JPH03219860A - Filter for tobacco smoke - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To provide a filter for tobacco smoke capable of selectively absorbing and removing nicotine contained in smoke of tobacco without impairing original taste of tobacco by adding L-ascorbic acid to the filter for tobacco smoke. CONSTITUTION:L-Ascorbic acid is added to a filter for tobacco smoke by impregnating or spraying an aqueous solution of L-ascorbic acid to a filter tow or filter paper, etc., or adding powder of L-ascorbic acid thereto. L-ascorbic acid is preferably added to the filter at an amount of 5-100wt.% per filter. Thereby a filter for tobacco smoke having selective absorbing ability of nicotine can be produced, because L-ascorbic acid has excellent ability capable of selectively absorbing nicotine contained in tobacco smoke.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Industrial Application Field] The present invention relates to a tobacco smoke filter,
More specifically, the present invention relates to a tobacco smoke filter characterized by containing L-ascorbic acid as a selective remover of nicotine components in tobacco smoke.

[Prior Art] Recent trends in cigarette consumption indicate that products with a light taste, low amounts of nicotine and tar, and a mild feel are preferred. In order to meet these consumer demands, various improvements have been made to cellulose acetate filters and paper filters that are currently widely used. A simple example is one that attempts to increase the filtration rate of nicotine tar by making the length of the filter longer than conventional products. Furthermore, in the case of cellulose acetate filters, measures have been taken to increase the filtration rate of nicotine tar by making the fibers finer in denier and developing various types of irregular cross-sections.

[Problem to be solved by the invention] As the debate on smoking and health issues increases, is it likely that the aforementioned trend toward milder smoking will continue? There is a problem that it does not satisfy the sense of smoke volume. In order to achieve a satisfactory smoking taste and smoke volume, it is necessary to control the ratio of the amount of nicotine to the amount of tar in the smoke (hereinafter referred to as N/T) to a desired value. It is possible to adjust the N/T in smoke by changing the cigarette paper or using tobacco substitutes. However, there are problems with these methods.

In other words, there are constraints on the cost of a new leaf group, the availability of leaf labor, etc. Furthermore, to date, there are no tobacco substitutes that are acceptable in terms of taste and are not yet at the stage of practical use.

In order to overcome these problems, research has been conducted on filter additives that change the N/T in smoke, that is, filter additives that selectively adsorb and remove nicotine or tar in smoke. The situation is that nothing has been developed yet.

[Means for Solving the Problems] In view of the above-mentioned circumstances, the present inventors have conducted extensive studies and studies to find a substance that selectively adsorbs nicotine or tar in smoke, and as a result, L-ascorbin. They discovered that acids have an extremely high ability to selectively adsorb nicotine in cigarette smoke, and completed a cigarette smoke filter with added L-ascorbic acid that has the ability to selectively adsorb nicotine.

That is, the present invention provides a tobacco smoke filter characterized by containing L-ascorbic acid.

The monoascorbic acid used in the present invention may be one that satisfies any of the Japanese Food Additives Official Standards, the Japanese Pharmacopoeia, and the Cosmetic Raw Materials Standards.

Since cigarettes are a luxury item, it is essential that additives for filters be substances that do not impair the original aroma and taste of cigarettes, but as long as they meet any of the standards listed above, Since L-ascorbic acid is odorless, it does not have any adverse effect on the aroma and taste of cigarettes even if it is included in a cigarette smoke filter.

As a method for adding L-ascorbic acid to a tobacco smoke filter, it may be added in powder form, or an aqueous solution of L-ascorbic acid may be impregnated or sprayed into filter tow or filter paper.

It is generally preferable to manufacture the filter structure in the form of a dual structure or a triple structure in order to prevent L-ascorbic acid from flowing into the oral cavity during cigarette smoking. When used in a dual structure, a portion of the filter is L-
A part to which ascorbic acid powder is sprinkled or an aqueous L-ascorbic acid solution is added by impregnation or spraying is connected to a part not containing L-ascorbic acid.

When using a triple structure, a portion of the filter may be prepared by placing L-ascorbic acid powder directly between the filters, by sprinkling L-ascorbic acid powder onto the filter, or by adding an aqueous L-ascorbic acid solution by spraying. It is used in a structure in which it is sandwiched between parts that do not contain L-ascorbic acid.

Filter materials to which ascorbic acid is added include cellulose acetate filters, rayon filters, polypropylene filters, paper filters, etc., and the effect is exhibited no matter which material is used.

