WO2023053185A1

WO2023053185A1 - Method for manufacturing atomization unit of suction tool

Info

Publication number: WO2023053185A1
Application number: PCT/JP2021/035600
Authority: WO
Inventors: 亮祐長瀬
Original assignee: 日本たばこ産業株式会社
Priority date: 2021-09-28
Filing date: 2021-09-28
Publication date: 2023-04-06
Also published as: JPWO2023053185A1

Abstract

Provided is a technology capable of suppressing the occurrence of scorching in an electrical load of an atomization unit of a suction tool.　A method for manufacturing an atomization unit of a suction tool having a liquid storage section and an electrical load comprises: an extraction step (S10) in which a tobacco material subjected to an alkali treatment is heated to extract a flavor component from the tobacco material; a molding step (S20) in which a tobacco residue, which is the tobacco material after being extracted in the extraction step, is cleaned by means of an acidic cleaning liquid having a pH of 7.0 or less to reduce the pH of the tobacco residue to less than 8.0, and the tobacco residue after the cleaning is solidified to mold into a predetermined shape, thereby producing a molded body; and an assembly step (S40) in which an aerosol liquid and the molded body produced in the molding step are stored in the liquid storage section.

Description

Manufacturing method of atomization unit for suction tool

The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing an atomization unit of a suction tool.

Conventionally, as a non-combustion heating type suction device, it has a liquid storage part that stores an aerosol liquid and an electrical load that atomizes the aerosol liquid introduced from the liquid storage part to generate an aerosol. There is known an atomizing unit of an inhaler, which is characterized by dispersing tobacco material powder inside an aerosol liquid (see, for example, Patent Document 1). According to such an atomization unit, the flavor component of the tobacco material can be eluted into the aerosol liquid in the liquid container. This allows the user to enjoy the flavor of the tobacco material.

Patent document 2 and patent document 3 can be cited as other prior art documents. Patent Literature 2 discloses a basic configuration of a non-combustion heating suction tool. Patent Document 3 discloses a technique for extracting flavor components from tobacco materials. Specifically, a technique for extracting flavor components from tobacco materials by heating alkali-treated tobacco materials is disclosed. disclosed.

International Publication No. 2019/211332 Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2020-141705 International Publication No. 2016/063775

In the case of the atomization unit of the conventional suction tool as exemplified in the above-mentioned Patent Document 1, there is a risk that the tobacco material dispersed inside the aerosol liquid in the liquid containing portion will adhere to the electrical load. In this case, the electric load may be scorched.

Further, in the case of the atomization unit of the above-mentioned conventional suction device, the tobacco material dispersed in the aerosol liquid in the liquid storage part, such as water-soluble polyphenols and polysaccharides, is "electrically loaded. There is a risk that a large amount of a component that, when attached, will cause scorching to the electrical load (hereinafter sometimes referred to as a “burning component”)” may be eluted into the aerosol liquid. Even in this case, the electric load may be scorched.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a technology capable of suppressing the electrical load of an atomizing unit of a suction tool from being scorched. .

(Aspect 1)
To achieve the above object, a method for manufacturing an atomizing unit for a suction device according to one aspect of the present invention includes a liquid containing portion containing an aerosol liquid, and atomizing the aerosol liquid introduced from the liquid containing portion. and an electrical load to generate an aerosol, wherein the extraction comprises heating tobacco material that has been subjected to alkali treatment to extract flavor components from the tobacco material. and washing the tobacco residue, which is the tobacco material extracted in the extraction step, with an acidic cleaning liquid having a pH of 7.0 or less to reduce the pH of the tobacco residue to less than 8.0, and after washing a molding step of solidifying the tobacco residue and molding it into a predetermined shape to manufacture a molded body; and an assembling step of storing the aerosol liquid and the molded body manufactured in the molding step in the liquid storage portion. ,including.

According to this aspect, the compact formed into a predetermined shape by hardening the tobacco residue is placed inside the aerosol liquid in the liquid container, and the compact is physically separated from the electrical load. Therefore, it is possible to prevent tobacco residue from adhering to the electrical load. As a result, it is possible to suppress the electric load from being scorched.

Furthermore, according to this aspect, in the molding step, the tobacco residue is washed with an acidic cleaning liquid having a pH of 7.0 or less to reduce the pH of the tobacco residue to less than 8.0, and the washed tobacco residue is hardened. Since the molded body is manufactured by molding into a predetermined shape by washing, the charred component contained in the molded body can be reduced compared to the case where the molded body is manufactured without such washing. Thereby, it is possible to suppress elution of a large amount of scorched components into the aerosol liquid from the compact accommodated in the liquid accommodating portion. As a result, it is possible to effectively prevent the electric load of the atomization unit of the suction tool from being scorched.

(Aspect 2)
In the above aspect 1, the molding step includes coating the entire surface of the molding with a coating material containing a water-soluble polymer made of at least one substance selected from polyvinyl alcohol, agar, gelatin, chitosan, and alginic acid. coating with.

A water-soluble polymer composed of at least one substance selected from polyvinyl alcohol, agar, gelatin, chitosan, and alginic acid is a substance having a relatively small molecular weight (low-molecular-weight substance). It has the property of suppressing the passage of substances with relatively large molecular weights (high-molecular-weight substances) through the bonding gap while permitting passage. Therefore, according to this aspect, since the entire surface of the molded product is coated with the coating material made of such a water-soluble polymer, the flavor component contained in the tobacco material of the molded product (which is a low-molecular-weight substance ) can be allowed to dissolve into the aerosol liquid, while the charred component (which is a high-molecular-weight substance) can be suppressed from eluting into the aerosol liquid.

