If a car factory can make

16 engines per
week

40 seats
per week

58 doors per week

33 windscreens per week how many finished cars

can it make in a week?

Limiting Factors
something present in the
environment in such short supply
that it restricts life processes
The rate of photosynthesis in a plant can be
limited by:
Light intensity
Availability of water
Availability of carbon dioxide
Availability of chlorophyll
Temperature

Investigation
Light intensity
Temperature
Carbon dioxide Animation

Light Intensity

No. of Bubbles per minute No. of Bubbles per minute

Light Intensity

No. of Bubbles per minute

No. of Bubbles per minute

How does the rate of bubbles produced

vary as light intensity is increased?

Light Intensity

Light Intensity

No. of Bubbles per minute

Increasing light intensity has no effect as

rate of photosynthesis is limited
availability of carbon dioxide, water or
chlorophyll
Compensa
tion point
Rate of
photosynthesis
equals rate of
respiration

Any oxygen
produced by
photosynthesis is

Increasing light
intensity increases
rate of bubbling
(and
photosynthesis)
Light Intensity

Light Levels

Carbon dioxide levels

Temperature
At low temperatures
photosynthesis
enzymes stop working
At high temperatures
the photosynthesis
enzymes are denatured

Complete the questions

on the Law of Limiting
Factors and
Photosynthesis
worksheet

a. 2 units of glucose
can be made by
plant A
b. Light is in shortest
supply (6 units of
light are needed to
make one unit of
glucose)
c. D (B is limited by the
availability of CO2)

Question 2:

Number of Bubbles per Minute

Question 1:

30
25
20
15
10
5
0
0

Light Intensity

a. Increasing light intensity

increases the rate of
photosynthesis

b. Increasing light intensity has

d. 4 (it will be limited by
little to no effect. This is
the availability of
because the rate of
water)
photosynthesis is now

Amount of Carbon Dioxide in the

Atmosphere (arbitrary units)

The graph below shows how the amount of CO2 in the

atmosphere in the Northern Hemisphere changes through the
year
30

25

20

15

10

a. Describe the changes seen in the graph

b. Suggest a reason for the changes seen in the graph

IGCSE TOPIC 6 Plant Nutrition