Biodegradable cigarette filter and methods for making same

Abstract

A biodegradable cigarette filter has a filter tow surrounded by one or more wrapper layers. The filter tow is a mixture of hemp, a second fibrous material comprising cotton, paper, or a mixture of cotton and paper, and a thickening and bonding agent comprising flour or starch initially added to the mixture as a solution in water. The mixture of hemp and the second fibrous material in the filter tow act as a filtering matrix for the cigarette smoke when consumed by a user. In one example, two wrapper layers comprising a plug wrap and a tipping paper surround the filter tow. The filter tow or one or both wrapper layers, or both the tow and wrapper layers, may contain plantable seeds.

1 . A biodegradable cigarette filter, comprising:
 a first part comprising filter tow, the filter tow comprising a mixture of hemp, a second fibrous material, and a bonding agent, the second fibrous material being selected from the group consisting of cotton, paper, or a mixture of cotton and paper;   a second part comprising at least one wrapper layer of biogdegradable non-acetate paper wrapped around the filter tow; and   at least one of first and second parts including a plurality of embedded seeds.   
     
     
         2 . The biodegradable cigarette filter of  claim 1 , wherein the bonding agent comprises a starch material initially added to the mixture of hemp and second fibrous material as a starch solution. 
     
     
         3 . The biodegradable cigarette filter of  claim 1 , wherein the bonding agent comprises flour initially added to the mixture as a mixture of flour and water. 
     
     
         4 . The biodegradable cigarette filter of  claim 1 , wherein seeds are embedded throughout the filter tow. 
     
     
         5 . The biodegradable cigarette filter of  claim 1 , wherein seeds are embedded throughout the wrapper layer. 
     
     
         6 . The biodegradable cigarette filter of  claim 1 , wherein seeds of a first size are embedded through out the paper wrapper layer and seeds of a second, larger size are embedded throughout the filter tow. 
     
     
         7 . The biodegradable cigarette filter of  claim 1 , wherein said second part comprises an inner wrapper layer and an outer wrapper layer, the inner wrapper layer comprising a plug wrap surrounding the filter tow and the outer wrapper layer comprising a tipping paper around the plug wrap. 
     
     
         8 . The biodegradable cigarette filter of  claim 7 , wherein only one of the wrapper layers contains seeds. 
     
     
         9 . The biodegradable filter of  claim 8 , wherein the tipping paper contains seeds. 
     
     
         10 . The biodegradable filter of  claim 8 , wherein the plug wrap contains seeds. 
     
     
         11 . The biodegradable filter of  claim 7 , wherein both wrapper layers contain seeds. 
     
     
         12 . The biodegradable filter of  claim 7 , wherein seeds are located between the inner and outer wrapper layers. 
     
     
         13 . The biodegradable filter of  claim 7 , wherein both the tipping paper and plug wrap are biodegradable non-acetate paper. 
     
     
         14 . The biodegradable cigarette filter of  claim 1 , wherein the filter tow comprises approximately 25 to 75% hemp and approximately 25 to 75% of the second fibrous material. 
     
     
         15 . The biodegradable cigarette filter of  claim 14 , wherein the ratio of hemp to the second fibrous material is varied to control the amount of filtering of cigarette smoke. 
     
     
         16 . The biodegradable cigarette filter of  claim 1 , wherein said seeds comprise plantable seeds capable of germination. 
     
     
         17 . A method for manufacturing a biodegradable filter comprising:
 a) mixing hemp with a second fibrous material comprising cotton, paper or both cotton and paper;   b) immersing the mixture of hemp and a second fibrous material into a solution of a bonding and thickening agent in water;   c) before or after the step of immersing the mixture into a solution of bonding and thickening agent in water, blending the mixture in a blending device until the fibers are at least substantially uniformly mixed;   d) removing a major portion of the water from the mixture of hemp, the second fibrous material and the bonding and thickening agent;   e) allowing the mixture to dry completely;   f) extruding the mixture through a die to form a filter rod;   g) wrapping the filter rod with at least one layer of non-acetate paper, and   h) forming single filter elements by cutting to size.   
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 17 , wherein the solution of bonding and thickening agent is made prior to the immersing step by adding flour to water in a ratio of one part of flour to five to twenty parts of water and mixing to form a flour/water mixture, and the hemp-based mixture is immersed in the flour and water mixture. 
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 17 , wherein the step of immersing the mixture into a solution of a bonding and thickening agent in water comprises immersing the mixture into a starch solution. 
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 17 , wherein the hemp is 25 to 75% de-gummed hemp. 
     
     
         21 . The method of  claim 17 , wherein the second fibrous material is 25 to 75% cotton or paper. 
     
     
         22 . The method of  claim 17 , further comprising adding plantable seeds to the hemp-based mixture after the mixture is blended in step (c), and blending the hemp-based mixture with the seeds until the hemp-based mixture with seeds is relatively uniform. 
     
     
         23 . The method of  claim 17 , wherein the at least one layer of non-acetate paper is embedded with plantable seeds. 
     
     
         24 . The method of  claim 24 , wherein the plantable seeds are selected from the group consisting of grass seeds, flower seeds, herb seeds, fruit seeds, vegetable seeds, and other seeds with the ability to germinate. 
     
     
         25 . The method of  claim 17 , wherein the step of wrapping the filter rod comprises wrapping with first and second layers of biodegradable non-acetate paper, the first layer comprising a plug wrap and the second layer comprising tipping paper. 
     
     
         26 . The method of  claim 25 , wherein one of the layers contains embedded seeds. 
     
     
         27 . The method of  claim 25 , wherein both layers contain embedded seeds. 
     
     
         28 . The method of  claim 25 , further comprising placing plantable seeds between the two wrapping layers.