KR20150060753A - Smoking Article - Google Patents

Abstract

The smoking article comprises a smoking cigarette rod (2) comprising a cigarette and a wrapper and a filter (3) having a first end (4) and a second end (5). The filter 3 extends to the first end 4 of the filter 3 and the first filter segment 11 located at the end of the tobacco rod 2 and to the second end 5 of the filter 3 And a second filter segment (12). The first filter segment 11 comprises a plant material in the form of a cut or piece. The second filter segment 12 comprises a cellulosic material as the filter material and has a length in the range of 3 mm to 12 mm. The filter (3) is biodegradable according to OECD 301B.

Description

Smoking article {Smoking Article}

The present invention relates to a smoking article having a biodegradable filter.

Smoking articles, such as cigarettes, are usually placed on a smokable tobacco rod wrapped in a wrapper (such as a cigarette paper) and a filter attached to the rod by tipping paper . Perforations can be applied to the layers surrounding the filter material to configure the filter ventilation to dilute the mainstream smoke with air.

Filters for smoking articles often consist of two or more segments aligned along an axis to achieve a particular filter characteristic. Depending on the number of filter segments, such filters are known as dual, tri-pool or other filters.

Cellulose acetate is the most commonly used filter material for smoking articles. However, cellulose acetate has low biodegradability in either the mixture environment or in standardized tests such as OECD 301B. Recycled fibers such as paper or other nonwoven (such as air-laid) cellulose fibers or lyocell or viscose are known as filter materials with improved biodegradability.

The problem with the latter filter material above is that they have a very high filtration efficiency for the particulate matter (tar) of the mainstream smoke as compared to cellulose acetate. Since the amount of carbon monoxide in the mainstream smoke is not affected by filtration, the rate of generation of carbon monoxide (mg per smoking article) and the rate of generation of particulate matter increase with increasing filtration rate. The particulate matter herein is measured by PMWNF (Particulate Matter (Water and Nicotine Free)). Since there is an upper limit on the generation of carbon monoxide and the generation of PMWNF in various national and EU regulations, such filter materials limit the PMWNF level. The use of a so-called LIP (low ignition propensity) paper additionally contributes to this situation because this paper tends to increase CO generation at a constant PMWNF level.

The use of tobacco as a filter material is known in the prior art and is known, for example, from cigarettes of the brand FR 1 270 093 or the Gitanes Mais brand. The cigarette filter is mainly used to effect the taste of the smoking article, or to achieve the special appearance of a cigarette mouse tip that imitates a mu-filter cigarette. However, with the increasing use of filter cigarettes, today's consumer propensity has shifted to the visual white filter end.

WO 02/45531 A1 discloses a smoking article comprising a smoking filter with a hollow mouthpiece. Optionally, the cellulose-based filter portion may be disposed between the tobacco rod of the smoking article and the cigarette filter.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a smoking article having a biodegradable filter having a white appearance that is acceptable at the mouse-side end and having sufficiently low filtration efficiency for particulate matter to be comparable to a conventional cellulose acetate filter .

It is an object of the present invention to provide a smoking article having biodegradability according to OECD 301B.

The object of the present invention is achieved by providing a smoking article having the feature of claim 1. Claim 11 also relates to a filter for self-production of a smoking article, wherein the self-production results in a smoking article as defined in claim 1. Additional advantages of the present invention are described in the dependent claims.

A smoking article according to the invention comprises a smoking cigarette load comprising a cigarette wrapped in a wrapper and a filter having first and second ends. Preferably, the smoking article becomes a cigarette and the wrapper becomes a cigarette paper, but other types of smoking article, for example a small cigarillo, are also considered. The filter includes a first filter segment extending to the first end of the filter and disposed at the end of the tobacco rod (rod-side filter portion), and a second filter segment extending to the second end of the filter (mouse-side filter portion) . The first filter segment includes cut or shredded plant material. The second filter segment includes a cellulose material as a filtering material. In the sense used in the present invention, the cellulose material means a material based on natural cellulose or regenerated cellulose, and cellulose derivatives such as cellulose acetate are not applicable. The length of the second filter segment ranges from 3 mm to 12 mm. Further, the filter of the smoking article according to the present invention is biodegradable according to OECD 301B.