In addition, when comparing the flavor component and the burnt component contained in the molded tobacco material, the flavor component can be dissolved in the water-soluble polymer described above, but the burnt component is difficult to dissolve in the water-soluble polymer. . Therefore, the flavor components of the tobacco material can be dissolved in the water-soluble polymer and then eluted into the aerosol liquid. On the other hand, since the scorched component is difficult to dissolve in the water-soluble polymer, elution into the aerosol liquid is suppressed. Also from this point of view, according to this aspect, it is possible to suppress the elution of the scorched component into the aerosol liquid while allowing the flavor component to be eluted into the aerosol liquid.

(Aspect 3)
Aspect 1 or 2 above further includes an extract producing step of producing an extract of the tobacco material by adding the flavor component extracted in the extracting step to a solvent, and The aerosol liquid contained in may contain the liquid extract produced in the liquid extract producing step.

(Aspect 4)
Aspect 1 or 2 above further includes an extract producing step of producing an extract of the tobacco material by adding the flavor component extracted in the extracting step to a solvent, and the forming step comprises the extract A part of the liquid extract produced in the manufacturing process is added to the compact, and the aerosol liquid contained in the liquid container in the assembling process is the liquid extract manufactured in the liquid extract manufacturing process. It may contain at least part of the remainder of the extract.

(Aspect 5)
Aspect 1 or 2 above further includes an extract producing step of producing an extract of the tobacco material by adding the flavor component extracted in the extracting step to a solvent, and the forming step comprises the extract It may include adding all of the extract produced in the production process to the compact.

According to the aspect of the present invention, it is possible to suppress the electrical load of the atomization unit of the suction tool from being scorched.

It is a perspective view which shows typically the external appearance of the suction tool which concerns on embodiment. Fig. 4 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing the main part of the atomization unit of the suction tool according to the embodiment; 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line A1-A1 of FIG. 2; FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of a tobacco consumption material according to an embodiment; FIG. FIG. 5 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the tobacco consumption material of FIG. 4 taken along the XY plane. Fig. 5 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the tobacco consumable material of Fig. 4 taken along the YZ plane; FIG. 4 is a flowchart for explaining a method of manufacturing the atomization unit of the suction tool according to the embodiment; FIG. 10 is a flowchart for explaining a method of manufacturing an atomizing unit of a suction tool according to Modification 1 of the embodiment; FIG. 10 is a flowchart for explaining a method of manufacturing an atomizing unit of a suction tool according to Modification 2 of the embodiment; Fig. 10 is a schematic perspective view of a tobacco consumption material according to Modification 3 of the embodiment;

A method of manufacturing the atomization unit 12 of the suction tool 10 according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. Specifically, first, the configuration of the atomization unit 12 manufactured by the manufacturing method according to the present embodiment and the suction tool 10 including the atomization unit 12 will be described, and then the manufacturing method according to the present embodiment. will be explained. Note that the drawings of the present application are schematically illustrated for easy understanding of the features, and the dimensional ratios and the like of each component are not necessarily the same as the actual ones. In addition, XYZ Cartesian coordinates are illustrated in the drawings as needed.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view schematically showing the appearance of a suction tool 10 according to this embodiment. The suction tool 10 according to the present embodiment is a non-combustion heating suction tool, specifically, a non-combustion heating electronic cigarette.

As an example, the suction tool 10 according to this embodiment extends in the direction of the central axis CL of the suction tool 10 . Specifically, for example, the suction tool 10 has a “longitudinal direction (the direction of the central axis CL),” a “width direction” perpendicular to the longitudinal direction, and a “thickness direction” perpendicular to the longitudinal direction and the width direction. , and has an external shape. The dimensions of the suction tool 10 in the longitudinal direction, width direction, and thickness direction decrease in this order. In this embodiment, of the XYZ orthogonal coordinates, the Z-axis direction (Z direction or -Z direction) corresponds to the longitudinal direction, and the X-axis direction (X direction or -X direction) corresponds to It corresponds to the width direction, and the Y-axis direction (Y direction or −Y direction) corresponds to the thickness direction.

The suction tool 10 has a power supply unit 11 and an atomization unit 12. The power supply unit 11 is detachably connected to the atomization unit 12 . Inside the power supply unit 11, a battery as a power supply, a control device, and the like are arranged. When the atomization unit 12 is connected to the power supply unit 11, the power supply of the power supply unit 11 and the load 40 of the atomization unit 12, which will be described later, are electrically connected.

The atomization unit 12 is provided with a discharge port 13 for discharging air (that is, air). Air containing aerosol is discharged from this discharge port 13 . When using the suction tool 10 , the user of the suction tool 10 can suck the air discharged from the discharge port 13 .

The power supply unit 11 is provided with a sensor that outputs the value of the pressure change inside the suction tool 10 caused by the user's suction through the discharge port 13 . When the user starts sucking air, the sensor senses the start of sucking air and notifies the control device, which starts energizing the load 40 of the atomization unit 12, which will be described later. Further, when the user finishes sucking air, the sensor senses the finish of sucking air and informs the control device, and the control device stops energizing the load 40 .

