Patent Application
20250120430
The present invention relates generally to cigarette manufacturing and is particularly concerned with cigarette filter manufacturing of more environmentally friendly cigarette filters to reduce the problems of discarded cigarette filters, which contribute to environmental pollution and litter.
A typical cigarette includes a filter at one end which has a core or body which filters the smoke generated from burning tobacco and a paper wrapper having one or more wrapper layers surrounding the filter body. The filter core or body is commonly made from synthetic filaments (cellulose acetate) forming a fibrous filter material and added plasticizer (triacetin). After a user smokes the cigarette, the cellulose acetate filter (single-use plastic) or cigarette butt is typically discarded. Such filters are often discarded in outdoor areas such as beaches, parks, and the like. The materials making up the filter core and plasticizer, single-use plastic, breakdown only very slowly over lengthy periods of time (10 to 15 years) into micro-plastic and significantly add to the problems of unsightly environmental litter and plastic pollution.
U.S. Pat. No. 10,076,135, which is incorporated herein, discloses a filter substrate that addresses the most littered item on planet Earth, caused by cellulose acetate with the plasticizer (triacetin) utilized in the manufacturing of the cigarette filter rods. Due to the biodegradability, water dispersibility and compostability properties, including its filtration capability and sensorial attributes of the filter substrate, it is a viable and scalable replacement for the single-use plastic (SUP) cellulose acetate which is almost exclusively utilized by the tobacco industry for smoke filtration globally.
The filter substrate is composed of four main fibers: Abaca, Tencel, Cotton Flock and Hemp. Each fiber plays a particular role in the substrate, depending on its fiber size, strength, cellular construction, chemical composition, flexibility, commercial availability and cost. Each fiber is included in the substrate, according to its formulation, in a particular ratio where each of the fibers can perform within its ideal role, giving the filter substrate a competitive advantage and superior filterability, biodegradability, mechanical strength, chemical and sensorial performance when compared to paper substrates and even cellulose acetate.
Traditional cellulose acetate filter rod manufacturing in the past generally suffered from a number of drawbacks such as, but not limited to, producing a wide variability of physical attributes (circumference, hardness and pressure-drop); requiring plug-wrap paper in the vast majority of the cases, increasing total biodegradability time and increasing waste involving discarded cigarette butts; requiring plasticizer, causing the discarded cigarette butts to breakdown into micro-plastics very slowly over lengthy periods of time; using traditional filter making machinery with all its related manufacturing costs, labor, and overheads.
An aspect of the disclosure involves a filter rod manufacturing system and process that revolutionizes the entire filter manufacturing processes from substrate manufacturing to the cigarette manufacturing process, may make the substrate manufacturing process and traditional filter making machinery totally obsolete, allows the scalability platform required by the cigarette manufacturing industry, allowing an acceleration of the replacement of the single-use plastic (cellulose acetate), and is a pioneering process in “Filter Design” for both combustible and tobacco heating products (THPs). The filter rod manufacturing system and process comprises an input step/stage, where natural fibers (Abaca, Tencel, Cotton Flock, Hemp and others), water/solvent, key raw materials, ingredients, and/or processing aids are received in input stage receiver; a mixing and blending plus homogenization step/stage, where mixing and blending in a mixing and blending stage tank occurs until a homogenous slurry is obtained; an enriching step/stage, targeting a specific density, porosity, and permeability, flavoring, coloring, and/or other add-ons, in an enriching stage machine; an extruding step/stage or molding step/stage, where the composition mix is extruded by extruder(s) or molded to a specific diameter/shape/configuration via mold(s); a drying step/stage, where the extruded/molded composition is dried via dryer(s) where a single or a combination of technical drying solutions and transfer heat modes could be applied to reduce drying time, energy consumption, process safety and emissions (conduction and convection air/steam heating, vacuum, microwave, infrared radiation, radiofrequency and refractance, to a stable matter according to specific density, hardness, pressure drop and air permeability; a cutting step/stage, where the dried/semi-dried stable matter is cut by cutter(s) to filter rods in a semi-format for storage and then cutting depending on application, and a packaging stage, where the filter rods are packaged for transport/sale.