OECD 301 is the OECD Guideline for Testing Compounds (adopted by the Council on 17 July 1992) and is a multi-disciplinary study that allows testing of chemicals for easy biodegradability in aerobic aqueous media (solvents) / RTI > One such method is referred to as OECD 301B. In this test, the change in carbon dioxide from the test sample in an aqueous medium under aerobic conditions is measured and compared to the theoretical carbon dioxide production of the test compound, assuming complete degradation. In general, if the ratio of measured carbon dioxide to theoretical carbon dioxide increases from 10% to 60% or more within a period of 10 days, the test will be considered to have passed. For more information, see the OECD 301 Guidelines, which include a description of OECD 301 B.

Second, the mouse-side filter segment comprises a cellulosic material so that its appearance is wholly white or white in color, similar to the mouse-side end of a general cigarette with a cellulose acetate filter as a whole. This filter segment is rather short so as not to make the overall filtration efficiency of the second filter segment too high per unit length of the cellulosic material, generally due to the high filtration efficiency. First, the rod-side filter segment generally does not contribute much to the overall filtration efficiency of the filter, but the first, that is, the rod-side filter has a slightly longer length, so that the overall length of the filter is familiar to the consumer And facilitates handling of the filter during production. In addition, the cut or sculpted plant material of the first filter segment may affect the taste of the smoking article.

Preferably, the filter is a dual filter. This does not include additional segments other than the first filter segment and the second filter segment, wherein each filter segment may be configured to have a constant shape along the longitudinal axis of the smoking article as a whole.

Overall, the configuration of each filter segment may have a configuration that is substantially uniform, i.e. unchanging, along its longitudinal axis and cross-sectional area.

An example for the cellulose material of the second filter segment is paper, air-laid cellulose or regenerated cellulose such as lyocell or viscose. Mixtures or blends of such materials are also possible. The second filter segment further comprises a mixture of adsorbents (adsorbents), preferably as a component of the paper material, to reduce the gas-phase constituents of the mainstream smoke, i. E. For example, a paper containing activated carbon.

In an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the first, rod-side filter segment comprises a cut cigarette or a cut (or piecewise) hub, for example mint, eucalyptus and / or tea. Mixtures or blends of tobacco and herbs in cut or pellet form (mint, eucalyptus and / or tea) may likewise be considered. There are a variety of ways to affect the overall taste of the smoking article by selecting a suitable plant material for the first filter segment, such as a suitable blend.

The first filter segment can have a density of 0.20 g / cm ³ to 0.35 g / cm ³ range. This overall is somewhat greater than the density of tobacco in the tobacco rod of the smoking article. By adjusting the density, the filtration efficiency and taste provided by the first filter segment can be affected. Also, denser filters feel harder and are similar to common cellulose acetate filters, and these more dense filters are more robust during the manufacturing process, and the tendency for plant particles to escape from the end of the first filter segment is reduced do.

According to recent regulations, particularly if the smoking article is a cigarette, the wrapper of the smoking article can be a cigarette paper comprising at least one region having a smaller permeability compared to the basic permeability of the cigarette paper have. This means that the initial or basic permeability of the cigarette paper is reduced in certain areas, for example by applying a coating. The low-permeability regions can be arranged, for example, in a ring shape. In this way, a low ignition propensity (LIP) of the smoking article can be obtained, whereby the smoking article can preferably meet the requirements of ASTM E2187 and / or EN 16156: 2010. Generally, low-combustion propensity smoking articles are known in the art.

As already mentioned above, the yield or level of carbon monoxide production of the smoking article is hardly affected by the filter (except by ventilation), whereas the PMWNF production ( Level) can be controlled, for example, via a filter. According to the invention, the latter can be made, for example, through the density or kind of cellulose material in the second filter segment or through the length of the second filter segment. If the smoking article is larger than 8 mg or has the same level of PMWNF, then the ratio of CO / PMWNF is preferably less than 1.3 if smoking occurs under ISO conditions. If the smoking article has a small PMWNF level compared to 8 mg, the ratio of CO / PMWNF may preferably be less than 1.1, if smoking occurs according to ISO conditions. In this specification, CO / PMWNF is expressed as the total amount of CO of mg per smoking article divided by the total amount of PMWNF per mg of smoking article. The relevant standard is ISO 4387.

