Beetroot in water. Result of an experiment to show how temperature affects the transport of pigment from a sample cut from beetroot and placed in a water bath. As temperature increases, the membranes of the cells walls in beetroot become disrupted, and the dark red and purple betalain pigments can pass out of the cell into the water. Increasing temperature allows more pigment to leave the beetroot. A colorimeter can be used to quantify the amount of pigment in the water.