[dipesh747]

Hello,

I am using an e-cigarette, and having read mixed reviews online about its safety, I've decided I am going to test it myself (There are so many different types, and hardly any have been tested). This is what it is: http://whatisanelectroniccigarette.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/what-is-an-electronic-cigarette-inside.jpg

What I am going to be testing is the solution in the cartridge.

Determining composition will be fairly easy, I know what is supposed to be in there, so I will use H NMR.

Determining the concentrations of the components will be difficult though. If it only contains water, nicotine and 1,2 propan-diol, I though I could use UV-VIS with some standard curves to work out concentration of nicotine. However, Nicotine is expensive and I don't think my university will pay for my curiosity lol.

Is there any other way I can work out concentrations? Would gc-ms work?

Thanks

[Stepan]

GC MS on DB5 (HP5, SPB5, OV-5) or similar column, will give you the best possible identification of volatile components (except water). It can be used for approximate quantification of the mixture.