The filter so far described can be used in a filter tube for self-production of a smoking article comprising a wrapper suitable for wrapping the cigarette. The only difference between the smoking article according to the invention and such a smoking article filter tube is that in the latter the cigarette is absent from the rod in the state of being sold and the consumer fills himself with the cigarette. The filter of the smoking article filter tube may have all the characteristics of the filter of the smoking articles according to the invention.

The smoking article according to the present invention allows the low-burning propensity (LIP) of the smoking article to be achieved while meeting the requirements of ASTM E2187 and / or EN 16156: 2010. In addition, the smoking article according to the invention can be used in a filter tube for self-production of a smoking article comprising a wrapper suitable for use in cigarettes.

The invention is further described by the following embodiments. The drawing shows the following.
1 is a perspective view of an embodiment of a smoking article according to the present invention.
Figure 2 is a graph of the degradation of cigarette filter segments (paper, tobacco and cellulose) as a function of time as measured by the method described in OECD 301B.

The smoking article according to the present invention can be produced, for example, by the following method.

The filter base load for the second filter segment is manufactured by the standard tobacco manufacturer from paper web, plug wrap and glue. As is known to those skilled in the art, the pressure drop and retention of such members can be controlled by the width of the paper web and the optional embossing or crimping of the web Lt; / RTI > Depending on the intended form of filter venting, the plug wrap can be either porous or non-porous.

The tobacco filter base rod for the first filter segment is manufactured by a standard cigarette manufacturer from a cut or piece shaped tobacco blend, a wrapper and an adhesive. Such tobacco blends usually include cut Virginia, Burley and / or oriental tobacco leaves. The tobacco blend may further comprise cut tobacco stems. All tobacco materials can be extended using processes familiar to those of ordinary skill in the art. The wrapper can be a porous or non-porous filter plug wrap paper.

From this filter base rod, the dual filter rod can be made using a second porous or non-porous wrapper and adhesive and using a standard filter bonding machine.

Burning tobacco rods are manufactured by standard filter cigarette makers from tobacco, cigarette paper and adhesives. The dual filter is attached to the rod by a tipping paper covering the filter as well as a portion of the smoking cigarette load,

Thus, in this embodiment, each filter segment includes a plug, both filter segments are joined by an additional wrapper, and the resulting dual filter is attached to a suitable tobacco rod that is combusted by the tip paper.

Figure 1 illustrates an embodiment of a smoking article in the form of a perspective view.

The smoking article becomes a cigarette 1 comprising a smokable tobacco rod 2 and a dual filter 3. The dual filter 3 is attached to the smoking tobacco rod 2 by a tipping paper (not shown in Fig. 1). The dual filter 3 has a first end 4 adjacent the tobacco rod 2 and a second end 5 towards the mouth-side filter end.

The dual filter 3 includes a rod-side first filter segment 11 and a mouse-side second filter segment 12. The first filter segment 11 comprises a cut or piece of plant material (in the example cigarette), while the second filter segment 12 comprises a filter material (in the example paper) ) Material. Each filter segment 11,12 includes a plug wrap and both filter segments 11,12 are joined by an additional wrapper (not shown in Figure 1).

In an embodiment, the dual filter 3 is vented by ventilation holes arranged in rows extending circumferentially in the region of the first filter segment 11.

As an example, cigarette samples were produced according to the parameters in Table 1 listed below. The columns "Reference" and "Reference 2 " are each associated with a sample having a known cellulose acetate (Mono-AC) filter or paper filter for comparison purposes. The remaining four columns (cigarette-paper filter sample) are related to the sample according to the invention.

