| Abstract
| - A new method was developed to assess environmentaltobacco smoke in air. The method is based on passivesampling and subsequent measurement of the concentrationof 3-ethenylpyridine, a vapor-phase compound specificto tobacco smoke. Air samples were collected using a 3Morganic vapor monitor. Tests were carried out in adynamic chamber to determine the sampling rate (25.7 cm3/min). 3-Ethenylpyridine was desorbed from the samplerwith 1 mL of pyridine/toluene mixture. 3-Ethenylpyridine wasquantified by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry.The limit of detection was 0.01 μg/sample, correspondingto a concentration of 0.27 μg/m3 air calculated for asampling period of 24 h. Field measurements were carriedout to test the performance of the method. Meanconcentrations ranging from 1.3 to 5.3 μg/m3 were measuredfor 3-ethenylpyridine in smoking environments, but no3-ethenylpyridine was detected in nonsmoking environments.Active sampling using charcoal tubes was used as areference method in the chamber tests and fieldmeasurements. Individual exposures can be easily andaccurately measured by means of the passive sampler.Because of simple sample treatment, the method is also well-suited for large-scale monitoring of environmentaltobacco smoke.
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