The power supply unit 11 may be provided with an operation switch for transmitting an air suction start request and an air suction end request to the control device by user's operation. In this case, the user can operate the operation switch to transmit an air suction start request or a suction end request to the control device. Upon receiving the air suction start request and suction end request, the control device starts and terminates energization of the load 40 .

It should be noted that the configuration of the power supply unit 11 as described above is the same as that of the power supply unit of a known suction tool as exemplified in Patent Document 2, for example, so further detailed description will be omitted.

FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing main parts of the atomization unit 12. As shown in FIG. Specifically, FIG. 2 schematically shows a cross section of the main part of the atomization unit 12 taken along a plane including the central axis CL. FIG. 3 is a diagram schematically showing a cross section along line A1-A1 of FIG. 2 (that is, a cross section taken along a plane normal to the center axis CL). The atomization unit 12 will be described with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3. FIG.

The atomization unit 12 includes a plurality of walls (walls 70a to 70g) extending in the longitudinal direction (the direction of the central axis CL), and a plurality of walls (walls 71a to 70g) extending in the width direction. ˜wall portion 71c). The atomization unit 12 also includes an air passage 20 , a wick 30 , an electrical load 40 and a liquid container 50 . A tobacco consumable material 60 is arranged inside the liquid storage portion 50 .

The air passage 20 is a passage through which air passes when the user inhales air (that is, inhales aerosol). The air passage 20 according to this embodiment includes an upstream passage portion, a load passage portion 22 and a downstream passage portion 23 . As an example, the upstream passage portion according to the present embodiment includes a plurality of upstream passage portions, specifically, an upstream passage portion 21a (“first upstream passage portion”) and an upstream passage portion 21b. (“second upstream passage portion”).

The

upstream passage portions

21a and 21b are arranged upstream of the load passage portion 22 (upstream in the air flow direction). Downstream end portions of the

upstream passage portions

21 a and 21 b communicate with the load passage portion 22 . The load passage portion 22 is a passage portion in which the load 40 is arranged. The downstream passage portion 23 is a passage portion arranged on the downstream side (downstream side in the air flow direction) of the load passage portion 22 . An upstream end portion of the downstream passage portion 23 communicates with the load passage portion 22 . A downstream end of the downstream passage portion 23 communicates with the discharge port 13 described above. Air that has passed through the downstream passage portion 23 is discharged from the discharge port 13 .

Specifically, the upstream passage portion 21a according to the present embodiment is provided in a region surrounded by the wall portion 70a, the wall portion 70b, the wall portion 70e, the wall portion 70f, the wall portion 71a, and the wall portion 71b. there is The upstream passage portion 21b is provided in a region surrounded by the wall portion 70c, the wall portion 70d, the wall portion 70e, the wall portion 70f, the wall portion 71a, and the wall portion 71b. The load passage portion 22 is provided in a region surrounded by the wall portion 70a, the wall portion 70d, the wall portion 70e, the wall portion 70f, the wall portion 71b, and the wall portion 71c. The downstream passage portion 23 is provided in a region surrounded by the tubular wall portion 70g.

A hole 72a and a hole 72b are provided in the wall portion 71a. Air flows into the upstream passage portion 21a through the hole 72a, and flows into the upstream passage portion 21b through the hole 72b. Further, holes 72c and 72d are provided in the wall portion 71b. Air passing through the upstream passage portion 21a flows into the load passage portion 22 through the hole 72c, and air passing through the upstream passage portion 21b flows into the load passage portion 22 through the hole 72d.

In this embodiment, the direction of air flow in the

upstream passage portions

21 a and 21 b is opposite to the direction of air flow in the downstream passage portion 23 . Specifically, in the present embodiment, the direction of air flow in the

upstream passage portions

21a and 21b is the -Z direction, and the direction of air flow in the downstream passage portion 23 is the Z direction.

2 and 3, the upstream passage portion 21a and the upstream passage portion 21b according to the present embodiment sandwich the liquid storage portion 50 between the upstream passage portion 21a and the upstream passage portion 21b. As shown in FIG.

Specifically, as shown in FIG. 3, the upstream passage portion 21a according to the present embodiment is a cross-sectional view cut along a cut plane normal to the central axis CL, and the liquid storage portion 50 is sandwiched between the upstream passage portions 21a. side (-X direction side). On the other hand, the upstream passage portion 21b is arranged on the other side (the side in the X direction) across the liquid storage portion 50 in this cross-sectional view. In other words, the upstream passage portion 21 a is arranged on one side of the liquid containing portion 50 in the width direction of the suction tool 10 , and the upstream passage portion 21 b is arranged on the side of the liquid containing portion 50 in the width direction of the suction tool 10 . located on the other side.

The wick 30 is a member for introducing the extraction liquid of the liquid storage section 50 to the load 40 of the load passage section 22 . The specific configuration of the wick 30 is not particularly limited as long as it has such a function. Fifty extracts are introduced into load 40 .

The load 40 is an electrical load for introducing the extract from the liquid containing portion 50 and atomizing the introduced extract to generate an aerosol. A specific configuration of the load 40 is not particularly limited, and for example, a heating element such as a heater or an element such as an ultrasonic generator can be used. In this embodiment, a heater is used as an example of the load 40 . As this heater, a heating resistor (that is, a heating wire), a ceramic heater, a dielectric heating type heater, or the like can be used. In this embodiment, a heating resistor is used as an example of this heater. Moreover, in this embodiment, the heater as the load 40 has a coil shape. That is, the load 40 according to this embodiment is a so-called coil heater. This coil heater is wound around a wick 30 .

