title: Quantification of nicotine in commercial brand cigarettes: How much is inhaled by the smoker?
abstract: The main objective of this experiment is to determine the amount of nicotine in commercial brand cigarettes by means of a nonaqueous acid-base titration. A simple glass device simulating a smoker is proposed, which allows the determination of the volatilized, filter retained, and inhaled portions. Students will readily see that the amount of nicotine/cigarette stated on the label (∼0.5-1.0 mg) refers indeed to the inhaled portion only, rather than to the total amount/cigarette (usually more than 10 mg). Even so, values for inhaled nicotine may be significantly higher than those reported for several brands. Students will also be able to make a critical evaluation of the true content of nicotine in the inhaled portion and confront it with the reported value for a given brand. In addition, the theoretical approach, supported by HPLC data, provides an excellent experience on nonaqueous acid-base volumetric analysis.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Bioquímica e Imunologia, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade de São Paulo, 14049-900 Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: Carlos A
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Vieira
authors.forename: Sabina A A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: de Paiva
authors.forename: Milena N S
authors.initials: MN
authors.lastname: Funai
authors.forename: Mateus M
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Bergamaschi
authors.forename: Regina H C
authors.initials: RH
authors.lastname: Queiroz
authors.forename: José R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Giglio