Another aspect of the disclosure involves a cigarette filter rod comprising a filter substrate with a single-structured body having a multi-orientation distribution of fibers, the filter substrate including a fiber blend of at least one of abaca, sisal, and wood pulp, and 0-50% hemp, 0-50% flax, 0-95% abaca, 0-95% sisal, 0-50% wood pulp, 0-50% cotton, 0-50% regenerated cellulose, 0-30% natural binder, wherein the multi-orientation distribution of fibers inhibits laminar airflow and the creation of adverse linear axial channels.
One or more implementations of the aspect of the disclosure described immediately above includes one or more of the following: receiving natural or synthetic fibers, water and/or solvent, raw materials, and ingredients and/or processing aids; mixing and blending the received materials until a homogenous slurry is produced; enriching the homogenous slurry with aeration, binder, flavoring, coloring, and/or other add-ons, targeting a specific density, porosity, and air permeability; shaping the enriched homogenous slurry into a specific shape and/or diameter; drying the shaped enriched homogenous slurry to a dried or semi-dried stable matter according to specific density, hardness, and air permeability; cutting the dried or semi-dried stable matter into filter rods in a semi-format; shaping the enriched homogenous slurry into a filter rod of a specific shape and/or diameter includes extruding the enriched homogenous slurry into a filter rod of a specific shape and/or diameter; shaping the enriched homogenous slurry into a filter rod of a specific shape and/or diameter includes molding the enriched homogenous slurry into a filter rod of a specific shape and/or diameter; cutting includes cutting the dried or semi-dried stable matter into filter rods in a semi-format for storage and then cutting depending on application; packaging the filter rods for transport and/or sale; and/or the fiber blend includes a fiber of at least one of Abaca, Tencel, Cotton Flock and Hemp.
Other features and advantages of the present disclosure will become more readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art after reviewing the following detailed description and accompanying drawings.
The details of the present invention, both as to its structure and operation, may be gleaned in part by study of the accompanying drawings, in which like reference numerals refer to like parts, and in which:
With reference to
At input step/stage 120, natural or synthetic fibers, water/solvent (e.g., from water/solvent supply 125), key raw materials, ingredients, and/or processing aids A, B, C, D, . . . . Z are received in input stage receiver 130.
At mixing and blending (and homogenization) step/stage 140, mixing and blending in mixing and blending stage tank 150 occurs until a homogenous slurry is obtained.
At enriching stage 160, targeting a specific density, porosity, and air permeability, aeration, binder, flavoring, coloring, and/or other add-ons 1, 2, 3, 4, . . . . X occur in enriching stage machine 170.
The fiber multi-directional distribution in its radial and axial formation (i.e., 3D fiber) is created during the mixing/blending step/stage 140 and the enriching step/stage, and then ready to be extruded and/or molded. The fiber physical alignment characteristics are poly-directional matching.
At extruding step/stage 180, the composition mix is extruded by extruder(s) 190 to a specific shape (external and internal) and diameter such as, but not limited to, one or more of the sample shapes shown at 192 in
At drying step/stage 200, the extruded/molded composition is dried via dryer(s) 210 where a single or a combination (e.g., see
Vacuum pump 220, 215 shown in
At cutting step/stage 220 shown in
At packaging step/stage 225, the filter rods 240 are packaged (e.g., in trays/boxes) for transport/sale.
Features of the filter rod manufacturing system 100 and/or process 110 include one or more of the following.
Filter rods 240 may be manufactured off-site and then transferred to the cigarette manufacturing area where the filter rods 240 will be finally cut and transported to the cigarette maker machine. Alternatively, filter rods 240 may be also manufactured on-site and then transported to the cigarette maker machine.
The filter rod manufacturing process 110, due to its innovative manufacturing process, has low variability on its physical attributes (circumference, hardness, pressure drop and porosity) and does not require plug-wrap paper, therefore delivering high levels of machine performance, low waste and high quality.
