NL2014099B1 - Cigarette filter. - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to a multicomponent filter, comprising a bed of adsorbent, the bed of adsorbent comprising a ground herb mixture of angelica and real valerian, impregnated with vinegar and honey and optionally mixed with a substrate of a conventional smoke-filtering material, for example, finely cut lint filaments or staple fibers, or activated carbon. The invention also relates to a cigarette comprising such a filter.

Description

Cigarette filter

The present invention relates to filters suitable for cigarettes for filtering harmful substances from tobacco smoke.

It has been known for a long time that smoking tobacco products and in particular cigarette smoking is addictive and harmful to human health. Cigarette smoke, that is to say the smoke that results from smoking a cigarette, contains a large number of toxic substances, in particular nicotine, tar, carbon monoxide and combustion products from additives.

Nicotine is the most important psychoactive ingredient in tobacco. Nicotine is an addictive and blood pressure raising substance, but is not carcinogenic. Tar is carcinogenic and causes the well-known "smoker's cough". Carbon monoxide displaces the oxygen in the blood, reducing oxygen transport and worsening the condition.

Additives added to the tobacco by the cigarette manufacturers make cigarette smoke more attractive or addictive (i.e., they facilitate nicotine absorption) and regulate the moisture of tobacco. These additives can make up to 10% of today's cigarette. Examples of substances that are often added are glycerine, sugars, licorice, cocoa, menthol, vanilla and cellulose. When additives are burned, toxic and carcinogenic substances may develop. Known carcinogens in tobacco smoke are benzene, nitrosamines and formaldehyde.

Manufacturers also market cigarettes that contain less nicotine or less tar, but the concentration of the other (harmful) substances is comparable to that in a "regular" cigarette. In practice, moreover, it appears that these cigarettes, which were previously referred to as "light" or "mild", do not produce any health benefits, because the need for nicotine remains. As a result, users of this type of cigarette start smoking differently: they smoke more cigarettes, take more strokes per minute, inhale deeper, smoke the cigarette to the end or pinch the filter. The amount of nicotine and tar that one gets with this way of smoking, then on balance remains the same as what comes in when smoking a "regular" cigarette.

For many years, attempts have been made in many ways to make smoking more unattractive to help people get rid of their nicotine addiction and lead a healthier life. For example, nicotine replacement products have been developed, which reduce the need for nicotine by giving an ever-lower dose. The nicotine is in different amounts and strengths in the substitutes. Some examples of these substitutes are: the electric cigarette or "e-cigarette", nicotine patches, inhaler, nicotine gum. There are also herbal cigarettes on the market. These contain no tobacco and no nicotine.

For this and further background information, reference can be made to the following websites, among others: www.rokeninfo.nl/ublic/wetbeleid/tabaksindustrie, www.iellinek.nl/ QUESTION-REPLY and en.wikipedia.org/wiki/sigarettenrook.

Filter cigarettes generally comprise a tobacco rod of curled tobacco, ie finely cut tobacco leaves, which is encased in cigarette paper ("tapping paper"), which rod is subsequently provided with a cylindrical filter, which generally comprises a filter plug of fibers of cellulose acetate or the like and that in an end-to-end relationship to the tobacco rod is bonded by filter paper. The filter plug usually comprises one or more adsorbents, such as activated carbon, silica gel, sepiolite, alumina, an ion exchanger, and the like, for removing at least one smoke component. The filter may also comprise one or more flavor and / or odor-releasing components.

Although a great many adsorbents for cigarette filters are already known according to the state of the art, the purpose of which is, in particular, to remove tar and other harmful components from the (burning) cigarette, while preserving the smoking pleasure, there is still a need for alternative substances and combinations of substances which, on the one hand, aim to further reduce the harmful health aspects of cigarette smoking and, on the other hand, to provide new flavors and / or smells for cigarettes that are attractive to cigarette smokers.

It has been found according to the invention that this object can be achieved by a multicomponent filter comprising a bed of adsorbent, wherein the bed of adsorbent comprises a ground herb mixture of angelica root and real valerian, impregnated with vinegar and honey.

The ground and impregnated vegetable herb mixture according to the invention preferably forms a segment of the multi-component filter, which preferably but not necessarily borders both ends of a filter segment of conventional filter material according to the prior art.

The ground and impregnated vegetable herb mixture according to the invention is preferably mixed with a substrate which contributes to the pressure drop across the filter. This substrate can be made of a conventional smoke-filtering material, for example finely cut lint filaments or staple fibers, or particulate activated carbon. The combination with a substrate has the advantage that the mixing with the vegetable components remains airy and thus provides good ventilation through the filter. Furthermore, the presence of further smoke filtering material coal increases the filtering properties for the harmful substances to be removed. If desired, the substrate can also comprise particles which have little or no filtering effect.

The ratio of the ground and impregnated vegetable herb mixture according to the invention and the substrate in the filter segment is preferably in the order of 90% by weight of the impregnated herb mixture and 10% by weight of substrate.

The composition of the vegetable herb blend according to the invention can be varied within relatively wide limits, but is preferably in the range of 20 to 40% by weight, more in particular about 30% by weight, angelica root and from 20 to 40% by weight. %, more in particular about 30% by weight, genuine valerian.

The two herbs, which are commercially available, are coarsely cut and then mixed, after which the herbal mixture is immersed in a mixture of about 15% by weight of vinegar and about 15% by weight of honey and then dried. If desired, the dried mixture is mixed with about 10% by weight of a substrate, as indicated above.

