Determination of Nicotine in Low-Nicotine Tobacco

A gas chromatographic method for the determination of nicotine in low-nicotine tobacco is described. Tobacco samples are extracted with sodium hydroxide solution and chloroform. Nicotine in the chloroform is determined by gas chromatography. The method is applied to different tobacco types of varying nicotine levels and compared with other methods. The method is simple, rapid, and yields reproducible results.