Potential factors affecting free base nicotine yield in electronic cigarette aerosols

ABSTRACT

Background

The free base and protonated nicotine forms in e-cigarette aerosol have shown different absorption profiles in users. Therefore, it is also important to identify the factors which can affect the ratio of these nicotine forms in the aerosol. Such factors may include nicotine concentrations, flavors, PG:VG ratios, types of nicotine chemical compounds and e-cigarette battery power outputs. The current study attempts to identify such factors using a controlled experiment.

Research designs and methods

The aerosol was generated using validated aerosol generating model. Various factors were tested for their effect on nicotine forms. Additionally, a degradation study of one of the nicotine compounds, nicotine salicylate, was also carried out using mass spectrometry.

Results

The free base nicotine in the aerosol was found to be affected by flavors, battery power output, nicotine compound type and PG:VG ratios. Based on the preliminary mass spectrometry data, degradation of nicotine salicylate was found to be one of the significant factors affecting free base nicotine in aerosol.

Conclusions

Potential factors affecting free base nicotine in e-cigarette aerosol have been identified in this study. These findings would help in understanding the nicotine delivery better and assist for better regulations.

KEYWORDS:

• Electronic cigarettes
• free base nicotine
• nicotine delivery
• pg:VG
• phenol

Acknowledgments

The authors would also like to thank Chemnovatic, Poland for providing nicotine salts for the analysis. The authors would also like to thank Dr. Leon Kosmider for his valuable guidance in building the Aerosol Generating Model.

Reviewer disclosures

Peer reviewers on this manuscript have no relevant financial or other relationships to disclose.

Abbreviations

NA  Not Applicable

Nicfree base nicotine

NicH⁺protonated nicotine

e-cig electronic cigarette

PG  Propylene Glycol

VG  Vegetable Glycerin

Declaration of interest

Vinit Gholap is a graudate student funded by VCU school of Pharmacy and Virginia Youth Tobacco Projects Small Grants Program. Matthew Halquist was funded as the PI of the Bioanalytical Core Laboratory, The Central Virginia Center on Drug Abuse Research, NIDA, 2P30DA033934-06 and Virginia Youth Tobacco Projects Small Grants Program. The authors have no other relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript apart from those disclosed.

Author contributions

Vinit Gholap and Matthew Halquist were involved in the conception, design and analysis of the data and drafting the paper. Adam Pearcy has significantly contributed in interpretation of the data and critically reviewing the manuscript. All authors have approved the final version of the paper for publication.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Virginia Foundation for Healthy Youth for research funding. Matthew Halquist is also funded as the PI of the Bioanalytical Core Laboratory, The Central Virginia Center on Drug Abuse Research, NIDA, 2P30DA033934-06.