The load 40 is electrically connected to the power supply and the control device of the power supply unit 11 described above, and heats up when electricity from the power supply is supplied to the load 40 (that is, heats up when energized). Also, the operation of the load 40 is controlled by a control device. The load 40 heats the extraction liquid in the liquid storage section 50 introduced into the load 40 through the wick 30 to atomize the liquid to generate an aerosol.

The configurations of the wick 30 and the load 40 are the same as the wick and the load used in a known suction tool as exemplified in Patent Document 2, for example, so further detailed description will be omitted.

The liquid storage part 50 is a part for storing the aerosol liquid Le. The liquid storage portion 50 according to this embodiment is provided in a region surrounded by the wall portion 70b, the wall portion 70c, the wall portion 70e, the wall portion 70f, the wall portion 71a, and the wall portion 71b.

Further, in the present embodiment, as an example, the downstream passage portion 23 described above is provided so as to penetrate the liquid storage portion 50 in the direction of the central axis CL. However, the configuration is not limited to this, and for example, the downstream passage portion 23 may be arranged adjacent to the liquid storage portion 50 in the thickness direction (Y-axis direction) of the suction tool 10 .

The tobacco consumable material 60 is arranged inside the aerosol liquid Le of the liquid storage part 50 at least when the suction tool 10 is used. Two tobacco consumable materials 60 according to the present embodiment are arranged inside the aerosol liquid Le of the liquid storage section 50 . However, the number of tobacco consumption materials 60 is not limited to this, and may be one or three or more.

Although the details will be described later, the tobacco consumable material 60 contains tobacco material. The flavor component of the tobacco material contained in the tobacco consumable material 60 is eluted into the aerosol liquid Le in the liquid containing portion 50 .

The suction using the suction tool 10 is performed as follows. First, when the user starts sucking air, the air passes through the

upstream passage portions

21 a and 21 b of the air passage 20 and flows into the load passage portion 22 . Aerosol generated in the load 40 is added to the air that has flowed into the load passage portion 22 . This aerosol contains the flavor component eluted from the tobacco material contained in the tobacco consumable material 60 . The air to which the flavor component-containing aerosol is added passes through the downstream passage portion 23 and is discharged from the discharge port 13 to be sucked by the user.

FIG. 4 is a schematic perspective view of the tobacco consumption material 60. FIG. As an example, the tobacco consumption material 60 according to this embodiment has a sheet shape extending in a predetermined direction.

Specific values of the total length (L1), width (L2), and thickness (L3) of the tobacco consumable material 60 are not particularly limited, but examples of numerical values are as follows. That is, as the total length (L1) of the tobacco consumable material 60, a value selected from a range of, for example, 5 mm or more and 50 mm or less can be used. As the width (L2) of the tobacco consumable material 60, for example, a value selected from the range of 2 mm or more and 10 mm or less can be used. As the thickness (L3) of the tobacco consumable material 60, for example, a value selected from the range of 1 mm or more and 5 mm or less can be used. However, these values are merely examples of dimensions of the tobacco consumable material 60 , and the dimensions of the tobacco consumable material 60 may be appropriately set according to the size of the suction tool 10 .

FIG. 5 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the tobacco consumption material 60 of FIG. 4 taken along the XY plane. FIG. 6 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the tobacco consumable material of FIG. 4 taken along the YZ plane. A tobacco consumption material 60 according to this embodiment includes a molded body 61 and a coating material 62 that coats the entire surface of the molded body 61 .

The molded body 61 is obtained by hardening tobacco material and molding it into a predetermined shape. In this embodiment, as the tobacco material forming the molded body 61, "tobacco residue", which will be described later, is used.

The coating material 62 coats the entire surface (all outer surfaces) of the molded body 61 so that the outer surface of the molded body 61 is not exposed to the surface of the tobacco consumption material 60 . Therefore, the entire surface of the tobacco consumable material 60 according to this embodiment is composed of the surface of the coating material 62 .

Next, a method for manufacturing the atomization unit 12 according to this embodiment will be described. FIG. 7 is a flowchart for explaining the manufacturing method of the atomization unit 12 according to this embodiment. The manufacturing method according to the present embodiment includes an extraction process related to step S10, a molding process related to step S20, an extract manufacturing process related to step S30, and an assembly process related to step S40, as described below. there is

In the extraction process of step S10, flavor components are extracted from the tobacco material. Specifically, in step S10 according to the present embodiment, the tobacco material is subjected to alkali treatment, and the alkali-treated tobacco material is heated to extract flavor components from the tobacco material. The details of this step S10 are as follows.

First, in this embodiment, tobacco leaves are used as an example of "tobacco material". As the tobacco leaf, "tobacco lamina" may be used, "tobacco stem" may be used, or both "tobacco lamina" and "tobacco stem" may be used. Further, the specific type of tobacco leaf is not particularly limited, and various types such as Orient leaf and Virginia leaf can be used. Further, the tobacco leaves used in step S10 may be one type of tobacco leaf or may be multiple types of tobacco leaves.

