Field dependence of 19F NMR in rat bone powders

The 19F NMR properties of fluoridated rat bone powder samples have been studied in several external magnetic fields. The results show a characteristic field dependence, related to the strength of chemical shift interactions compared to dipole-dipole interactions. While the free induction decay shape is relatively insensitive to the 19F bone mineral concentration, the spin-lattice relaxation time decreases with increasing 19F concentration. Multi-exponential spin-lattice relaxation processes indicate that there are at least two chemically inequivalent incorporation sites for fluorine in bone mineral. Evidence for clustering of 19F fluoride impurities in bone mineral is seen in Hahn echo experiments. Sample preparation and handling methods are shown to affect the values of some of the observed NMR parameters.