Impact of Electronic Alternatives to Tobacco Cigarettes on Indoor Air Particular Matter Levels

• Main Authors: Carmela Protano, Maurizio Manigrasso, Vittoria Cammalleri, Giuseppe Biondi Zoccai, Giacomo Frati, Pasquale Avino, Matteo Vitali
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2020-04-01
• Series: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
• Subjects: indoor air; particulate matter; electronic cigarettes; heat-not-burn products; IQOS^®; GLO^®
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/17/8/2947
• ISSN: 1661-7827; 1660-4601

An aerosol study was carried out in a test room measuring particulate matter (PM) with an aerodynamic diameter smaller than 10, 4, 2.5 and 1 µm (PM₁₀, PM₄, PM_2.5, PM₁) before and during the use of electronic alternatives to tobacco cigarettes (EATC) IQOS^®, GLO^®, JUUL^®, with different kinds of sticks/pods, as well as during the smoking of a conventional tobacco cigarette. The aerosol was mainly in the PM₁ size range (>95%). All studied EATCs caused lower indoor PM₁ concentrations than conventional tobacco cigarettes. Nevertheless, they determined a worsening of indoor-PM₁ concentration that ranged from very mild for JUUL^®—depending on the pod used—to considerably severe for IQOS^® and GLO^®. Median values ranged from 11.00 (Iqos3 and Juul2) to 337.5 µg m⁻³ (Iqos4). The high variability of particle loadings was attributed both to the type of stick/pod used and to the different way of smoking of volunteers who smoked/vaped during the experiments. Moreover, during vaping IQOS^® and GLO^® indoor PM₁ concentrations reach levels by far higher than outdoor concentrations that range from 14 to 21 µg m⁻³, especially during the exhalation of the smoke. From these results emerge an urgent need of a legislative regulation limiting the use of such devices in public places.