Jordan Johnson
Introduction:
When studying dissolved oxygen it is pivotal to take into consideration the multiple
variables that can affect the amount of D.O. produced. These factors include the temperature of
the environment, the salinity, and the depth (which is also known as light intensity). Before being
able to experiment and observe the D.O. amount there are several terms that have to be discussed
in order to fully comprehend the lab. First, gross primary productivity is the total amount of
energy made by autotrophs. The autotrophs hold on to some of this energy in order to sustain
their own lives in the process of cellular respiration, where organisms produce energy and release
other molecules, such as carbon dioxide. What the producers don't use is considered net primary
productivity, which represents the total amount of energy available to consumers. NPP (Net
Primary Productivity) is actually measured by subtracting the amount of energy it takes to
complete cellular respiration from the overall amount of energy produced by autotrophs, gross
primary productivity. Primary productivity can also be measured by the amount of dissolved
oxygen in the water. Overall, the lab allows the participant to see how the abiotic factors (e.g.
light intensity) and biotic factors (e.g. algae) affect the amount of dissolved oxygen in the aquatic
environments.
Purpose of the LabThe purpose of this experiment is to reveal how abiotic (e.g. light intensity) and biotic factors
(e.g. algae) affect the dissolved oxygen levels in the lake water and essentially the primary
productivity of the organisms.
Experimental Design:
Question- How do different abiotic factors impact dissolved oxygen levels in various water
samples?
HypothesisExample A (Temperature): As the temperature decreases, the D.O. (Dissolved Oxygen) level will
increase in the water.
Example B (Salinity): As the salinity increases, the D.O. (Dissolved Oxygen) level will decrease
in the water.
Example C (Depth): As the light intensity decreases, the D.O. (Dissolved Oxygen) level will
decrease in the water.
VariablesIndependent Variable:
Example A (Temperature): Temperature.

 Example B (Salinity) : Level of Salinity.

Example C (Depth): Light Intensity.
Dependent Variable:
Dissolved Oxygen.
Controls:
Example A (Temperature): Room Temperature.
Example B (Salinity): Freshwater.
Example C (Depth): The Initial Value.
Constant:
Example A (Temperature): Same amount of water (20 mL), Same amount of each
chemicals from the LaMotte D.O. test kit (thiosulfate, starch, iodine), light intensity.
Example B (Salinity): Same amount of water (20 mL), Same amount of
chemicals from the LaMotte D.O. test kit (thiosulfate, starch, iodine).
Example C (Depth): Same amount of water(20 mL), Same amount of chemicals
from the LaMotte D.O. test kit (thiosulfate, starch, iodine).
Safety:
Wearing the proper protective gear (i.e. goggles, rubber gloves, closed-toed
shoes).
Pull long hair up and secure any baggy clothing or loose jewelry.
Rinse and clean bottles and other equipment after using chemicals.
Wash hands with soap and water after completion of the experiment.
Materials:
See Lab Handout
Procedure:
"See Lab Handout"
Results:
Table 1: Temperature
Temperature

Lab Group D.O.

(ppm)

Class Mean D.O. Lab Group %

Class Mean %
(ppm)
D.O. Saturation
Saturation (from
(from nomogram nomogram)
)

20C

6.4

83

65.5

14C

7.1

7.1

65

69

Salinity

Lab Group D.O.

(ppm)

Class Mean D.O. Lab Group %

(ppm)
D.O. Saturation

Class Mean %
D.O. Saturation

0 ppt

6.6

6.45

70

Table 2: Salinity

72

32 ppt

4.6

53

61

Table 3: Respiration
Lab Group Data

Class Mean Data

Initial D.O.

6.8

6.1

Dark Bottle D.O.

3.8

Respiration Rate (Initial Dark)

2.8

2.3

Table 4: Lab Group Data- Productivity of Screen-Wrapped Samples

% Light

D.O. (ppm)

Gross Productivity
(Light Bottle - Dark
Bottle)

Net Productivity
(Light Bottle - Initial
Bottle

100%

6.7

2.7

-0.1

65%

5.4

1.4

-1.4

25%

5.2

1.3

-1.6

10%

-0.8

2%

6.6

2.6

-0.2

Table 5: Class Mean Data- Productivity of Screen- Wrapped Samples

% Light

Gross Productivity- D.O.

