Help with hydrogen peroxide?

What foods can break down Hydrogen Peroxide? i need help i dony understand?

• What foods can break down Hydrogen Peroxide? Materials: • Get five different foods from your fridge or pantry (pick a variety….vegetables, fruits, etc). Note: Foods like raw meats, vegetables and fruits (WITHOUT the peel) should contain the enzyme needed to break down hydrogen peroxide. Try raw hamburger meat or a banana! Foods need to be the same size and they need to be room temperature (leave them sit out for several hours so they warm up). • Clear cup or glass • Bottle of hydrogen peroxide (from local store) • Paper and pen • Watch with second hand (optional) Safety Note: Make sure to wash your hands well after touching raw meat. Question: What are some common household foods that can break down hydrogen peroxide? Hypothesis: (5 points) Which food do you think will break down hydrogen peroxide? Procedure: (20 points) 1. Gather all your supplies (You need a clean and organized area!). 2. You can choose to set up 5 cups and do it all at once, or do each food separately and time the length of the fizz. 3. Place ¼ cup of hydrogen peroxide into your clear cup. (Remember to use the same amount for each food!) 4. Place food in hydrogen peroxide, and record what happens (Does it fizz!) 5. Optional: Time which food fizzes the longest. (This can tell you which food contains the most enzyme.) Data Collection – you might want to use a chart like this to collect your data. Food name Fizz or no fizz? How long did the fizz continue? Bonus: Did it Fizz after you altered the food? Conclusion: (25 points) 1. List the five foods you used. 2. Which foods broke down the hydrogen peroxide? How could you tell? 3. Which food broke down the most hydrogen peroxide? How do you know? Going Further (optional) 5 bonus points Enzymes are made for certain types of environments. The enzymes in your stomach that break down food work best where there is a lot of acid. Put them in water and they will not work anymore. Enzymes can become inactive if they are put in unusual environments. For your extra credit, you can try to alter the food to see if the enzymes become inactive. Freeze it, nuke it…mash it up…you decide. You need to report your findings! For each of the five foods you will need to report if it fizzed at room temperature, and then if it fizzed after you changed it.

• Answer:

  Meat will work well, but when we did this experiment we used potatoes, which also worked. The reason why fizzing occurred is due to the catalase enzyme breaking down the hydrogen peroxide. This process has two products, water and hydrogen. The hydrogen causes the fizzing. So, whichever fizzes the most has the most enzyme because it catalyses the most hydrogen peroxide. For the bonus the best way to make the enzyme inactive is to heat it or place it in an extremely acidic or basic environment. This is true for all enzymes. Cold will reduce enzyme activity, but it will not denature, or destroy, the enzyme. Raising the temperature too high will, and also changing the pH by a large amount.