Fungus Among Us: How Yeast-Powered Balloons Reveal Secrets of Fermentation

Overview

Objectives/Goals The objective is to learn more about fermentation by observing how yeast, a common fungus used in the fermentation process, reacts with different liquids. Methods/Materials When fermentation occurs, carbon dioxide is released. The experiment was designed to measure the amount of carbon dioxide released by eight different liquids that were mixed with active dry yeast and put into bottles. Balloons were attached to the tops of the bottles. As carbon dioxide was released from each mixture, the balloons expanded and the circumference was measured. Results Apple juice released the most carbon dioxide in 80% of the experiments. On average, substances containing sugar or fructose also released higher levels of carbon dioxide Conclusions/Discussion My hypothesis was that previously fermented substances would release more carbon dioxide when combined with yeast. However, the results suggest that sugar plays a much more important role in the process of fermentation. The experiment demonstrates that yeast alone does not result in fermentation, but must react with sugar in order to begin the fermentation process.

Competition history

• CSEF 2004 Biochemistry/ Molecular Biology · Entry J0402

Resources

• CSEF project summary ↗

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