Abstract
Various brands and types of cigarettes were purchased at retail locations in southern California. Volatile gas samples were analyzed using multicolumn/multidetector gas chromatography. Results showed methyl chloride (CH(3)Cl) levels as much as four orders of magnitude higher than typical urban levels, about 30-500 ppmv (1.5-5.3 mg/cigarette), compared with about 500 pptv in urban air. The concentration of CH(3)Cl correlated well with the levels of both CO (r (2) = 0.63) and CO(2) (r (2) = 0.77), showing the link between CH(3)Cl and combustion. In some brands, CH(3)Cl levels were well above the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's maximum exposure limit of 200 ppmv. Light branded cigarettes tended to have higher CH(3)Cl levels than the heavier and filtered brands, possibly showing the dependence of cigarette packing on CH(3)Cl production. In addition, CH(3)Cl emitted from cigarette smoke may prove to be an important anthropogenic source of CH(3)Cl in the United States, at about 5%.
Highlights
In the 1950s, it was postulated that cigarette smoking might be linked to cancer
Many other trace gases are present in the volatile phase, typically at concentrations much higher than those found in urban air, and many are carcinogenic
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) permissible exposure limit is 200 ppmv, the concentration of the gas that should not be exceeded at any time (USEPA, 2005)
Summary
In the 1950s, it was postulated that cigarette smoking might be linked to cancer. The volatile phase of mainstream cigarette smoke contains primarily nitrogen, oxygen, carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, and water. Many other trace gases are present in the volatile phase, typically at concentrations much higher than those found in urban air, and many are carcinogenic. One such gas in the volatile phase of cigarette smoke is chloromethane (methyl chloride, CH3Cl). CH3Cl has many adverse effects on human health, causes cancer in rats, and is a class D
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