In step S10, first, an alkaline substance is applied to the tobacco material (this treatment is "alkali treatment"). As the alkaline substance, for example, a basic substance such as an aqueous solution of potassium carbonate can be used.

Next, the alkali-treated tobacco material is heated at a predetermined temperature (for example, a temperature of 80°C or higher and lower than 150°C) (this treatment is referred to as heat treatment). Then, during this heat treatment, for example, "glycerol, propylene glycol, triacetin, 1,3-butanediol, and one substance selected from the group consisting of water, or selected from this group Two or more substances selected from this group (hereinafter, one substance or two or more substances selected from this group are referred to as “specific solvent substances”)” are brought into contact with the tobacco material.

By this heat treatment, released components (flavor components are included here) released from the tobacco material into the gas phase are collected in a predetermined collection solvent. As the collection solvent, for example, the specific solvent substance described above can be used. As a result, a collection solvent containing flavor components can be obtained (that is, flavor components can be extracted from tobacco leaves).

Alternatively, step S10 can be configured without using the collection solvent as described above. Specifically, in this case, after subjecting the alkali-treated tobacco material to the above-described heat treatment, the components released from the tobacco material into the gas phase are cooled by using a condenser or the like. can be condensed to extract flavor components.

After step S10, a molding process related to step S20 and an extract manufacturing process related to step S30, which will be described below, are executed.

In step S20, the "tobacco residue", which is the tobacco material extracted in the extraction step of step S10, is washed with an acidic cleaning liquid having a pH of 7.0 or less to remove the tobacco residue. pH) to less than 8.0. Next, the tobacco residue after washing is hardened and molded into a predetermined shape (in the present embodiment, a sheet shape as an example) to produce a molded body 61 as the tobacco consumption material 60 . When forming the tobacco residue into a sheet shape, the tobacco residue may be formed into a sheet shape by using papermaking, casting, rolling, or the like.

It is considered that the tobacco residue after being extracted in the extraction process of step S10 often has a pH on the alkaline side. For this reason, in the present embodiment, in step S20, the tobacco residue is effectively cleaned by cleaning with an acidic cleaning liquid until the pH of the tobacco residue becomes neutral or acidic.

The specific type of acidic cleaning liquid used in step S20 is not particularly limited. Specific examples of this acidic cleaning solution include a cleaning solution containing an inorganic acid (eg, hydrochloric acid), or a cleaning solution containing an organic acid (eg, acetic acid, malic acid, etc.).

In addition, although the specific cleaning method is not particularly limited, as an example, the tobacco residue may be washed by immersing it in an acidic cleaning liquid.

Alternatively, the tobacco residue extracted in step S10 may be powdered and then washed with a washing liquid. Then, the molded body 61 may be manufactured by molding the powdery tobacco residue. Alternatively, the tobacco residue extracted in step S10 may be washed with a washing liquid and then pulverized. Then, the molded body 61 may be manufactured by molding the powdery tobacco residue. That is, in this case, the molded body 61 is obtained by solidifying a plurality of powdery tobacco residues (tobacco materials) and molding them into a predetermined shape.

When the tobacco residue is powdered as described above, the average particle size of the powdered tobacco residue is not particularly limited, but may be, for example, 100 μm or less. As described above, when the average particle size of the powdery tobacco residue is 100 μm or less, the surface of the compact 61 can be made smoother than when the average particle size is larger than 100 μm. . This makes it easy to uniformly coat the entire surface of the molded body 61 with the coating material 62, which will be described later.

The smaller the average particle diameter of the tobacco residue, the smaller the unevenness of the surface of the molded body 61. As a result, it becomes easier to uniformly coat the entire surface of the molded body 61 with the coating material 62. can. From this point of view, the average particle size of the tobacco residue is more preferably 80 μm or less, even more preferably 50 μm or less, and even more preferably 30 μm or less.

Also, in step S20 according to the present embodiment, the surface of the compact 61 manufactured as described above is coated with the coating material 62 . As a result, the “tobacco consumable material 60 ” having a structure in which the surface of the tobacco residue hardened into a predetermined shape is covered with the coating material 62 can be manufactured.

A specific method of coating with the coating material 62 is not particularly limited. A coating material 62 can be coated on the surface of 61 . Alternatively, the surface of the molded body 61 can be coated with the coating material 62 by spraying the coating material 62 onto the surface of the molded body 61 before being coated.

A water-soluble polymer can be used as the material of the coating material 62 . As the water-soluble polymer, a water-soluble polymer composed of at least one substance selected from polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), agar, gelatin, chitosan, and alginic acid can be used. That is, the material of the coating material 62 may be polyvinyl alcohol, agar, gelatin, chitosan, alginic acid, or a combination thereof. may The contents of step S20 are as described above.

In the liquid extract manufacturing process in step S30 of FIG. 7, the "tobacco material liquid extract" is manufactured by adding the flavor components extracted in step S10 to a predetermined solvent. As this predetermined solvent, for example, the specific solvent substance described above can be used.

In this embodiment, the liquid extract produced in step S30 is used as the aerosol liquid Le contained in the liquid container 50. That is, the aerosol liquid Le according to this embodiment contains at least the liquid extract produced in step S30.

Note that in step S30, the tobacco material extract may be produced by concentrating the flavor components extracted in step S10 and then adding them to the above-described predetermined solvent. According to this configuration, it is possible to increase the concentration of the flavor component contained in the liquid extract of the tobacco material.