As used herein, vinegar means any solution of 4 to 15% acetic acid in water. Suitable uses of vinegar for the present invention are, for example, table vinegar and wine vinegar. In principle, any commercially available honey can be used as honey, according to the choice of the manufacturer and / or the user.

The weight of the impregnated and dried herb mixture according to the invention in the filter is preferably 150-180 mg. The impregnated and dried herb mixture thus prepared is then combined with a conventional device into a rod and optionally provided with a segment of conventional filter material at both ends. The whole is wrapped with tapping paper, which preferably comprises a thin plastic film on the inside to prevent the honey and vinegar from seeping into the herbal mixture.

The multicomponent filter according to the invention can be manufactured in various ways. First of all, the manufacture of the filter can be part of a continuous production line, as is the case in cigarette factories. Continuous production lines for this are generally known in the making of cigarette filters. A second possibility is to manufacture the vegetable filters manually and to combine them with commercially available filter housings, after which a tobacco rod can be introduced into the filter housing with known means

The properties of the individual components of the ground and impregnated spice mix, which forms the core of the present invention, are known per se, but in this unique combination exhibit an unexpectedly beneficial effect with regard to the removal of harmful substances from the smoke of burning tobacco.

It is already known that angelica root and genuine valerian are cleansing agents against the toxic or at least substances in tobacco, see (Al tadawi bi al'shaab, Dr. Amin Rawayha, dar el qalam, Beirut - Lebanon, 7th edition 1983, p. 124, 284).

Vinegar is not only detoxifying, but also disinfecting and strengthening, see, among other things, www.leerwiki.nl.

Honey has a bacterial and fungal inhibiting effect, protects against cancer and cardiovascular disease, increases endurance and sports performance, regulates blood sugar levels, is a probiotic and keeps the intestinal flora in balance.

The invention further relates to a cigarette comprising a tobacco rod and the multi-component filter, as defined and described above.

Such a cigarette can be manufactured in various ways, as is known from the prior art and is described in detail therein.

The invention is further elucidated with reference to the accompanying figures, in which:

Figure 1 is a schematic side view of a preferred embodiment of a filter cigarette according to the invention;

Figure 2 is a side view of a cigarette filter according to the invention;

Figure 3 is a cigarette filter according to Figure 2, with a schematic representation of the associated wrapping of the tobacco rod;

Figure 4 is a microscopic photograph showing the amount of harmful substances absorbed when using the vegetable filter according to the invention;

Figure 5 is a microscopic photograph of the top of the upper portion of a filter of Figure 1; and

Figure 6 shows a microscopic photograph of the middle part of a filter according to Figure 1.

The multi-component filter shown in Figure 1 comprises 3 parts, the lower segment (a), which is adjacent to the cigarette and is made of conventional filter material, the middle segment (b), which comprises the impregnated vegetable herb mixture according to the invention, and the upper segment (c), which, just like the lower segment (a), is made of conventional filter material. Segment (a), if present, preferably has a length of approximately 3 mm, segment (b) preferably has a length of approximately 14 mm and segment (c), if present, preferably has a length of approximately 7 mm mm.

The multicomponent filter according to the invention, which comprises a segment with the impregnated vegetable herb mixture defined above, does not differ on the outside from a known cigarette filter according to the prior art, as can be seen in Figure 2 and Figure 3. Also the taste and the softness of the filter according to the invention does not differ between the lips and an "ordinary" cigarette filter for smokers. However, the internal difference between the two filters is considerable, because the vegetable filter according to the invention has better filtering properties, which will greatly benefit the health of the smoker.

Microscopic examination shows the amount of harmful substances absorbed when applying the vegetable filter (see Figure 4). This research shows that, in addition to the effect against the harmful substances as described above, the vegetable filter is experienced positively by smokers because they "just" smoke a cigarette.

This microscopic examination also shows that the upper and the middle part of the filter has absorbed approximately 90% of the compounds from the tobacco (see Figure 4).

Finally, the investigation showed that the top of the upper part of the filter is not discolored, which means that the smoker does not inhale any or virtually no harmful substances, see Figure 5.

Finally, Figure 6 shows the middle part of the filter, from which it can be seen that the impregnated herbal mixture according to the invention has incorporated harmful substances.

Claims (8)

A multi-component filter suitable for use in smoking articles, in particular cigarettes, comprising a bed of adsorbent, wherein the bed of adsorbent comprises an herbal mixture of angelica root and real valerian, impregnated with vinegar and honey. A multicomponent filter according to claim 1, wherein the impregnated vegetable herb mixture forms a segment of the multicomponent filter, which is adjacent at both ends to a filter segment of conventional filter material A multi-component filter according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the impregnated vegetable herb blend is mixed with a substrate of a conventional smoke-filtering material, for example, finely cut lint filaments or staple fibers, or activated carbon. A multi-component filter according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the impregnated vegetable herb mixture is mixed with a substrate of particles that have little or no filtering effect. A multicomponent filter according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the composition of the vegetable herbal mixture is in the range of 20 to 40% by weight, more in particular about 30% by weight, angelica root and from 20 to 40% by weight. %, more in particular about 30% by weight, genuine valerian. The multi-component filter of claim 5, wherein the herbal blend is dipped in a mixture of about 15% by weight of vinegar and about 15% by weight of honey and then dried. A multi-component filter according to any one of claims 1-6, wherein the ratio of the impregnated vegetable herb mixture and the substrate in the filter segment is of the order of 90% by weight of the impregnated herb mixture and 10% by weight of substrate. A cigarette, comprising a tobacco rod and the multi-component filter according to any of claims 1-7.