We are independent & ad-supported. We may earn a commission for purchases made through our links.
Advertiser Disclosure
Our website is an independent, advertising-supported platform. We provide our content free of charge to our readers, and to keep it that way, we rely on revenue generated through advertisements and affiliate partnerships. This means that when you click on certain links on our site and make a purchase, we may earn a commission. Learn more.
How We Make Money
We sustain our operations through affiliate commissions and advertising. If you click on an affiliate link and make a purchase, we may receive a commission from the merchant at no additional cost to you. We also display advertisements on our website, which help generate revenue to support our work and keep our content free for readers. Our editorial team operates independently of our advertising and affiliate partnerships to ensure that our content remains unbiased and focused on providing you with the best information and recommendations based on thorough research and honest evaluations. To remain transparent, we’ve provided a list of our current affiliate partners here.
Environment

Our Promise to you

Founded in 2002, our company has been a trusted resource for readers seeking informative and engaging content. Our dedication to quality remains unwavering—and will never change. We follow a strict editorial policy, ensuring that our content is authored by highly qualified professionals and edited by subject matter experts. This guarantees that everything we publish is objective, accurate, and trustworthy.

Over the years, we've refined our approach to cover a wide range of topics, providing readers with reliable and practical advice to enhance their knowledge and skills. That's why millions of readers turn to us each year. Join us in celebrating the joy of learning, guided by standards you can trust.

What is Chlorophyll?

By S. Mithra
Updated: Jun 04, 2024
Views: 102,986
References
Share

Chlorophyll is a complex organic molecule that enables plants, and some other organisms, to carry out photosynthesis — the conversion of carbon dioxide and water to glucose and oxygen using sunlight. The glucose is a source of energy that is used to power growth and development, and the oxygen created as a byproduct is essential to all animal life. As a result, this green pigment is one of the most important biological compounds. It also gives plants their distinctive green color.

Photosynthesis

It can be helpful to think of chlorophyll as fulfilling the same function in plants as the human digestive system. They both take raw materials and convert them into useable sources of energy in the form of glucose. In the case of the pigment, all the plant needs is water absorbed through its roots, air absorbed through its pores, and light from the Sun. Then the plant, whether it is a redwood tree, a clump of algae, or a rose, absorbs glucose into its cells to unfurl another leaf or bud another flower. Energy it does not immediately need it stores as starch for later use.

The process of photosynthesis can be summarized as the reaction

6CO2 (carbon dioxide) + 6H2O (water) -> C6H12O6 (glucose) + 6O2 (oxygen)

but is in reality much more complex, and involves a number of steps. The end products have more energy than the raw materials, which means that the reaction cannot take place without energy being supplied. Chlorophyll does this by capturing energy from sunlight. Since CO

2

is absorbed, and O

2

produced, it can be said that plants “breathe in” carbon dioxide and “breathe out” oxygen.

The Structure and Function of Chlorophyll

The pigment contains a porphyrin ring, which is a circular arrangement of carbon atoms. Within this are four nitrogen atoms bonded to a central magnesium ion. This allows electrons to float freely within the structure, which means that the compound can supply electrons to other molecules, and also accept them.

The pigment also strongly absorbs light in the red and blue parts of the spectrum, which is why it is green in color — the remaining light is reflected back, and is mostly in the green part of the spectrum. The absorbed light is used to energize electrons, which are ultimately employed create glucose from carbon dioxide and water. The electrons are replaced by using sunlight to split water into hydrogen ions and oxygen, which frees two electrons for each water molecule. This is a remarkable achievement, considering that splitting water in a laboratory requires very high temperatures or an electric current.

Chlorophyll is contained within plant cells in structures known as chloroplasts. These occur mainly in the leaves, in the cells between the upper and lower layers. Within the chloroplasts are grana, which consist of tiny bodies known as thylakoids stacked on top of one another. The pigment is contained within the membranes of the thylakoids.

Why Plants are Green

Due to its green color, chlorophyll absorbs only part of the available light, so it might be asked why plants do not use a pigment that can use all the available energy: such a pigment would be black, as it would absorb all the light that strikes it. The answer is not clear. It may be that no black colored molecule exists that would have exactly the chemical properties required to do the job. Alternatively, a black pigment might absorb too much energy, possibly causing plants to overheat, or producing undesirable chemical reactions. Another theory is that some early photosynthetic organisms used retinol, a purple pigment that absorbs green light, and that chlorophyll use evolved in later life forms to exploit the parts of the Sun’s spectrum that were not being used by the retinol-based organisms.

In temperate regions, many perennial plants go dormant during the winter, losing their leaves. Prior to this, in the autumn, chlorophyll production ceases, and the pigment is broken down, causing the leaves lose their green color. When this happens, other pigments, which were masked by the strong green hue of this compound, become visible. Carotenoids are one example — they give the yellow and orange colors commonly seen in autumn.

Uses

Chlorophyll is used in the food industry as a natural colorant, and in Europe is given the E-number E140. A number of common food products are colored green by this compound, and it also give the green color to the alcoholic drink, absinthe. The pigment is often sold in a variety of liquid forms as a health supplement. Although it is harmless, there appears to be no scientific basis for the various claimed benefits.

Share
All Things Nature is dedicated to providing accurate and trustworthy information. We carefully select reputable sources and employ a rigorous fact-checking process to maintain the highest standards. To learn more about our commitment to accuracy, read our editorial process.
Link to Sources
Discussion Comments
By anon164838 — On Apr 02, 2011

To answer your question, anon162197, if you're not blind, you just might be able to see that this is an article on "Chlorophyll".

By anon162197 — On Mar 22, 2011

Just because of curiosity: why do we start expressing photosynthesis only when we talk about chlorophyll? Do you think chlorophyll is only responsible for photosynthesis or do we not know what it is responsible for else? Are those characters less valuable than photosynthesis or because we are given since high schools that chlorophyll equals to photosynthesis dogma, do we not know what else it can make?

By Albona — On Sep 15, 2010

I've always found it fascinating that there are numerous types of plants that don't utilize photosynthesis. Among these plants are numerous parasites and deep sea plants. Parasitic plants are able to subsist simply by mooching nutrients off their hosts. Many of these parasites contain no chlorophyll, and thus engage in no photosynthesis at all.

In addition, vegetation in the deep reaches of the ocean use other means to sustain themselves. In the deep areas, no sunlight is able to penetrate to the bottom, where the plants grow. Instead, the carcasses of fish and other creatures fall to the floor, where they decay into the soil and become a sources of nutrients to these deep sea plants. This means that these plants are carnivores, depending on your definition of the word. This also means that these plants can have a range of different coloration because they contain no chlorophyll, which makes the dominant green pigment in plants.

By surreallife — On Dec 25, 2008

Chloro in the word chlorophyll comes from the Greek language and stands for yellow green.

Share
https://www.allthingsnature.org/what-is-chlorophyll.htm
Copy this link
All Things Nature, in your inbox

Our latest articles, guides, and more, delivered daily.

All Things Nature, in your inbox

Our latest articles, guides, and more, delivered daily.