After steps S20 and S30, the assembly process related to step S40 is executed. In step S40, the tobacco consumable material 60 manufactured in step S20 (that is, the molded body 61 whose surface is coated with the coating material 62 in this embodiment) is stored in the liquid storage section 50 of the atomization unit 12. together with the liquid extract (which becomes the liquid aerosol Le) produced in step S30.

Note that the aerosol liquid Le stored in the liquid storage unit 50 in step S40 may be obtained by adding a predetermined solvent to the extract produced in step S30. As this predetermined solvent, for example, the specific solvent substance described above can be used.

Through the above steps, the atomization unit 12 of the suction tool 10 according to this embodiment is manufactured.

According to the manufacturing method according to the present embodiment as described above, the atomization unit 12 of the suction tool 10 can be manufactured while effectively utilizing tobacco residue as a material for the molded body 61 .

Further, according to the present embodiment, the molded body 61 formed by solidifying tobacco residue and molded into a predetermined shape is arranged inside the aerosol liquid Le of the liquid storage section 50, and the molded body 61 and the molded body 61 are electrically connected. Since the load 40 is physically separated from the load 40 , adhesion of tobacco residue to the load 40 can be suppressed. As a result, it is possible to prevent the load 40 from being scorched.

Furthermore, according to the present embodiment, in the molding process of step S20, the tobacco residue is washed with an acidic cleaning liquid having a pH of 7.0 or less to reduce the pH of the tobacco residue to less than 8.0, and the washing Since the molded body 61 is manufactured by solidifying the tobacco residue afterward, the burnt component contained in the molded body 61 can be reduced as compared with the case where the molded body 61 is manufactured without such washing. can. As a result, it is possible to suppress elution of a large amount of scorched components into the aerosol liquid Le from the compact 61 housed in the liquid housing section 50 . As a result, scorching of the load 40 can be effectively suppressed.

Further, according to this embodiment, the entire surface of the molded body 61 is coated with the coating material 62 in the molding process of step S20, so the following effects can be obtained.

First, the above-described water-soluble polymer used as the coating material 62 has a relatively low molecular weight while allowing a substance with a relatively small molecular weight (low-molecular weight substance) to pass through the bonding gap of the water-soluble polymer. It has the property of suppressing the passage of a substance having a high molecular weight (high molecular weight substance) through this bonding gap. Therefore, according to the present embodiment, since the entire surface of the molded body 61 is coated with the coating material 62 made of such a water-soluble polymer, the flavor component contained in the tobacco material of the molded body 61 (this is , which are low-molecular-weight substances) into the aerosol liquid Le, but elution of the scorched components (which are high-molecular-weight substances) into the aerosol liquid Le can be suppressed.

Further, when comparing the flavor component and the burnt component contained in the tobacco material of the molded article 61, the flavor component can be dissolved in the water-soluble polymer described above, but the burnt component is difficult to dissolve in the water-soluble polymer. be. Therefore, the flavor component can be dissolved in the water-soluble polymer and then eluted in the aerosol liquid Le. On the other hand, since the scorched component is difficult to dissolve in the water-soluble polymer, elution into the aerosol liquid Le is suppressed. From this point of view as well, according to the present embodiment, elution of the scorched component into the aerosol liquid Le can be suppressed while allowing the flavor component to dissolve into the aerosol liquid Le.

However, the molding process in step S20 is not limited to the configuration described above. For example, the molding process in step S20 may be configured not to coat the entire surface of the molded body 61 with the coating material 62 . In this case, in the assembly process of step S40, the inside of the aerosol liquid Le in the liquid container 50 contains the molded body 61 that is not coated with the coating material 62 (that is, the tobacco consumption material 60 that does not contain the coating material 62). ) will be placed. Even in this case, it is possible to prevent the load 40 from burning.

In addition, although the manufacturing method of the atomization unit 12 according to the present embodiment described above includes the liquid extract manufacturing process related to step S30, it is not limited to this configuration. For example, the method for manufacturing the atomization unit 12 may be configured not to include the liquid extract manufacturing process of step S30. In this case, for example, as the aerosol liquid Le stored in the liquid storage unit 50 in the assembly process of step S40, a predetermined solvent that does not contain any flavor component in advance can be used. As this predetermined solvent, for example, the specific solvent substance described above can be used.

However, since the manufacturing method of the atomization unit 12 includes the liquid extract manufacturing process of step S30 as in the present embodiment, the aerosol liquid Le contains not only the flavor component eluted from the compact 61 into the aerosol liquid Le, but also , it may also contain flavor components contained in the extract produced in step S30. As a result, the concentration of the flavor component contained in the aerosol liquid Le can be increased compared to, for example, the case where the aerosol liquid Le in the liquid container 50 does not contain the liquid extract produced in step S30. This makes it possible to fully enjoy the flavor of the tobacco material.

(Modification 1)
FIG. 8 is a flowchart for explaining a method of manufacturing the atomization unit 12 of the suction tool 10 according to Modification 1 of the embodiment. The manufacturing method according to this modification mainly differs from the manufacturing method according to the embodiment described with reference to FIG. 7 in that step S20A is included instead of step S20.

The molding process of step S20A differs from the molding process of step S20 in that part of the liquid extract produced in the liquid extract production process of step S30 is added to the compact 61. .