The filter rods 240 have a unique design due to the fiber multi-directional distribution in its radial and axial formation. This breakthrough innovation allows an optimized fiber orientation architecture, elimination of undesirable air channels, maximizing therefore the particulate and vapor phase filtration efficiency, stable porosity and resistance to draw. As illustrated in the cross-section cube-cut of a biodegradable substrate of
The filter rods 240 do not require plug-wrap paper and, consequently, the total biodegradability time is reduced substantially. The absence of the plug-wrap paper facilitates the access of water and action of microorganisms.
The manufacturing process is designed to deliver state-of-the-art filter media structure. The filter rod 240 has stable physical attributes regardless of its manufacturing process both through extrusion or molding, and no plasticizer is needed. As illustrated in
Due to its optimized fiber multi-directional orientation and filtration efficiency (filtration per millimeter), the filter rods 240 optimize material usage (filter length) without plasticizer/plug-wrap paper, bypass traditional filter making machinery with all its related manufacturing costs, labor, and overheads, and eliminate crimping/embossing.
The manufacturing process will allow a transformation on filter rod shape alternatives both externally and internally such as, but not limited to, one or more of the sample shapes shown at 192 in
The filter rods will also solve the very undesirable channeling appearance noticed at paper/substrate filter rods before and after smoke.
The filter rod manufacturing system 100 and process 110 allows the scalability platform required by the cigarette manufacturing industry, allowing an acceleration of the replacement of the single-use plastic (cellulose acetate) filters.
The filter substrate described herein may include one or more of the features described in U.S. Pat. No. 10,076,135, which is incorporated herein, and one or more of the following features.
An improved biodegradable cigarette filter tow and an improved biodegradable cigarette filter material includes the filter substrate.
According to one embodiment, a biodegradable cigarette filter tow is made from a mixture of two or more natural fibers or pulps or man-made fibers derived from natural sources, selected from the group consisting of hemp fiber, flax fiber, wood fiber pulp, abaca fiber or abaca pulp, sisal fiber or sisal pulp, and cotton fiber or cotton flock. In one example, the filter mixture also contains a man-made fiber derived from a natural resource such as wood pulp, for example regenerated cellulose fiber such as Tencel® brand cellulosic fiber, viscose, or Lyocell®. In one embodiment, the cigarette filter mixture contains three natural fibers or pulps.
In one embodiment, the biodegradable cigarette filter tow contains abaca or sisal pulp along with at least one other natural fiber material. According to one aspect, the abaca or sisal is in the form of pulp or short cut fiber. In one embodiment, the biodegradable cigarette filter tow contains wood pulp in place of abaca or sisal fiber or pulp, or in addition to abaca or sisal fiber or pulp. In one aspect, the biodegradable cigarette filter tow is made from a non-woven, fibrous sheet of abaca or sisal pulp or fiber, hemp or abaca filler, cotton flock, and regenerated cellulose fiber, and may also contain a natural binder such as cationic starch.
In one aspect, the biodegradable filter tow comprises:
In one embodiment, the mixture also includes a natural binder or a binder manufactured from natural renewable sources. The binder may be derived from biopolymers or bio-based polymers, such as starch, a water soluble biodegradable polymer material such as carboxymethyl cellulose. The binder is water soluble to create a solution, or water dispersible to create binder dispersion/emulsion in water. Binder solution/dispersion/emulsion viscosity is adjusted to comply with the application process. Solid binder content applied on the fibrous web varies in range 2%-30% of dry weight. In another embodiment, no binder is used, and the filter is manufactured using a wet laid and hydroentanglement process.
In one embodiment, the natural binder is selected from the group consisting of natural latex, vegetable gums, biopolymer or bio-based binders, such as starch based binders, cationic starch binder and binders made from renewable sources such as Carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC).
