Results

Biochamber A2 is void as the contents of the soda lime spilled as a result of human error external to the members of the group, therefore the results of the weight change will not be factored into the results. However, the aesthetic changes to the soda lime and leaf matter will still be relevant.

Visual changes to biochamber– After 5 weeks there was some unexpected and dramatic visual changes to the bio-chambers before we had even opened them. In chambers A2, B2, C1, C2, D2, E2 there had been a noticeable change in pressure which had caused the bio-chambers to compress and become deformed. There was a trend that all bio-chambers that did not contain soil were subject to this deformation, with C1 being the only soil containing bio-chamber which showed the same results, it will go down as an anomaly.  An example of this can be viewed within the header of the page, as well as Figure 20 within the Gallery section.

 

Changes to leaf appearance – As predicted there was some visual changes to the leaves over the course of the experiment. A range of decomposition rates across the leaves meant that some had decomposed a lot more than others. We can see in figure 13 of the Gallery that the European horse chestnut flora hasn’t decomposed that much and we can see in figure 19 within the Gallery section that the Pine, with soil (E1), has evidence of a lot of decomposition. From the photo we can see white strands which is fungal growth. These white strands were visible on other leaves such as English oak without soil (D2) and Ivy tree without soil (C2).

 

Aesthetic changes in soda lime –  

There was a noticeable colour change in the soda lime in every bio-chamber. Starting with control 1, which contained only soda lime, the colour changed to a white colour compared to the original blue. This happened with every bio-chamber and is the result of the soda lime reacting with CO2, a result which we expected. The soda lime in control 2 went a similar shade of white to control 1 and had a build up of water due to moisture release from the soil, this liquid surrounding the soda lime was a deep purple colour. This caused the soda lime to stick together into one solid mass. This shade of pink to dark purple happened in containers Control 2, A1, A2 (void), C1, D1. From these results it’s we can see a trend that the containers that did contain soil caused the soda lime to change to a purple colour, we believe this was due to moisture released by the soil and the soda lime reacting with the water. The containers with soil also had a lot of condensation around the wall. The presence of the purple colour change indicates that the absorbent is almost exhausted, suggesting that the biochambers containing the soil decomposed at a quicker rate as there was more CO2 absorbed and exhausted (Geoffery, T. 2017).