The amount of L-ascorbic acid added varies depending on the tobacco leaf structure and filter material, but it is 5 to 100% by weight (ratio of L-ascorbic acid weight to the weight of the filter material) per tobacco smoke filter. preferable.

If the amount of L-ascorbic acid added is less than 5% by weight, the nicotine removal effect will be too small, while if it exceeds 100% by weight, problems will arise in terms of flavor and aroma.

[Examples] Hereinafter, the present invention will be explained in detail with reference to Examples, but the present invention is not limited to these Examples at all.

In addition, the ventilation resistance measurement, the measurement of nicotine in the smoking test, and the measurement of tar filtration rate described in the following Examples and Comparative Examples were performed as follows.

B: Ventilation resistance is the pressure loss expressed in water column when the flow rate of air passing through the filter plug or filter chip to be measured is 17.5 ml/sec.

B: The smoking test was conducted using a constant flow type automatic smoking machine with a flow rate of 17.5
Automatic smoking was performed under the conditions of ml/sec, smoking time of 2 seconds, smoking cycle of 60 seconds, and smoking length of 50 seconds, and the mainstream smoke was collected with a Cambridge filter, and the filtration rates of nicotine and tar were measured.

The nicotine and tar filtration rate is determined by the amount of nicotine and tar attached to the filter body (TN and Tr, respectively) after smoking is finished.
) and the amounts of nicotine and tar (C and CT, respectively) adhering to a Cambridge filter for collecting smoke components from a smoker were measured, and the filtration rate of each filter was determined using the formula below.

As a filter chip, 6% by weight of triacetin was attached to a crimped cellulose diacetate tow with a single fiber fineness of 3.3 denier, Y-shaped cross section 1, and a total fineness of 46,000 denier, with a circumference of 24.4 mm and a length of 84 mm. A cigarette frame section is made by cutting a part of the filter from a commercially available cigarette "Cherry" (manufactured by Japan Tobacco Inc.) by winding up a H20 cigarette filter rod with ventilation resistance of 300 mm and cutting it into 17 mm filter chips. This was used as the Comparative Example 1 sample.

The same filter tip used for the comparison sample above was cut into lengths of 12mm and 5mm+, and an aqueous ascorbic acid solution with a concentration of 10% by weight was added to the filter tip. The acid was added using a syringe so that the amount of acid added was 20% by weight based on the weight of the tow in the chip, and then vacuum-dried at room temperature (20 to 25°C), and this was connected to a 5 mm+ filter chip to prepare.

Next, this filter chip was connected to a "Cherry" cigarette frame in the same manner as in Comparative Example 1 to obtain an Example 1 sample.

These samples were smoked using an automatic smoking machine and the filtration rates of nicotine, tar, and water were measured. Table 1 summarizes the results.

Table 1 Table 2 In exactly the same manner as in Example 1, only the amount of L-ascorbic acid aqueous solution added was changed, and the amount of ascorbic acid added to the filter chip was 10 and 50% by weight based on the tow weight in the chip. Create a filter tip as in
The samples of Examples 2 and 3 were prepared by connecting them to the cigarette frame.

After smoking with an automatic smoking machine in the same manner as in Example 1, the filtration rates of nicotine, tar, and water were measured. The results are summarized in Table 2.

The same 84-inch filter rod used in Example 1 was cut into 5-inch filter tips. Arrange the two pieces with a gap of 5 mm, and then add 0.11 g of granular L-ascorbic acid with a particle size of 24 to 42 mesh (based on the weight of the filter material), which was separated using a standard sieve that has passed JIS certification. 100% by weight) to prepare a triple filter, which was connected to the frame of a "Cherry" cigarette in the same manner as in Example 1. As a comparative example, the 84 mm long filter rod used in Examples 1 to 4 was cut into 17 mm filter chips, which had the same ventilation resistance as the triple filter of Example 4, and the cigarette frame was connected to them. A sample prepared by the above method was used. These samples were subjected to a smoking test in the same manner as in Example 1, and the filtration rates of nicotine, tar, and water were measured. The results are shown in Table 3.

According to the smoke filter, nicotine in cigarette smoke can be selectively adsorbed and removed.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A filter for tobacco smoke, characterized in that it contains L-ascorbic acid. 2. The tobacco smoke filter according to claim 1, wherein the amount of L-ascorbic acid added is 5 to 100% by weight per filter.