Determination of benzo[a]pyrene in mainstream cigarette smoke by Soxhlet extraction-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry
To simplify sample preparation and reduce analysis errors, a Soxhlet extraction system combined with column chromatography purification was established to determine the levels of benzo[a]pyrene (B[a]P) in mainstream cigarette smoke. Kentucky 2R4F reference cigarette and 14 cigarette samples were determined by the developed method. The results showed that: 1) The total particulate matter of mainstream cigarette smoke collected by a Cambridge filter pad was directly extracted, purified and concentrated by the improved Soxhlet extraction system. The extract was analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry under selected ion monitoring mode. 2) B[a]P displayed a good linearity (R2=0.999 5) in the range of 5 to 500 ng/mL, and the detection limit was 0.12 ng/cig(S/N=3). The developed method had recoveries of 95.4%-104.2% with relative standard deviations (RSD) of 2.32%. 3) The B[a]P in 2R4F reference cigarette and the 14 cigarette samples determined by the new method basically agreed with those determined by the GB/T 21130—2007 method. This method is simple, sensitive, reliable and suitable for detecting B[a]P in mainstream cigarette smoke.