chelation

[ kee-ley-shuhn ]

noun
  1. Chemistry. the process of chelating.

  2. Medicine/Medical.

    • a method of removing certain heavy metals from the bloodstream, used especially in treating lead or mercury poisoning.

    • a controversial treatment for arteriosclerosis that attempts to remove calcium deposits from the inner walls of the coronary arteries.

Origin of chelation

1
First recorded in 1930–35; chelate + -ion

Words Nearby chelation

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use chelation in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for chelation

chelation

/ (ˈkiːleɪʃən) /


noun
  1. chem the process by which a chelate is formed

  2. animal husbandry the process by which trace elements in an animal's feed are bonded to amino acids, ensuring their absorption into the animal's body

  1. geology the chemical removal of metallic ions in a mineral or rock by weathering

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for chelation

chelation

[ kĭ-lāshən ]


  1. The combination of a metal ion with a chemical compound to form a ring. Chelation is used in the industrial separation and extraction of metals and to treat metal poisoning.

The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.