Virtual Lab Report

Introductory Lab

This lab report is for you to reflect on what you completed and learned in this simulation,
and to practice your written scientific communication skills.

Sections

1. Describe the overall objective and make a hypothesis

2. Introduce relevant background knowledge on this topic
3. Summarize the steps taken in the simulation
4. Explain any obtained results
5. Discuss the conclusions and implications

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 1. Describe the overall objective and make a hypothesis.

➢ Objective:
The purpose of this simulation is to improve understanding of the
fundamentals of laboratory safety and the significance of it. Aside from
that, we'll apply what we've learned about acids and bases by
calculating the pH of strong acids, weak acids, strong bases, and weak
bases, as well as understanding how acid dissociates in water. Following
that, we will learn about the different blood type groups and how to
perform blood type tests, as well as the principles of diffusion and osmosis.
➢ Hypothesis
Students who are knowledgeable about the topics covered in the lesson
perform well not only in the virtual lab simulation activity, but also in the
actual laboratory in the future.

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 2. Introduce relevant background knowledge on this topic.

➢ In a laboratory setting it is very important to use protective equipment to protect

our body from harm. Before we proceeded to the simulation activity in the
Labster, the prompter required the student to wear a lab coat and gloves since
we are going to explore acids and bases. Strong acids and strong bases can
be harmful to you. They can easily burn your skin or even corrode metals! We
need to be protected properly in order to work with these materials.
The first topic was all about the acids and bases. These two are chemical
species and they differ depending on how it reacts in an aqueous solution.
According to the Brønsted-Lowry definition, an acid (HA) is a species that
donates a proton in aqueous solution. A base (B) is a species that accepts a
proton in aqueous solution. The ability to accept or donate a proton depends on
the chemical structure of the molecule. Acids and bases are divided into two
categories: strong and weak. It is important to remember that acids and bases
that are too strong can be caustic and harmful. When strong acids are added to
water, they totally dissociate, as was demonstrated in the lab. As the hydrogen
ion is released, it forms the hydronium ion. While weak acid molecules only
disintegrate partially into water, strong acid molecules dissociate completely. The
pH scale is used to assess whether or not a chemical is acidic or basic. All of the
base molecules in strong bases accept given protons. While weak bases only
receive a portion of the protons, strong bases accept all of them. If the neutral
value is 7.0, it is deemed basic if it is greater than 7.0, and it is considered acidic
if it is less than 7.0. The formula pH= -log[H30+] can be used to compute them.
The second topic is about diffusion and osmosis. Diffusion is a spontaneous
movement of particles from an area of high concentration to an area of lower
concentration.
The speed at which these particles move is known as the rate of diffusion and is
influenced by the following factors: Temperature: If the temperature increases,
diffusion rate increases | Size of the particle: If particle size increases, rate of
diffusion decreases| Mass of the particle: If the mass of the particle increases,
the rate of diffusion decreases. Heavier particles, like larger particles, are less
mobile in solution and slow down diffusion. The solute is the substance you desire

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to dissolve in a solution, and the solvent is the media that dissolves the solute.
Water is the most abundant constituent in cells, and it is also the primary solvent
in which compounds are dissolved so that they can participate in reactions.
On the other hand, osmosis is a special form of diffusion where the water
concentrations of two solutions separated by a partially permeable membrane
reach equilibrium. This equilibration happens when water molecules move from
the most concentrated solution to the least concentrated one. It cannot be
called osmosis if there is no net flow of water. It should also include a
semipermeable barrier to allow for movement. Without it, the process is only
diffusion rather than osmosis. Because water molecules are polar, channel
proteins are required for them to flow along their concentration gradient. These
channel proteins are implanted in the cell membrane and create a hydrophilic
conduit for water to pass through. The osmotic (pressure) gradient, or the
difference in osmotic pressures between the two solutions, is what causes the
water molecules to flow. Water potential is a measurement of the relative
tendency of water to travel from one location to another. It is commonly
represented by the Greek letter Ψ (Psi). Solutions that have different tonicities will
cause a net flow of water across the cell membrane. A solution consists mostly
of the solute (material to be dissolved) and the solvent (the component that
dissolves the solutes). The concentrations of ingredients in two solutions will
decide whether one is isotonic, hypotonic, or hypertonic in comparison to
another. In a hypotonic medium, the concentration of the solute outside the
cell is lower than the concentration inside the cell. Isotonic medium is one in
which the solute concentration outside the cell is the same as the concentration
inside the cell. A hypertonic medium is one in which the concentration of the
solute outside the cell is greater than the concentration inside the cell.
The last topic is Blood typing which is a method to tell what type of blood a
person have. Blood typing is done so you can safely donate your blood or
receive a blood transfusion. The markers (particular carbohydrates or proteins)
or antigens on the surface of red blood cells are used to classify blood types
(RBCs). The A and B antigens are two primary antigens or surface identifiers on
human RBCs. Rh is another essential surface antigen. Blood typing determines a
person's ABO blood group and Rh type by detecting the presence or absence
of these antigens.

