Ever wonder what’s in those smoke
machines you see at concerts or in the electronic cigarettes (e-cigarette) that
are extremely popular these days. What is responsible for the “smoke” or “fog”
is a chemical called propylene glycol (1). Inside the e-cigarette or fog machine,
propylene glycol is heated and forced into the atmosphere under pressure to
create a “fog” or “haze” (2). It is a very impressive chemical reaction that
results in something as simple as smoke. Propylene glycol at room temperature is
found in a liquid state and has a very sweet taste (3). Since it is in a liquid
state propylene glycol is usually mixed with distilled water inside the machines because they mix well together (3).
Along with its ability to create
“fog” propylene glycol is used in several other places because of its unique
properties to attract and retain moisture by absorbing it from the nearby air(4).
It is also used as a preservative in foods, cosmetics and pharmaceuticals
mainly to retain moisture (5). Propylene glycol is also a part of the mixture in antifreeze, (5) who knew. It’s simply amazing how one chemical can have so
many applications. This is where questions start to arise, how toxic is
propylene glycol? Is it a danger to our health?
Just by looking at how people are
exposed to propylene glycol via several routes one might think that eating so
much of a chemical would be a bad thing. However, propylene glycol has been
approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and is generally recognized
as safe (1). The lethal dose for humans is estimated at 15g/Kg (5). If somebody
weighed 130 pounds they would need to consume about 885 grams of propylene
glycol. That is quite a number. However, this would have to be over a short
period of time as propylene glycol is quickly metabolized in the body into lactic and pyurvic acid and is
filtered by the cleansing organs known as the kidney’s and excreted through urine (5). On the other hand,
if someone really wanted to overdose on propylene glycol they would experience convulsions,
cardiorespiratory arrest, coma, and haemolysis (destruction of red blood
cells) (6). Let me tell you that none of these are pleasant. Another common side effect of propylene glycol
is skin irritation. Some individuals could be allergic and if they are exposed
to it through products, such as cosmetics then they could experience mild
irritation like a rash (4). The message to take from all of this is that you
should never play with chemicals no matter how safe they are considered to be. Besides,
trying to avoid propylene glycol is next to impossible. Do not worry it is a
safe chemical and we need it for the many products we use today. So, the next
time you’re hanging with your friends and you see an e-cigarette or fog machine
you can say that you know the chemistry behind it.
Photo reference:
Nevit, D. (2008). Dry-Ice-09560.jpg. [Photograph] Retrieved
December 2, 2014, from http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dry-ice-09560.jpg
Williams, J. (2014). Vaping an Electronic Cigarette [Online
Image] retrieved December 8, 2014, from http://www.ecigclick.co.uk/?s=electronic+cigarette
References
1.
Bright, D. A. (2007). Canadian Soil Quality
Guidelines for Propylene Glycol: Environmental and Human Health - Discussion
Document (PN 1394). Winnipeg, MB, CAN: Canadian Council of Ministers of the
Environment. Retrieved from http://www.ebrary.com
2.
Helmenstine,
M. A. (2014). Atomized Glycol Fog: Smoke Machine Chemistry. Retrieved December
2, 2014, from http://chemistry.about.com/od/howthingswork/a/smokemachines_3.htm
3.
CSID:13835224,
http://www.chemspider.com/Chemical-Structure.13835224.html (accessed 21:12, Oct
12, 2014)
4.
Propylene Glycol (n.d.) In Wikipedia Retrieved
October 12 2014, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Propylene_glycol#Production
5.
Vulava, V. M. (2005). Propylene glycol. In P.
Wexler (Ed.), Encyclopedia of toxicology (second edition) (pp.
544-547). New York: Elsevier. http://library.mtroyal.ca:2055/http://library.mtroyal.ca:2055/10.1016/B0-12-369400-0/00806-1
6.
World Health Organization. (1995). Basic Analytical Toxicology Retrieved October 21, 2014 , from http://www.who.int/ipcs/publications/training_poisons/basic_analytical_tox/en/
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