Identification of Volatile Organic Compounds Present in Cigarette Smoke via GC/MS Detection

Abstract

People who don\u27t smoke tend to live an average of ten years longer than those who do.1 There are seventy known carcinogens present in tobacco smoke and those carcinogens are responsible for about 90% of all lung cancer deaths in the United States.2 Environmental Tobacco Smoke (ETS) encompasses second-hand, side-stream, and third-hand smoke, which is when harmful chemicals from smoke are absorbed into cloth. Volatile organic compounds found in ETS, specifically acrolein and benzene, are identified by analyzing the headspace of cloth samples exposed to cigarette smoke via gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS). This presentation summarizes the experimental design and qualitative results. 1 Jha P, Ramasundarahettige C, Landsman V, Rostron B, Thun M, Anderson RN, McAfee T, Peto R. 21st Century Hazards of Smoking and Benefits of Cessation in the United States. New England Journal of Medicine 2013;368:341Ð50 [accessed 2015 Mar 3]. 2 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion. Tobacco Information and Prevention Source (TIPS). Tobacco Use in the United States. January 27, 2004 [accessed 2015 Mar 3