Fluorine-18-labeled fluorine gas for synthesis of tracer molecules

The aim of this work was to develop a method to produce 18F-labeled fluorine gas ([18F]F2) with high specific radioactivity (SA, radioactivity/mass-ratio). 18F-Labeled methyl fluoride ([18F]CH3F) was synthesized from [18F]F-aq and mixed with carrier F2 in an inert neon matrix. The constituents were atomized in an electric discharge, after which a rearrangement and 18F for 19F exchange took place. [18F]F2 with a specific radioactivity of up to 55 GBq/mumol is available for the labeling synthesis of tracers for positron emission tomography (PET).