Tobacco processing
AssigneeR. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company
InventorBarry S. Fagg
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Tobacco cut filler is processed to have a controlled extract content. The processed cut filler is provided by (i) providing an aqueous tobacco extract, (ii) providing tobacco cut filler which has been extracted with an aqueous liquid, (iii) contacting the aqueous extract with the extracted cut filler, (iv) deliquoring the mixture of aqueous extract and extracted cut filler such that a certain level of the tobacco extract remains in contact with the extracted cut filler, and (v) drying the deliquored cut filler to provide a processed cut filler. As such, tobacco cut filler can be processed so as to have higher or lower levels of tobacco extractables therein, as compared to that of the tobacco cut filler prior to processing.
Claims38
A process for controlling the composition of a tobacco material by providing a predetermined level of tobacco solubles within a tobacco material, the process comprising the steps of:
- (a) providing extracted tobacco material by extracting tobacco material using a liquid extraction solvent and separating tobacco material not extracted by the solvent from the solvent and tobacco extract extracted by the solvent;
- (b) providing a tobacco extract by extracting tobacco material using a liquid extraction solvent, thereby providing a tobacco extract within the extraction solvent;
- (c) contacting a predetermined amount of the tobacco extract provided in step (b) within a predetermined amount of liquid extraction solvent with the extracted tobacco material provided in step (a) thereby providing a mixture of solvent, tobacco extract and extracted tobacco material;
- the mixture (i) including a weight of tobacco extractables greater than that weight of tobacco extract separated from the tobacco material in step (a), and (ii) including about 5 to about 40 percent extractables, based on the total weight of the solvent and tobacco extractables within the mixture;
- (d) separating the extracted tobacco material from a portion of the solvent and tobacco extract, thereby providing a mixture having predetermined amounts of solvent, tobacco extract and extracted tobacco material;
- the mixture thereby having a solvent content ranging form about 60 to about 90 weight percent, based on the total weight thereof;
- and
- (e) separating at least a portion of the solvent form the mixture provided in step (d) so as to provide a processed tobacco material having a predetermined controlled amount of tobacco extractables in intimate contact with the extracted tobacco material, the amount ranging from greater than about 10 percent to less than about 65 percent solvent soluble tobacco extractables in intimate contact with the extracted tobacco material, based on the dry weight of the processed tobacco material.
A process for controlling the composition of tobacco material by providing a predetermined level of tobacco solubles within a tobacco material, the process comprising the steps of:
- (a) providing extracted tobacco material by extracting tobacco material using a liquid extraction solvent and separating tobacco material not extracted by the solvent form the solvent and tobacco extract extracted by the solvent;
- (b) providing a tobacco extract by extracting tobacco material using a liquid extraction solvent, thereby providing a tobacco extract within the extraction solvent;
- (c) contacting a predetermined amount of the tobacco extract provided in step (b) within a predetermined amount of liquid extraction solvent with the extracted tobacco material provided in step (a) thereby providing a mixture of solvent, tobacco extract and extracted tobacco material;
- the weight of solvent within the mixture being more than 3 times that of the weight of the extracted tobacco material within the mixture;
- (d) separating the extracted tobacco material from a portion of the solvent, additive and tobacco extract, thereby providing a mixture having predetermined amounts of solvent, tobacco extract and extracted tobacco material the mixture thereby having a solvent content of at least about 60 percent, based on the total weight thereof;
- and
- (e) separating at least a portion of the solvent from the mixture provided in step (d) so as to provide a processed tobacco material having a predetermined, controlled amount of tobacco extractables in intimate contact with the extracted tobacco material, the amount ranging from a greater than about 10 percent to less than about 65 percent solvent soluble tobacco extractables in intimate contact with the extracted tobacco material, based on the dry weight of the processed tobacco material.
The process of claim 321 whereby the solvent is a liquid having an aqueous character and additive includes glycerin, and in excess of about 5 percent but less than about 20 percent of the processed tobacco material, on a dry weight basis, is provided by the additive.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.