To factor the given function, find a term that is divisible by both terms. For this problem, the factor would be 2, since 2x^2 and -18 are both divisible by 2.
2(x^2 - 9)
You could further factor out x^2 - 9 because it is factorable by (x - 3) and (x + 3). Thus, it would be
2(x -3)(x+3)