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The aerosols generated from e-cigarettes are composed of liquid and gas phases resulting from vapourized e-liquid. The apportioning of substances from e-liquid into the liquid and gas phases during e-cigarette use has not been extensively studied. Partitioning of e-liquid components between the gas and the liquid phase of the aerosol influences the substances inhaled and exhaled by the users, leading to second-hand exposure. It seems important to determine which compounds and how much of them are transferred into the gas phase and may immediately enter the bloodstream. For this purpose, a method based on thermal desorption followed by gas chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry (GC–MS/MS) in electron ionization mode was developed. As in a previous study, an automatic generator of an aerosol from an e-cigarette with a collection tube filled with melt-blown non-woven fabric discs and equipped with Tenax TA sorption tubes was used. The melt-blown non-woven fabric is designed to capture liquid phase compounds, while sorption tubes are meant to sorb compounds in the gas phase of the aerosol. To control the e-liquid mass changes before and after a puff session, quantitation based on the mass change tracking approach (MCT) was applied. Accuracy of the developed method ranged between 91% and 110% regardless of the spiking level, with precision and reproducibility better than 10%. The limits of detection (LODs) ranged from 0.015 to 0.076 ng of substance emitted/mg of consumed e-liquid, while limits of quantitation (LOQs) ranged from 0.045 to 0.23 ng of substance emitted/mg of consumed e-liquid. Most of the compounds are deposited in the liquid phase of the aerosol, while only trace levels of some substances may be observed in an actual, non-condensed gas phase. • Distinguishment of content of flavouring compounds and nicotine in gas phase of aerosol • Use of thermal desorption tube for trapping of analytes from gas phase of aerosol • Rapid generation, collection and analysis of gas phase of aerosol by TD-GC–MS/MS • Application of procedure to generate aerosol from laboratory-made and commercial e-liquids • Trace levels of compounds are found to be present in gas phase of aerosol. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Currently, there is lack of standardized conditions for the collection and analysis of e-cigarette (EC) aerosol. Considering the urgent need for the development of these guidelines, a procedure for EC aerosol analysis was developed. A novel automatic e-cigarette aerosol generator was designed. For the first time, melt-blown non-woven fabric was applied for the effective uptake of compounds released from vaporized e-liquid. The extraction procedure was optimized in terms of type of extraction solvent, amount of sorbent and solvent volume. For optimization, a model e-liquid containing flavour additives belonging to various chemicals group with various chemical properties was investigated. The aerosol trapping efficiency was satisfactory and was equal to 92 ± 7%. Final determination was performed by GC-MS/MS. Quantitation was based on the mass change tracking approach (MCT), which assumes the monitoring of e-liquid mass changes before and after vaping. The combination of non-woven fabric and sampling approach (MCT) was proven to be effective in acquisition of reliable data. Thus, the concentrations in aerosol and emission factors were calculated for aerosols collected during the vaping of both model e-liquids and real samples. Validation was performed by evaluating key analytical parameters, such as linearity, accuracy, precision, limit of detection (LOD) and quantitation (LOQ). For all investigated compounds, recoveries from 70% to 118% together with precision and reproducibility below 12% were achieved. The applicability of the described approach was examined by analysing EC refill solutions commercially available on the Polish market. Graphical abstract Image 1 Highlights • A novel smoking automatic generator of aerosol from EC. • Application of melt-blown non-woven fabric for the effective trapping of compounds. • MCT approach used for evaluation of aerosol trapping efficiency. • Application of procedure to EC refill solutions available on the Polish market. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry with electrospray ionization (HPLC-ESI–MS/MS) methods were developed for the simultaneous determination of 42 flavouring compounds and nicotine in liquids for e-cigarettes. The chromatographic separation was performed using an Ace ® Ultracore™ SuperC18™ (100 × 2.1 mm, 2.5 μm) column in both acidic and alkaline pH conditions to separate all the compounds. A simple “dilute & shoot” approach was used for the sample preparation. The method validation was performed by evaluating key analytical parameters such as linearity, accuracy, selectivity, precision, limit of detection (LOD) and limit of quantification (LOQ). The calibration curves showed good linearity within the specific ranges for the investigated compounds with correlation coefficients greater than 0.990 in each case. The recovery for all the investigated compounds varied from 89% to 110%. The intra- and inter-day precision were within the acceptable limits (±15%) at all tested concentrations. The applicability of the methods was examined by analysing 25 liquid samples from e-cigarettes commercially available on the Polish market. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Flavouring compounds are an essential part of e-liquid products for cigarettes. In general, they are regarded as safe for ingestion, but they may have unrecognized risks when they are inhaled. In some cases, manufactures do not currently abide by the Tobacco Products Directive (2014/40/EU) and do not declare the detailed contents of e-liquids on their labels. To help evaluate the health impact of flavouring substances, there is a need for comprehensive approaches to determine their concentrations in e-liquids. For this purpose, a GC-EI-MS method was developed and validated for the simultaneous determination of 46 commonly used flavour additives in e-liquids. The proposed method performed well in terms of the key validation parameters: accuracy (84–113%), inter-/intra-day precision: 0.1–10% and 1–11%, respectively, and sensitivity (limit of detection: 3–87 ng/mL). The sample preparation step was based on a simple “dilute & shoot” approach. This study is a complementary method to the LC–MS/MS procedure described in Part I. Both approaches are suitable for the comprehensive determination of 88 flavouring compounds and nicotine and can be used as tools for the rapid evaluation of the quality and safety of e-cigarette products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]