In one embodiment, an intimate blend of two or more natural fibers is used to form a nonwoven sheet for manufacturing of a cigarette filter element. The fiber blend also contains fiber from a regenerated natural polymer, preferably cellulose. A natural binder (adhesive) or binder derived from a natural source is applied to the nonwoven sheet. The binder may be applied such that it coats all of the constituent fiber surfaces, or may be applied in specific locations on the sheet. The optimum fiber morphology, fiber composition, binder content and nonwoven sheet parameters such as areal density, volume density, air permeability and mechanical properties can be altered to obtain different performance of a cigarette filter with respect to smoking parameters, such as pressure drop and retention properties. These depend on the particular product requirements. The binder provides nonwoven material with the strength for converting process. The water soluble binder allows for disintegration in dry state, and promotes quick dispersibility in high moisture (humidity) and wet state.
According to another aspect, a nonwoven sheet for use in manufacture of a biodegradable cigarette filter comprises a mixture of:
In one embodiment, a biodegradable cigarette filter tow comprises a natural binder; 30%-40% by weight of regenerated cellulose fiber based on the total weight of fibrous material in the filter tow; and at least three natural fibrous materials, the natural fibrous materials comprising: 5-25% by weight of hemp fiber or filler based on the total weight of fibrous material in the filter tow; 20-50% by weight of abaca pulp or fiber based on the total weight of fibrous material in the filter tow; and 10-30% by weight of cotton flock based on the total weight of fibrous material in the filter tow.
One or more implementations of the embodiment described immediately above includes one or more of the following: the hemp is short cut fiber; the natural binder is cationic starch; the abaca is abaca pulp; the natural binder is selected from the group consisting of natural latex, vegetable gum, starch based binder, cationic starch binder, carboxymethyl cellulose, and other biopolymer and bio based polymers; the filter tow comprises no more than 20% by weight hemp filler based on the total weight of fibrous material in the filter tow; the filter tow comprises 30 to 45% by weight abaca based on the total weight of fibrous material in the filter tow; the filter tow comprises 15 to 30% cotton flock based on the total weight of fibrous material in the filter tow; the hemp has a mean fiber length in the range from 1 mm to 3.5 mm; the hemp has a fiber diameter that is no greater than 50 μm; the cotton flock has a cotton fiber length that is no greater than 1500 μm; the cotton fiber length is in the range of 250-1000 μm; the cotton flock has a cotton fiber thickness that is in the range from 10-50 μm; the regenerated cellulose fibers have a fiber length in the range from 2 to 6 mm; the fibrous materials are formed into a fibrous web having an open bulky structure with a volume density of no greater than 200 kg·m−3; the at least three natural fibrous materials are formed into a fibrous web having an areal density in the range from 25 g·m−2 to 65 g·m−2.
In one embodiment, a biodegradable cigarette filter material consists of a natural binder; 30-40% by weight of regenerated cellulose fiber based on the total weight of fibrous material in the filter material; and at least three natural fibrous materials, the natural fibrous materials comprising: 5-25% by weight of hemp fiber or filler based on the total weight of fibrous material in the filter material; 20-50% by weight of abaca pulp or fiber based on the total weight of fibrous material in the filter material; and 10-30% by weight of cotton flock based on the total weight of fibrous material in the filter material.
In an implementation of the embodiment described immediately above the biodegradable cigarette filter material includes a non-woven fibrous web.
After reading this description it will become apparent to one skilled in the art how to implement the invention in various alternative embodiments and alternative applications. However, although various embodiments of the present invention will be described herein, it is understood that these embodiments are presented by way of example only, and not limitation.
The above description of the disclosed embodiments is provided to enable any person skilled in the art to make or use the invention. Various modifications to these embodiments will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the generic principles described herein can be applied to other embodiments without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention. Thus, it is to be understood that the description and drawings presented herein represent a presently preferred embodiment of the invention and are therefore representative of the subject matter which is broadly contemplated by the present invention. It is further understood that the scope of the present invention fully encompasses other embodiments that may become obvious to those skilled in the art.
This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 63/544,084, filed Oct. 13, 2023, under 35 U.S.C. 119, which is incorporated by reference herein.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 63544084 | Oct 2023 | US |
