F E AT U R E
Chemical decomposition for dummies so
to speak, this book needs to be written.
Especially now in our industry with fear
mongering at its highest level and propaganda running the streets. Many of the
claims against the product are not formulated from sound scientific bodies of
knowledge.
Most of what is said about our product is
distorted and is about the carbonyl readings. There is a measure of truth to the
argument, but only when taken out of
context.
So how can I make this make sense to you?
Let’s talk Decomposition and what that
means.
Chemical Decomposition is the breakdown
of chemical compounds. Chemical compounds generally cannot remain stable
when exposed to things like Acidity, Heat,
and Humidity. There are a few types of
decomposition, Catalytic, Thermal, and
Electrolytic. We will be addressing thermal
decomposition for the most part.
Thermal decomposition is a chemical reaction whereby a chemical substance breaks
up into at least two chemical substances
when heated. I am going to keep it that
simple. It is got more to it, but it’s not
needed to make the point.
The decomposition temperature of a
substance is the temperature at which the
substance decomposes into smaller
substances.
What are you going to do with all this info?
Well here’s the deal. Some E-liquids look
great on paper. CAS library is awesome, all
around well-sourced ingredients with great
certificates of analysis. But then they go for
78 ISSUE 08 VAPOUROUND MAGAZINE
testing and they are just full of the things
that are on the NO-NO list.
The manufacturer is usually devastated
and immediately upset and wants retesting. But the truth is… CHEMICAL DECOMPOSITION.
Once heat is applied to a chemical compound the breakdown of your CAS library
into a bunch of other CAS created by that
process is unpredictable.
And with the many ingredients we cook
together, there is bound to be some issues.
The real question is what is the measure of
those issues. If formaldehyde shows up in
your product due to that break down…
which is a bit of Thermal Decomposition
and Catalytic Decomposition, what is the
measurement of acceptability?
0µg, 100µg, 1000µg… I mean really is there
a chart? From rug/carpet installations to
new furniture, new cars and multiple other
fabric installations in your life, you are
exposed to the inhalation of formaldehyde
in some seriously high numbers.
There are regulations for those, they are
not closely monitored, but they are there.
The issue is no real applicable study has
been done to say how that directly affects
you, Cancer, or mutagen…no robust scientific body of evidence exists at this point as
its all merely speculations and screamers,
but none with valid data.
The problem becomes: when comparing
apples to apples, if we are a tobacco product our levels are generally well lower than
our parent product.