Carbonyls and Carbon Monoxide Emissions from Electronic Cigarettes Affected by Device Type and Use Patterns.

Yeongkwon Son,Andrey Khlystov,Vera Samburova,Chiranjivi Bhattarai

doi:10.3390/ijerph17082767

Yeongkwon Son, Andrey Khlystov + Show 2 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17082767

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Abstract

Dangerous levels of harmful chemicals in electronic cigarette (e-cigarette) aerosols were reported by several studies, but variability in e-cigarette design and use patterns, and a rapid development of new devices, such as JUUL, hamper efforts to develop standardized testing protocols and understand health risks associated with e-cigarette use. In this study, we investigated the relative importance of e-cigarette design, power output, liquid composition, puff topography on e-cigarette emissions of carbonyl compounds, carbon monoxide (CO), and nicotine. Four popular e-cigarette devices representing the most common e-cigarette types (e.g., cig-a-like, top-coil, ‘mod’, and ‘pod’) were tested. Under the tested vaping conditions, a top-coil device generated the highest amounts of formaldehyde and CO. A ‘pod’ type device (i.e., JUUL) emitted the highest amounts of nicotine, while generating the lowest levels of carbonyl and CO as compared to other tested e-cigarettes. Emissions increased nearly linearly with puff duration, while puff flow had a relatively small effect. Flavored e-liquids generated more carbonyls and CO than unflavored liquids. Carbonyl concentrations and CO in e-cigarette aerosols were found to be well correlated. While e-cigarettes emitted generally less CO and carbonyls than conventional cigarettes, daily carbonyl exposures from e-cigarette use could still exceed acute exposure limits, with the top-coil device potentially posing more harm than conventional cigarettes.

Highlights

Electronic cigarettes (e-cigarette) have been assumed to pose less harm than conventional cigarette products, but e-cigarette vaping is not risk free [1]
We investigated the impact of e-cigarette construction, power, puff topography, and e-liquid composition on carbonyl, carbon monoxide (CO), and nicotine emissions
Different emission trends for the top-coil and ‘mod’ device could be due to differences in e-cigarette construction and properties, though the exact cause of this was unclear and needs to be further studied. These findings demonstrate that the effect of vaping topography should be carefully considered to test e-cigarette chemical emissions

Summary

Introduction

Electronic cigarettes (e-cigarette) have been assumed to pose less harm than conventional cigarette products, but e-cigarette vaping is not risk free [1]. Carbonyl compounds have been receiving a lot of attention so far as they were found to be the most abundant toxic species in e-cigarette aerosols [7]. E-cigarette carbonyl emissions were reported to vary with e-cigarette device construction, power output, and e-cigarette liquid (e-liquid) composition (e.g., base material, flavorings) [3,4,5]. The e-cigarette construction (e.g., top vs bottom coil, power per coil surface area, etc.) influences carbonyl emissions as it affects e-liquid supply to the wick [3,5] and coil temperature distribution [14]. E-liquid composition, especially the flavoring compounds, is another significant factor that affects e-cigarette carbonyl emissions [3,15]. Puff flow rate was reported to affect coil temperature and e-liquid evaporation rate [16].

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