That is, in step S20A according to this modified example, the tobacco residue is washed with an acidic cleaning liquid, solidified, and molded into a predetermined shape to manufacture the molded body 61. Add a portion of the extracted liquid. In addition, the entire surface of the compact 61 to which a part of the extract is added may be coated with the coating material 62 .

The aerosol liquid Le stored in the liquid storage unit 50 in step S40 according to this modification contains at least part of the remainder of the liquid extract produced in step S30 (the remaining portion added to the molded body 61). there is That is, in step S40 according to the present modification, the aerosol liquid Le stored in the liquid storage unit 50 may contain all of the remainder of the liquid extract produced in step S30, or the liquid extract produced in step S30. It may contain part of the rest of the liquid.

Also in this modified example, it is possible to prevent the load 40 from being scorched, as in the above-described embodiment.

(Modification 2)
FIG. 9 is a flowchart for explaining a method of manufacturing the atomization unit 12 of the suction tool 10 according to Modification 2 of the embodiment. The manufacturing method according to this modification mainly differs from the manufacturing method according to modification 1 described with reference to FIG. 8 in that step S20B is included instead of step S20A.

The molding process of step S20B is different from the molding process of step S20A in that all of the liquid extract produced in the liquid extract production process of step S30 is added to the compact 61.

That is, in step S20B according to the present modification, the tobacco residue is washed with an acidic cleaning liquid, solidified, and molded into a predetermined shape to manufacture the molded body 61. Add all of the extract. The entire surface of the compact 61 to which the extract is added may be coated with the coating material 62 .

In step S40 according to this modified example, a predetermined solvent that does not contain flavor components is used as the aerosol liquid Le contained in the liquid container 50 . As this predetermined solvent, for example, the specific solvent substance described above can be used.

(Modification 3)
In the embodiments and modifications described above, the tobacco consumable material 60 has a sheet shape, but the shape of the tobacco consumable material 60 is not limited to this. FIG. 10 is a schematic perspective view of a tobacco consumption material 60A according to Modification 3 of the embodiment. For example, the tobacco consumable material 60A may have a pellet shape (or tablet shape). Specifically, the tobacco consumption material 60A has a configuration in which the entire surface of a pellet-shaped molded body 61 is coated with a coating material 62 .

Although the tobacco consumption material 60A illustrated in FIG. 10 has a circular cross section, it is not limited to this configuration. The cross-sectional shape of the tobacco consumption material 60A may be elliptical or polygonal (n-sided (n is a number of 3 or more) such as a triangle, quadrangle, or pentagon).

The specific dimensions of the tobacco consumption material 60A are not particularly limited, but an example is as follows. As the total length (L1) of the tobacco consumable material 60A, a value selected from a range of, for example, 1 mm or more and 10 mm or less can be used. As the maximum dimension (D1) in the width direction of the tobacco consumable material 60A, a value selected from a range of, for example, 1 mm or more and 10 mm or less can be used. However, these values are only an example of dimensions of the tobacco consumable material 60A, and the dimensions of the tobacco consumable material 60A may be appropriately set according to the size of the suction tool 10. FIG.

<Example>
An experiment was conducted on the effect of manufacturing the molded body 61 after cleaning the tobacco residue with a cleaning liquid. This experiment will be described below.

(Tobacco residue used in the experiment)
First, the "cigarette residue" used in the experiment is as follows. To the tobacco material, 20 (wt%) dry weight of potassium carbonate (ie, alkaline substance) was added (this corresponds to alkaline treatment). Next, the tobacco material to which potassium carbonate was added was subjected to a heat treatment under conditions of a water concentration of 30 (%) and a temperature of 100 (°C). Then, to the tobacco residue after heat treatment, water is added in an amount 15 times the weight of the tobacco material before heat treatment, and immersed in water for 10 (min), followed by centrifugal dehydrator. dehydrated with The dehydrated tobacco residue was then dried in a dryer. The dried tobacco residue was used as tobacco residue for samples SA1 to SA7, which will be described later.

(Washing method)
Samples SA2, SA3, SA4, SA6, and SA7, which will be described later, were washed with an amount of washing liquid that was 30 times the weight of the tobacco residue before washing. Hydrochloric acid was used when an acidic cleaning liquid having a pH of 7.0 or less was used as the cleaning liquid. Water was used when a neutral cleaning liquid was used as the cleaning liquid. Samples SA2, SA3, and SA4 were washed twice.

(Method for measuring the amount of carbide produced)
A "liquid (propylene glycol: 47.5 (wt%), glycerol: 47.5 (wt%), water: 5 (wt%))" having five times the weight of the sample was prepared. Then, this liquid was added to the sample, and the liquid was allowed to extract the components contained in the sample at 60 (°C) for 168 hours (hr). This liquid was then centrifuged and the supernatant was recovered. The recovered supernatant was then filtered through a 0.45 (μm) filter.

A predetermined mass (g) of liquid was taken out from the filtered liquid (supernatant liquid) and heated in an aluminum container with a surface temperature of 250 (°C). Next, the mass (mg) of the char remaining in the container after this heating was measured. Then, by dividing the mass (mg) of the charcoal by the mass (predetermined mass) of the liquid after filtration, the mass (mg) of the charcoal produced per 1 g of the liquid after filtration, which is the "amount of charcoal produced (mg/ g liq.)” was calculated. The carbide production amount of each sample was measured by the above method. It should be noted that the amount of carbide produced correlates with the likelihood of the load 40 being scorched. In other words, the greater the amount of char produced in the sample, the greater the amount of scorching that occurs on the load 40 when this sample is applied to the actual suction tool 10 .

