Fluorine-18 Separation

¹⁸F is a positron emitting radionuclide which is produced in cyclotrons by the proton irradiation of isotopically enriched ¹⁸O-water. ¹⁸F is normally separated from ¹⁸O-water using quaternary amine (QMA) functionalized silica and then recovered for use directly as Na¹⁸F or labeled to small molecules such as fluorodeoxyglucose (¹⁸FDG) for targeted imaging of various diseases by positron emission tomography (PET).