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Blood group A is made up of people who have A antigens in their red blood
cells, blood group B is made up of people who have B antigens in their red
blood cells, blood group AB is made up of people who have both A and B
antigens in their red blood cells, and blood group O is made up of people who
don't have either of these markers.
A person's blood type is Rh+ (positive) if the Rh protein is present on red blood
cells; if it is not, the blood type is Rh- (negative). Our bodies develop antibodies
against antigens A and B that aren't found on our red blood cells. Anti-B
antibodies are directed against the B antigens on red blood cells in people with
blood type A, while anti-A antibodies are directed against the A antigens in
people with blood type B. People with type AB blood do not have either of
these antibodies, whereas people with type O blood do.

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3. Summarize the steps taken in the simulation.

In the simulation, I went first to the pH work bench for the 1st
experiment. After I clicked the work bench I was tasked to wear
gloves to protect my hand and prevent contamination. Before I
proceeded to the experiment I was quizzed first then after that I saw
4 volumetric flasks which contain strong acids, weak acids, strong
base, and weak base. According to the lab pad we will mix each of
this flasks on a beaker that contain water. As I click the flasks
containing a strong acid I was teleported to an animation which
shows how this certain acid and base reacts when it is added into
water.
In the second experiment, I went to the work bench next to
the pH workbench which is the Diffusion workbench. Just like the first
experiment I was quizzed first before proceeding to the experiment.
In the workbench, there is a cell culture plate inside the incubator
and I was tasked to take that an put it on the microscope. Then I was
told to add the hypotonic and hypertonic solution in the cell culture
and observe what happens. First, I choose the hypertonic solution
and added it on the cell culture plate and it caused the erythrocytes
to shrink. Then I added the hypotonic solution and it made the
erythrocyte to swell. I was told by the lab pad to add more hypotonic
it made the erythrocytes to explode. Erythrocytes are permeable to
water. When the salt or sugar concentration changes in the plasma,
water will move out from or into the cells causing them to shrink or
swell and even burst.
In the last experiment, I was teleported to a hospital setting
and there we proceeded for the blood typing simulation. First step
was to go to the patient and perform phlebotomy but before that I
wore a PPE so that I could perform venipuncture safely. I then
disinfected the arm of the patient with ethanol after that I collected
a sample of the patients blood and I teleported back to the lab.
Second I was told to determine the patients blood type because Our

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patient has undergone surgery and lost a lot of blood. He needs a
blood transfusion immediately. It can be life-threatening if we give
him the wrong blood type. Then I used the pipette to get a small
amount of blood to put in the corresponding ANTI-A, ANTI-B, ANTI-D,
and CONTROL in the eldon card. If, as previously said,
In reality, I had to wait for a few minutes to see if there was any
agglutination. Following the application, Using the principles I
discussed previously, I was able to determine the blood type of
patient X, which was A positive.

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 4. Describe any obtained results.

The images above the screenschots I have obtain from the simulations. Not all were
documented but I was able to screenshot the most important results. As you can see in the
first row the erythrocytes shrink as a hypertonic solution was added and the erythrocytes swell
and exploded as a hypotonic solution was added.

In the image above the patient's blood type test yielded this a A
postive result. If your blood is A positive (A+), it means that your blood contains type-
A antigens with the presence of a protein called the rhesus (Rh) factor. Antigens
are markers on the surface of a blood cell. According to the American Red Cross,
this is one of the most common blood types.

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 5. Discuss the conclusions and implications.

As a result, I conclude that my hypothesis and the outcome of my simulation are

reasonably compatible. I learned a lot about acids and bases, diffusion and
osmosis, and the blood typing test. However, there are some sources of error, such
as improper blood collection, which revealed that blood was collected in the
median cubital vein instead of the arm of patient X, and blood typing, which I did
not expect to be like that because there is no way that I would be able to
determine the patient's blood type based on my physical observation of the
sample. This simulation taught me a lot of things, such as how to identify a person's
blood type by putting blood on a blood type test card. The findings are very
important because they may be useful when applied to real-world situations,
such as in the hospital when a person needs blood transfusion because he or she
is anemic.

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