Liquid chromatographic determination of phenol and cresols in total particulate matter of cigarette smoke.

The phenol and cresol contents of the total particulate matter of tobacco smoke can be conveniently determined. A simple extraction procedure using 1N base is followed by partial neutralization with glacial acetic acid and elution of hydroxybenzenes from an end-capped reverse phase liquid chromatographic column. The procedure is rapid (20 min/sample after the initial extraction), precise (+/- 10% relative standard deviation), accurate, and convenient. Normally, 12 or fewer cigarettes are needed for a single measurement.