Online Analysis of Different Brands of Cigarettes by Vacuum Ultraviolet Photoionization Mass Spectrometry

A method for analysis of different brands of cigarettes using a home-made vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) photoionization time-of-flight mass spectrometer was developed. The volatile organic gases emitted from five brands of combustion cigarettes and three brands of heat-not-burn cigarettes were analyzed online and their corresponding photoionization mass spectra were obtained and assigned. Obvious differences could be found in the chemical compositions of different brands of cigarettes, like the nitrogen-containing organic compounds of benzyl cyanide, indole and methyl pyrrole, as well as the flavor substances of ethyl maltol and menthol, etc. Just like their fingerprints, the spectral information could be used to distinguish different brands of cigarettes. As demonstrated here, this study provided a novel method to rapidly analyze and distinguish different brands of cigarettes using VUV photoionization mass spectrometry.