(ppm)

Net Productivity- D.O. (ppm)

100%

2.65

0.1

65%

1.55

-1.0

25%

1.15

-1.4

10%

1.35

-1.2

2%

1.285

-1.4

Graphing Exercise A for Water Temperature

Graphing Exercise C for Light Intensity:

Conclusion:
Discussion Questions-

1. Three ways primary productivity can be measured is by calculating the production

of oxygen (O2), amount of carbon dioxide (CO2), and production of glucose (C6H12O6).
2. As the amount of dissolved oxygen increases, so does the amount of carbon. This
is because carbon is a component of glucose (chemical energy) which is created during
photosynthesis. The amount of oxygen is used to calculate how much chemical energy is
produced through photosynthesis. In our lab, for each milliliter of oxygen produced,
approximately 0.536 milligrams of carbon has been assimilated. At 100% light intensity
the amount of carbon assimilation would be 0.0374 mg/L.
3. On average, when the temperature decrease the amount of D.O. (Dissolved
Oxygen) will increase because water with a colder temperature tends to contains higher
levels of D.O..
4. On average, when the salinity increases, the D.O. (Dissolved Oxygen) will
decrease. This occurs because the dissolved oxygen becomes less soluble as the salinity
increases.
5. a) There will be no gross productivity at 0% light intensity. b)There will be no net
productivity at 100% (98% when calculated) light intensity.
6. Due to differences in the production of oxygen on land and in the sea, mammals
use less energy than fish do for respiratory processes. More specifically, the air has a
higher oxygen content than the ocean does, which cause the fish to spend more energy
acquiring the needed amount oxygen. This phenomenon is most likely due to the fact that
trees, have a larger size and are able to produce a larger amount of oxygen than the small
algae organisms that live in the aquatic environment.
7. The lake would have a lower D.O. level than that of the stream. Aeration aides in
the amount of dissolved oxygen in the stream due to its movement. The shallowness of
the stream also allows the light to easily penetrate it and by the process of photosynthesis,
the autotrophs are able to produce more oxygen and chemical energy.
8. Because the lake would have been introduced to more sunlight later in the day,
more
photosynthesis could occur. In turn, the D.O. concentration of water would be
lower earlier in the morning at seven than at five in the evening, because the organisms
would have had more resources to produce oxygen.
9. Eutrophication is defined as an unnatural process of adding nutrients to aquatic
environments, and is usually a result of human activity. This can be detrimental to the
aquatic environment, because the additional amount of nitrogen and phosphorus can
cause algae to die and decrease the production of oxygen. Furthermore, when the the
level of the chemicals reaches a dangerous amount it can kill off entire populations and
throw off the carbon cycle.
10. Initially, Fish Bowl A will have more oxygen available for the fish because it has
the bigger volume of water. Over time, however, Fish Bowl B will have more oxygen
available because of its greater contact with the air due to a larger surface area.
Paragraph DiscussionThe first hypothesis expressed that when temperature decreases dissolved oxygen
increases was correct. In our data, when the temperature decreased the dissolved oxygen

increased by small amounts. By receiving dissolved oxygen data at 20 degrees Celsius and 14
degrees Celsius, the lab group saw that the oxygen increased from 7 to 7.1 respectively.By
looking at the data for the salinity lab, our second hypothesis was correct. When the water is at 0
ppt salinity the dissolved oxygen is at 6.6 ppm, and when the water is at 32 ppt salinity the
dissolved oxygen is at 4 ppm. Our data demonstrates that when salinity increases the dissolved
oxygen decreases. Our third hypothesis was correct because in table 5 as the light increases the
dissolved oxygen increases. The depth of the lake is a factor that affects the dissolved oxygen
levels present in that lake. As the lake gets deeper, less light will be able to reach that depth. This
in turn doesn't give the autotrophs that live deeper in the lake the resources to create oxygen
through the process of photosynthesis.
While conducting the lab there are several possible errors that could have occurred. For
example, there could have been small air bubbles when filling the sample bottles. This could
result in an inaccurate measure of oxygen in the sample when measuring it with the various
chemicals. Another possible error would be a student misreading the pipet, which means that an
incorrect amount of chemicals could have been added. This mistake could result in imprecise
data, especially during the last step when calculating the amount of dissolved oxygen in the
sample. Also, not shaking the tube when adding the final chemical would give an inaccurate
depiction of how much dissolved oxygen was in the sample. In addition, there are also additional
questions that would be helpful to further explore. For example, if we changed the source of
water would this have an effect on the amount of dissolved oxygen? Could the specific type of
algae found in our sample affect the amount of dissolved oxygen? Finally, how can we test the
amount of carbon used or the amount of glucose produced when looking at the process of
photosynthesis happening in our sample?
References:
Campbell, Neil, Jane Reece, Lisa Urry, Michael Cain, Steven Wasserman, Peter Minorsky, and
Robert Jackson. Biology. Eighth ed. San Francisco: Benjamin Cummings, 2008. Print.
ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily. Web. 2 Sept. 2015.
<http://www.sciencedaily.com/terms/ewutrophication.htm>.
Web. 2 Sept. 2015. <http://www.biologyjunction.comap_sample_lab_12_dissolved_oxyge.htm>.