Fluorine plays a key role in many areas of chemistry, life sciences, technology, industry and modern life like no other element. Fluorine reacts with almost every element and, in principle, fluorine atoms can be incorporated into any organic molecule, meaning that fluorine can form the most compounds of all elements. When H or OH is replaced by F in organic molecules, the bond energies and bond polarizations and thus the properties change considerably. Synthetic fluoroorganics are becoming increasingly important in pharmaceutical active ingredients, crop protection agents, lubricants and anti-corrosive agents, dyes, liquid crystals, surfactants, ionic liquids, blood substitutes, etc. The most thermally and chemically stable polymers are fluoropolymers and their derivatives. Ionomers such as Nafion are of great importance in fuel cells and electrolytes. Low-molecular CHF compounds are also produced on a million-ton scale as substitutes for CFRPs and are used as cold agents, propellants, fire retardants and solvents. Without SF ₆ as an insulating gas, modern high-voltage and energy technology would be unthinkable; the production of semiconductor chips is also not possible without high-purity hydrofluoric acid and fluorine-containing plasma etching gases. Graphite fluoride and electrolytes with fluorinated anions are important components in electrochemical energy storage devices.

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