Electrochemical [11C]CO2 to [11C]CO conversion for PET imaging.

The development of a novel electrochemical methodology to generate carbon-11 carbon monoxide ([11C]CO) from cyclotron-produced carbon-11 carbon dioxide ([11C]CO2) using Ni(cyclam) and Zn(cyclen) complexes is described. This methodology allows up to 10% yields of [11C]CO from [11C]CO2. Produced [11C]CO was subsequently converted to [11C]N-benzylbenzamide under mild conditions with a radiochemical purity (RCP) of >98%.