Light Reactions

What happens to the products of photosynthesis?

Glucose, the food of plants, can be used to store energy in the form of large carbohydrate molecules. Glucose is a simple sugar molecule which can be combined with other glucose molecules to form large carbohydrates, such as starch. Oxygen is a waste product of photosynthesis. It is released into the atmosphere through the stomata. As you know, animals need oxygen to live.

Describe the structures of the chloroplast where photosynthesis takes place.

The inner compartments inside the thylakoids are called the thylakoid space (or lumen). This is the site of the first part of photosynthesis. The interior space that surrounds the thylakoids is filled with a fluid called stroma. This is where carbon dioxide is used to produce glucose, the second part of photosynthesis.

What would happen if the stomata of a plant leaf were glued shut? Would that plant be able to perform photosynthesis? Why or why not?

The plant leaf would not be able to perform photosynthesis. The leaf needs to have its chloroplasts facing the sun, so that they can absorb the sunlight to perform photosynthesis.

What are the reactants needed to perform photosynthesis? The products?

The reactants of photosynthesis are carbon dioxide and water. These are the molecules necessary to begin the process. But one more item is necessary, and that is sunlight. The products of photosynthesis are glucose and oxygen.