All cigarettes included in Table 1 are standard king size cigarettes having an overall length of the filter of 21 mm, an overall length of the smoking tobacco rod of 62 mm and a diameter of 7.88 mm. In all cases, the tip length (tip paper length) is 25 mm. In the cigarette load, all cigarettes in Table 1 include a standard American blend with a load weight of 670 mg. In all ventilation samples, the filter vent is located 13 mm from the mouse-side end of the filter. In addition all samples contain LIP cigarette paper with a basic porosity of 70 CU (Coresta Units). The smoke production of the cigarettes in Table 1 was tested according to ISO 4387. For measurements of pressure drop (PD), ventilation perforations were opened; 1 mm WG = 9.8 Pa.

In the sample according to the invention, the cigarette used for the cigarette filter segment (cigarette filter plug) is a dark air-cured tobacco blend containing 60% of the expanded stem.

The last column in Table 1 ("+ 25% mint") relates to a sample containing mint leaves inside a tobacco filter segment. In this case, 25% of the lamina part of the tobacco blend in the filters of samples 1 to 3 was replaced by a threshed mint leaf.

1.3 The objective of providing the CO / NFDPM ratio below is achieved by all samples according to the invention.

The biodegradability of the paper filter segment, the tobacco filter segment and the cellulose acetate filter of the sample according to Table 1 was tested according to the OECD 301 B method. The results are shown in FIG. The graph display indicates the amount of decomposition during the time (in days) progression. As detailed in the OECD 301 Guidelines, decomposition is expressed as the amount of CO ₂ produced by each test sample relative to the theoretical CO ₂ yield of the test sample assuming complete degradation.

As is apparent from Fig. 2, the tobacco and paper have passed the test, while the cellulose acetate appears to have failed.

     [Table 1] Data of the cigarette according to the present invention having the reference cigarette data and a dual filter including a cigarette and a paper segment

1: cigarette 2: cigarette load
3: Dual filter 4: First end
5: second end 11, 12: filter segment

Claims (12)

1. A smoking article comprising a smoking cigarette rod (2) comprising a cigarette and a wrapper and a filter (3) having a first end (4) and a second end (5)
The filter 3 comprises a first filter segment 11 comprising a cut or piece of plant material and extending to the first end 4 of the filter 3 and located at the end of the tobacco rod 2,
And a second filter segment (12) comprising a cellulose material as the filter material and having a length ranging from 3 mm to 12 mm and extending to a second end (5) of the filter,
Characterized in that the filter (3) is biodegradable according to OECD 301 B. The smoking article according to claim 1, wherein the filter is a dual filter (3). The filter according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the second filter segment (12) comprises at least one cellulosic material selected from the group consisting of paper, paper comprising an adsorbent, paper comprising activated carbon, air laminated cellulosic, regenerated cellulose, lyocell, viscose Smoking articles containing material. The smoking article according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the first filter segment (11) comprises a cut tobacco. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the first filter segment (11) is at least one selected from the group consisting of a cut or chopped hub, a mint leaf in cut or piece form, eucalyptus, Smoking goods. A smoking article according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the first filter segment (11) has a density in the range of 0.20 g / cm ³ to 0.35 g / cm ³ . The cigarette paper as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the wrapper comprises at least one region having a smaller permeability compared to the basic permeability of the cigarette paper, and being a cigarette paper made to provide a low- Lt; / RTI > The smoking article according to claim 7, characterized in that the smoking article (1) meets the specifications of ASTM E2187 and / or EN 16156: 2010. The smoking article according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the smoking article (1) has a PMWNF level of greater than or equal to 8 mg and a CO / PMWNF ratio of less than 1.3 when smoked according to ISO conditions. The smoking article according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the smoking article (1) has a PMWNF level of less than 8 mg and a CO / PMWNF ratio of less than 1.1 when smoking according to ISO conditions. A smoking article filter tube for self-manufacturing a smoking article according to claim 1, comprising a wrapper suitable for use in a cigarette providing a smoking cigarette load and a filter having a first end and a second end,
A first filter segment comprising a cut or piece of plant material and extending to the first end of the filter and positioned at the end of the tobacco rod,
A second filter segment comprising a cellulose material as the filter material and having a length in the range of 3 mm to 12 mm and extending to a second end of the filter,
Characterized in that the filter is biodegradable according to OECD 301 B. The smoking article filter tube according to claim 11, characterized by any one of claims 2 to 11.

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