Method for treating an extracted tobacco pulp and tobacco products made therefrom

Abstract

The invention provides a method of producing a tobacco composition for use in a tobacco product, the method including treating a tobacco pulp with supercritical carbon dioxide. The treated tobacco pulp may exhibit a benzo[a]pyrene concentration lower than the initial benzo[a]pyrene concentration and/or a TSNA concentration lower than the initial TSNA concentration. The treated pulp can be introduced into tobacco products including smoking articles, smokeless tobacco products, and aerosol-generating devices configured for non-combustion of plant materials.

1 . A method of producing a tobacco composition for use in a tobacco product, the tobacco composition characterized by a reduced benzo[a]pyrene concentration, comprising:
 mixing an extracted pulp of a cured tobacco material having a first benzo[a]pyrene concentration with supercritical carbon dioxide to provide intimate contact between the extracted pulp and the supercritical carbon dioxide;   maintaining the intimate contact for a time and at a temperature sufficient to form a treated tobacco pulp exhibiting a second benzo[a]pyrene concentration lower than the first benzo[a]pyrene concentration; and   separating the treated tobacco pulp from a residual supercritical carbon dioxide extract comprising components of the tobacco material that are soluble in the supercritical carbon dioxide.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the cured tobacco material of the extracted pulp comprises ground fire-cured tobacco. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 2 , wherein the extracted pulp is an aqueous extracted tobacco material. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the pressure at which the mixing is conducted is about 10 MPa or greater. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the pressure at which the mixing is conducted is about 20 MPa or greater. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the pressure at which the mixing is conducted is between about 10 MPa and about 40 MPa. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the temperature at which the mixing is conducted is about 40° C. or greater. 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the temperature at which the mixing is conducted is about 50° C. or greater. 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the temperature at which the mixing is conducted is between about 40° C. and about 60° C. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the mixing is conducted for a period of at least about 15 minutes. 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the mixing is conducted for a period of at least about 30 minutes. 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the mixing step comprises mixing the extracted pulp with supercritical carbon dioxide and ethanol. 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 12 , wherein the ethanol is present in an amount of about 10% to about 30% by volume of the supercritical carbon dioxide and ethanol. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the first benzo[a]pyrene concentration is at least about 200 ng/g and the second benzo[a]pyrene concentration is less than about 80 ng/g. 
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the TSNA concentration of the treated tobacco pulp is less than that of the extracted pulp of cured tobacco material. 
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein the extracted pulp of cured tobacco material has a TSNA concentration of greater than about 5,000 ng/g and the treated tobacco pulp has a TSNA concentration of less than about 2,000 ng/g. 
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising adding a tobacco extract to the treated tobacco pulp to form a tobacco composition. 
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 17 , wherein the tobacco extract is an aqueous extract. 
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 17 , wherein the tobacco extract and the treated tobacco pulp are derived from the same tobacco sample. 
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising introducing the treated tobacco pulp into a tobacco product. 
     
     
         21 . The method of  claim 20 , wherein the tobacco product is selected from the group consisting of smoking articles, smokeless tobacco products, and aerosol-generating devices configured for non-combustion of plant material. 
     
     
         22 . The method of  claim 20 , wherein the tobacco product is a smokeless tobacco composition selected from the group consisting of moist snuff, dry snuff, chewing tobacco, tobacco-containing gums, and dissolvable or meltable tobacco products. 
     
     
         23 . A tobacco product comprising an extracted pulp of a cured tobacco material, wherein the extracted pulp of cured tobacco material is characterized as having a B[a]p concentration of less than about 80 ng/g. 
     
     
         24 . The tobacco product of  claim 23 , wherein the extracted pulp is characterized as having a TSNA concentration of less than about 2,000 ng/g. 
     
     
         25 . The tobacco product of  claim 23 , further comprising a tobacco extract carried by the extracted pulp. 
     
     
         26 . The tobacco product of  claim 25 , wherein the tobacco extract is an aqueous extract. 
     
     
         27 . The tobacco product of  claim 23 , wherein the tobacco extract and the extracted pulp of cured tobacco material are derived from the same tobacco sample. 
     
     
         28 . The tobacco product of  claim 23 , wherein the tobacco product is in the form of a smokeless tobacco composition, a smoking article, or an aerosol-generating device configured for non-combustion of plant material. 
     
     
         29 . The tobacco product of  claim 28 , wherein the tobacco product is in the form of a smokeless tobacco composition selected from the group consisting of moist snuff, dry snuff, chewing tobacco, tobacco-containing gums, and dissolvable or meltable tobacco products.