My understanding of nicotine and nicotine salt chemistry is;
*High pH (alkaline)
*deprotonated nicotine molecules (free base)
*Strong activation and contraction of smooth muscles in the throat (strong throat hit)
*High rate of absorption into blood from lungs
*Lower pH (acidic) [not using salts]
*protonated nicotine molecules
*Weak activation and contraction of smooth muscles in the throat (weak throat hit)
*Low rate of absorption into blood from lungs
https://i.imgur.com/77rfVOr.jpg
So how do nicotine salts maintain and even increase blood absorption rate at lowered pH?
I can only assume that the organic acid such as benzoic plays a major role here. As though it has a double action in decreasing pH but helps nicotine pass through the lungs easier.
Can anyone clarify this and fill me in on what I'm missing here?
You are right, it changes the log P (lipophilicity) of the compound and makes it be absorbed much more quickly than freebase nicotine, since it shields the charge of the amine nitrogen. That's basically it.
This is the first time I've seen this explained where it made any sense.
Oh, yay :) glad to be of use! Used to work as a drug designer / pharmacologist, so understanding this kind of thing is my bread and butter haha. (if you want it clarified further, or something else, just ask - and I'll try my best to answer it 😊)
thanks, glad to have an experienced expert in the community.
How does Benzoic Acid help vaporize nicotine at lower temps? Does the BA's carbon ring make it more volatile, and kind of acts like a balloon, dragging the nicotine out of the atomizer more rapidly?
Also, how plausible do you think the current consensus theory is that throat hit is the result of nicotine binding to receptors in the smooth muscle of the resp. tract causing them to contract. Could there be another explanation?
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I'm going go out on a limb here ask; isn't it possible that claims 1 and 3 might be bullshit?
The salt ejuices contain 30 to 60mg/mL nicotine!
Couldn't the sheer quantity of total nicotine explain why so much nicotine is released from the atomizer at low wattage/temp, and why so much nicotine makes its way into the blood?
I am far from an expert on this, but have you tried a 6mg juice compared to a 6mg nic salts juice? I think it definitely helps you catch a buzz quicker, so I think it does actually increase the rate at which you absorb it. Which is also why so many B&M shops speak out against the 50mg nic salts juices because it's just so much nicotine that you're taking in.
I just realised the parent comment was removed, possibly for the link to craftyeliquids, which sells nic eliquids. My apologies, I thought it was just a blog, and through my laziness, didnt realize it was an online store's blog.
For context, here is the comment with the link to crafteliquids removed.
craftyeliquids gives some explanation about how Benzoic acid works;
- It helps nicotine salt vaporize at lower temperatures
- Lowering the pH levels in the salt nicotine which results in a smoother throat hit
- A chemical reaction occurs that makes the nicotine more absorbable like free base nicotine
I guess I'm just getting too deep into it, but I really am interested in understanding the molecular mechanisms. Like how exactly does Benzoic acid make nicotine more absorbable? What exactly is this chemical reaction they speak of? Are there other molecules involved?
nic salt gives way less throat hit in my experience
I put 18mg/ml juice of normal nic in my juul pod and it felt like someone punched my throat, whereas 18mg/ml juice of nic salt goes down smoothly. It could be partially that there's less pure nicotine in 18mg of nic salt vs 18mg of nic, but there shouldn't be so much of a difference as to create such an effect.
edit: am I misunderstanding the post?
There actually is less nicotine present in a solution of freebase nicotine vs a salt of it for a given quoted concentration, because the anion (amine salt part of the nicotine salt, like benzoate, Ph-C(=O)O-) contributes to the molar mass of the compound... unless the manufacturer quotes it as free nicotine equivalent. In such a case, there would be more than X mg/ml of the nicotine salt, but after dissociation from the anion, the concentration would then be accurate.
Anyway, it's not the concentration difference here that causes the different throat hit - it's the apparent pH of the compound. Free nicotine is corrosive like most amines. It is this that causes the characteristic "burn". Nicotine salt is much less so.