🔗 A ring compound 🧲 To bind metals 🧬 Ring-forming 🦞 Pincer-shaped

chelate

1 9.9

A compound where a metal ion is held by an organic molecule at two or more points forming a ring

noun
/ˈkiːleɪt/

Specialized

: quelato

In chemistry, a chelate is a compound where a metal ion is bonded to an organic molecule at multiple points, forming a ring-like structure.

Examples

Rather than iron sulfate, use an iron chelate stock solution.

Academic text (2001)
And so we can review what the chelate effect is.
So chelates bind with more than one point of attachment, and metal chelates are unusually stable.
Okay, you need magnesium. Dr. Davis recommends Magnesium Malate; I use a Magnesium Acetate/Chelate mix. Maybe Dr. Davis could explain what's the difference?

Blog text (12)
Research shows that the stability of a metal chelate increases when the organic molecule has multiple binding sites.
A common example of a chelate is EDTA, which is used to bind metal ions in various industrial applications.

Synonyms

chelate compound

vschelate

Specialized

7.5

A compound where a metal atom is held inside a ring of other atoms

has identical meaning but is the shorter single word form

coordination compound

vschelate

Specialized

7.0

A central metal atom bonded to surrounding atoms or small groups

focuses on metal bonded in a ring at two or more points

Compounds

chelate compound

Specialized

7.5

A compound where a metal atom is held inside a ring of other atoms

How Many Bonds

chelate

Specialized

1 9.9

chelation

Specialized

8.7

bidentate

Specialized

9.9

ligand

Specialized

3 8.3

Surface Forms

chelate singular

chelates plural

Morphology

chelate = chela (semi-transparent) = chela + ate

Formed from 'chela' (claw) + the suffix '-ate'; the chemical sense uses a technical 'claw-like' metaphor for multidentate binding, which is specialized and not obvious to general learners.

Etymology

Chelate comes from the Greek word chele meaning 'claw', because chemists thought these molecules grab a metal ion like a claw at two or more points to make a ring. So a chelate is a compound that holds a metal ion tightly in a ring-like way.