Levels of Selected Groups of Compounds in Refill Solutions for Electronic Cigarettes

Conclusions:
A panel of methods were developed and validated and subsequently used to assess the levels of selected groups of compounds in electronic cigarette refill solutions. Propylene glycol and glycerol constituted the major ingredients of most refill solutions. The nicotine content was generally not labeled clearly or accurately. The exposure and health effects on consumers of these impurities, toxicants, or carcinogens should be further evaluated.

Implications:
Our study have developed methods and assessed the levels of eight groups of compounds in 55 refill solutions for 17 brands in the Chinese market. Our study shows that propylene glycol and glycerol constitute the major ingredients of most refill solutions, and also indicated the necessity for clearly and accurately labeling nicotine content of e-liquids. Compounds that may originate from tobacco, solvents or other sources, such as TSNAs, solanesol, VOCs, PAHs, phenolic compounds, and carbonyl compounds were all found with different levels and detection frequencies.

Source: Nicotine and Tobacco Research - April 8, 2016 Category: Addiction Authors: Han, S., Chen, H., Zhang, X., Liu, T., Fu, Y. Tags: Original Investigation Source Type: research