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Blood alcohol estimate: How we calculate

How we calculate

Alcohol mass in grams = beverage volume in millilitres × ABV in percent / 100 × 0.789 g/ml. A simplified Widmark model divides by body weight and a distribution factor (0.68 or 0.55), then subtracts 0.15 ‰ per hour. The promille estimate is converted to g/L using an approximate blood density of 1.055 kg/L. Absorption and individual metabolism are not modelled. Negative model values are shown as zero; a zero result does not prove sobriety.

This is not a measurement or proof of sobriety. Never use the result to decide whether to drive; if you drank, do not drive.

Worked example

500 ml of a 5% drink contains 500 × 5 / 100 × 0.789 = 19.725 g alcohol. At 70 kg, distribution factor 0.68 and elapsed time 0 hours, the model gives about 0.41‰. This assumes immediate distribution; real absorption and individual physiology differ. The example cannot establish sobriety or fitness to drive.

Sources

NIAAA · What Is a Standard Drink?

Forensic Science International · Alcohol calculations and their uncertainty

Journal of Forensic Sciences · Blood alcohol concentration units

CDC · Impaired Driving