An Experimental Method to Determine the Concentration of Nicotine in Exhaled Breath and its Retention Rate Following Use of an Electronic Cigarette

Abstract

An experimental method is presented for the first time to determine the concentration of nicotine in exhaled breath following e-cigarette use in experienced participants and the impact that vaping topography has on the retention rate of nicotine. Aerosols from e-cigarettes containing different concentrations of nicotine were first evaluated by GC-FID to determine the concentration of nicotine delivered per puff versus machine - vaping intensity. These e-cigarettes were then vaped by participants through a cigarette holder attached to a smoking topography analyzer which recorded puff volume and puff duration. This allowed the concentration of nicotine in the aerosol inhaled by the participant during each puff to be determined. A PTR-MS instrument was then used to determine the concentration of nicotine exhaled following each use of the e-cigarette. By dividing this figure by the nicotine concentration delivered enabled its retention rate to be calculated. The principal finding was over 99% of the nicotine was retained by the participants when the e-cigarette aerosol was inhaled and a reduced but still substantial quantity was retained (on average 86%) when the e-cigarette aerosol was held in the mouth only (i.e, no inhalation). In both cases, the nicotine concentrations detected in the exhaled breath were low (range 1.8 - 1786 ppb). The experimental method presented here may be used to determine the concentration of other e-cigarette aerosol constituents in exhaled breath and the retention rate of those constituents which is useful for the evaluation of e-cigarettes from a consumer and bystander perspective.