Question

Explain, as fully as you can, why syrup (concentrated sugar solution) was produced after two hours?

A cook prepares a fresh fruit salad by cutting up a variety of fruits and placing them in a bowl with layers of sugar in between. After two hours the fruit is surrounded by syrup (concentrated sugar solution)

Answer 1

see below

Explanation:

• presence of sugar means that the outside of the fruits is less dilute (more concentrated in sugar than water) than the inside of the fruits
• in osmosis (diffusion of water molecules), water molecules have a net movement from a more dilute substance to a less dilute substance
• sugar is the less dilute substance, so water is drawn out of the fruits and mixes with the sugar around them
• the sugar dissolves in water, creating a sugar solution
• this results in fruits with less water inside them, and surrounded by sugar solution