A breathalyzer is the colloquial name of a sobriety tester. There is a device that allows you to determine the amount of alcohol in the exhaled air.

The result is given in per mille.

Breathalyser interesting facts


1. The presence of alcohol in exhaled air was first discovered by Francis E. Anstie in 1874.

2. In 1927, Emil Bogen was the first to examine the amount of alcohol in the exhaled air. He determined that 2 liters contain slightly more than 1 cm3 of urine.

3. In 1931, New Jersey began to produce devices for testing the sobriety of drivers (drunkotamate).

4. In 1950, Robert Frank Borkenstein created a breathalyzer that gave blood alcohol levels.

5. There are known cases of a very rare disease, when the body itself produces alcohol, making the patient intoxicated.

6. The official record in the amount of blood alcohol is 14.8. This result was achieved by a man from Wrocław in 1995. Being inebriated with nearly 4 times the lethal dose, he caused an accident while driving a car.

Added: Tomasz

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Breathalyser questions and answers


What are the types of breathalyzers?

Breathalyzers can be divided into cheap models with a semiconductor sensor and expensive, professional electrochemical breathalyzers.

Answer: Mati


What can distort the result of a breathalyzer test?

The result of the breathalyzer test may be disturbed by e.g. mouthwash, alcohol-based sweets or substances in cigarette smoke.

Answer: Mati


How often should the breathalyzer be calibrated?

It depends on the model. It is worth following the recommendations in the manual. Professional models should be calibrated every 6 months or every 1500 measurements.

Answer: Mati


What affects blood alcohol levels?

Body weight, amount of food consumed, drinking rate, medication taken, health problems.

Answer: Mati


Can a breathalyzer be cheated?

A good quality breathalyzer cannot be deceived. In case of doubts as to the obtained result, the test may be repeated.

Answer: Mati


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