Journal of analytical toxicology
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Electronic cigarettes (ECIGs) are battery-powered devices that heat and vaporize solutions containing propylene glycol (PG) and/or vegetable glycerin (VG), nicotine and possible trace flavorants to produce an inhalable aerosol. The heating process can lead to the formation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), which are linked to various oxidative damage-initiated diseases. Several studies in the literature have addressed ROS emissions in ECIG aerosols, but the effects of power, ECIG device design and liquid composition on ROS are relatively unknown. ⋯ ROS emissions are a function of device design and liquid composition at a given power. For a given liquid composition, a promising metric for predicting ROS emissions across device designs and operating conditions is power per unit area of the heating coil. Importantly, ROS formation is significant even when the ECIG liquid consists of pure analytical solutions of PG and VG; it can therefore be viewed as intrinsic to ECIG operation and not solely a by-product of particular flavorants, contaminants or additives.