Fluorine

Fluorine (F) — 10-Year Trends

As of 2026-09-25 · the last 10 years

Research intensity has recovered to about 97% of the element's all-time peak, which occurred in 2025 within this window.

Research intensity ran from about 80% of the element's own all-time peak in 2016 to about 97% in 2026 — a mid-window dip followed by a recovery, and the all-time peak (2025) falls inside this window. Over the same span its share of research attention across all elements rose. The dip is visible in the yearly data, with intensity falling to its lowest point around 2019 before climbing steadily through 2025. Among the 118 elements, fluorine has a larger-than-average research literature.

The number of papers involving the element rose from about 51,096 in 2016 to about 116,992 in 2025 (2.29x). That matches the growth of the literature as a whole over the same years: the general tide of scientific output, not a surge specific to the element.

The literature is dominated by three material research communities. The largest is Piezoelectric Polymers and Superhydrophobic Membranes for Energy and Water, where fluorine is central to the community, appearing in about 31% of its papers. This group focuses on work involving PVDF membranes and composites for sensors and energy applications. It holds a steady share of about 18% of fluorine’s recent research. A key anchor is a 2023 review in Chemical Reviews on electroactive poly(vinylidene fluoride) materials, cited over 440 times.

The fastest-growing community is PFAS Detection, Removal, and Environmental Fate in Water Systems. Here, fluorine is central to about 61% of the community’s papers, which investigate PFAS exposure, removal, and risk assessment in water. This community’s share of fluorine research rose significantly, from about 7% in the earlier period to about 15% now. The decade’s most-cited paper belongs to this group: a 2020 overview of PFAS uses, cited over 2,400 times. A recent high-impact study in Nature Geoscience (2024) on the burden of PFAS in global waters was also cited over 380 times.

The third major community is Fluoride Removal, Groundwater Quality, and Health Risk Assessment, where fluorine is central to about 47% of papers. This work centers on fluoride groundwater detection and adsorption. Its share of fluorine research has remained steady at about 7%. A notable 2022 study in Nature Communications on global fluoride prediction in groundwater was cited over 450 times.

Overall, the composition of fluorine research has shifted toward PFAS and environmental fate, which gained share, while the remainder of smaller communities saw a slight decline in their combined share.

For a deeper look at the current state of fluorine research, see the Last 12 Months and Executive Brief reports.