(Experimental result)
Experimental results are shown in Table 1. Specifically, Table 1 shows the results of measuring the amount of carbide produced for samples SA1 to SA7. As sample SA1, a molded body of tobacco residue that had not been washed (that is, unwashed tobacco residue) was used. As the sample SA2, a molded body was used which was obtained by washing the tobacco residue with neutral water and shaping the tobacco residue after washing to a pH of 9.6. As sample SA3, a molded article was used in which the tobacco residue was washed with an acidic washing liquid and the pH of the washed tobacco residue became 7.5. As sample SA4, a molded article was used in which the tobacco residue was washed with an acidic washing liquid and the pH of the washed tobacco residue became 4.1.

As sample SA5, an unwashed tobacco residue molded article whose entire surface was coated with polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) was used. As sample SA6, a molded product of tobacco residue washed with neutral water to a pH of 9.6 was used, the entire surface of which was coated with PVA. As sample SA7, a tobacco residue molded product washed with an acidic cleaning solution to a pH of 4.1 and coated with PVA on the entire surface was used.

Of the samples SA1 to SA7, SA3, SA4 and SA7 correspond to Examples, and SA1, SA2, SA5 and SA6 correspond to Comparative Examples.

When comparing SA1 to SA4, which are not coated, in Table 1, SA2 to SA4, which have been cleaned, have a smaller amount of carbide formation than SA1, which has not been cleaned. In addition, SA3 and SA4, in which the pH of the tobacco residue after washing is less than 8.0, produced less char than SA2, in which the pH of the tobacco residue after washing is 9.6. In addition, as can be seen from the comparison between SA3 and SA4, SA4, in which the tobacco residue after washing has a lower pH, produces less carbide than SA3.

Also, in Table 1, as can be seen by comparing SA1 to SA4 that are not coated with SA5 to SA7 that are coated, SA5 to SA7 that are coated are generally SA1 to SA4 It can be seen that the amount of carbide produced is less than

From the above, it was experimentally confirmed that the amount of char formed decreased when the pH of the tobacco residue was reduced to less than 8.0 by washing with an acidic cleaning liquid having a pH of 7.0 or less. Further, it has been confirmed experimentally that the amount of char formed can be more effectively reduced by coating the entire surface of the tobacco residue, which has been washed with an acidic cleaning liquid having a pH of 7.0 or less and has a pH of less than 8.0. rice field.

From the above experimental results, it was found that the load 40 was scorched by manufacturing the compact 61 using tobacco residue washed with an acidic cleaning liquid having a pH of 7.0 or less and having a pH of less than 8.0. Furthermore, by coating the entire surface of the molded body 61 with the coating material 62, the occurrence of scorching on the load 40 can be further suppressed.

The embodiments and modifications of the present invention have been described in detail above, but the present invention is not limited to such specific embodiments and modifications, and is within the scope of the gist of the invention described in the scope of claims. , various modifications and changes are possible.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 10 sucker 12 atomizing unit 40 electrical load 50 liquid container 60 tobacco consumption material 61 compact 62 coating material Le aerosol liquid

Claims

A method for manufacturing an atomization unit of a suction tool, comprising a liquid storage section that stores an aerosol liquid, and an electrical load that atomizes the aerosol liquid introduced from the liquid storage section to generate an aerosol, ,
an extraction step of heating the alkali-treated tobacco material to extract flavor components from the tobacco material;
The tobacco residue, which is the tobacco material extracted in the extraction step, is washed with an acidic cleaning liquid having a pH of 7.0 or less to reduce the pH of the tobacco residue to less than 8.0, and the tobacco residue after washing. A molding step of solidifying and molding into a predetermined shape to produce a molded body;
A method of manufacturing an atomizing unit of a suction tool, comprising an assembling step of storing the aerosol liquid and the molded body manufactured in the molding step in the liquid storage portion.
The molding step includes coating the entire surface of the molding with a coating material containing a water-soluble polymer made of at least one substance selected from polyvinyl alcohol, agar, gelatin, chitosan, and alginic acid. The manufacturing method of the atomization unit of the suction tool according to claim 1.
further comprising an extract producing step of producing an extract of the tobacco material by adding the flavor component extracted in the extracting step to a solvent;
3. The method of manufacturing an atomizing unit for a suction device according to claim 1, wherein said aerosol liquid contained in said liquid containing portion in said assembling step contains said liquid extract produced in said liquid extract producing step.
further comprising an extract producing step of producing an extract of the tobacco material by adding the flavor component extracted in the extracting step to a solvent;
The molding step includes adding a portion of the liquid extract produced in the liquid extract production step to the compact,
3. The mist of the suction device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the aerosol liquid stored in the liquid storage portion in the assembling step contains at least part of the remainder of the liquid extract produced in the liquid extract producing step. manufacturing method of the conversion unit.
further comprising an extract producing step of producing an extract of the tobacco material by adding the flavor component extracted in the extracting step to a solvent;
3. The method of manufacturing an atomizing unit for a suction device according to claim 1, wherein said forming step includes adding all of said liquid extract produced in said liquid extract producing step to said formed body.