AEROSOL-GENERATING ARTICLE INCLUDING UPSTREAM ELEMENT

Abstract

An aerosol-generating article is provided for producing an inhalable aerosol upon heating, the aerosol-generating article including: a rod of aerosol-generating substrate including a gel composition, the gel composition including at least one gelling agent, at least one of an alkaloid compound, and a cannabinoid compound, and at least 50 percent by weight of an aerosol former; an upstream element upstream of the rod of aerosol-generating substrate and abutting the upstream end of the rod of aerosol-generating substrate, in which a resistance-to-draw (RTD) of the upstream element is between 5 millimetres H.sub.2O and 80 millimetres H.sub.2O; and a downstream section arranged downstream of the rod of aerosol-generating substrate and in axial alignment with the rod of aerosol-generating substrate, the downstream section including one or more downstream elements.

Claims

1.-15. (canceled)

16. An aerosol-generating article for producing an inhalable aerosol upon heating, the aerosol-generating article comprising: a rod of aerosol-generating substrate comprising a gel composition, the gel composition comprising at least one gelling agent, at least one of an alkaloid compound, and a cannabinoid compound, and at least 50 percent by weight of an aerosol former; an upstream element upstream of the rod of aerosol-generating substrate and abutting the upstream end of the rod of aerosol-generating substrate, wherein a resistance-to-draw (RTD) of the upstream element is between 5 millimetres H.sub.2O and 80 millimetres H.sub.2O; and a downstream section arranged downstream of the rod of aerosol-generating substrate and in axial alignment with the rod of aerosol-generating substrate, the downstream section comprising one or more downstream elements.

17. The aerosol-generating article according to claim 16, wherein the rod of aerosol-generating substrate further comprises a plug of a porous medium loaded with the gel composition.

18. The aerosol-generating article according to claim 17, wherein the porous medium is in the form of a crimped sheet.

19. The aerosol-generating article according to claim 17, wherein the porous medium comprises cotton fibres.

20. The aerosol-generating article according to claim 17, wherein the plug of the porous medium loaded with the gel composition is circumscribed by a water repellent wrapper.

21. The aerosol-generating article according to claim 16, wherein the gel composition further comprises at least 1 percent by weight of nicotine.

22. The aerosol-generating article according to claim 16, wherein the gel composition further comprises an acid.

23. The aerosol-generating article according to claim 16, wherein the gel composition further comprises between 1 percent by weight and 6 percent by weight of the at least one gelling agent.

24. The aerosol-generating article according to claim 16, further comprising an elongate susceptor element extending in a longitudinal direction through the rod of aerosol-generating substrate.

25. The aerosol-generating article according to claim 16, wherein the upstream element comprises a plug of fibrous filtration material.

26. The aerosol-generating article according to claim 16, wherein the RTD of the upstream element is at least 20 millimetres H.sub.2O.

27. The aerosol-generating article according to claim 16, wherein the downstream section further comprises a mouthpiece element comprising a mouthpiece filter segment formed of a fibrous filtration material.

28. The aerosol-generating article according to claim 27, wherein the RTD of the upstream element is at least 1.5 times a RTD of the mouthpiece element.

29. The aerosol-generating article according to claim 27, wherein the downstream section further comprises an intermediate hollow section between the rod of aerosol-generating substrate and the mouthpiece element, the intermediate hollow section comprising an aerosol-cooling element abutting the upstream end of the mouthpiece element, the aerosol-cooling element comprising a hollow tubular segment defining a longitudinal cavity providing an unrestricted flow channel.

30. The aerosol-generating article according to claim 29, wherein the intermediate hollow section further comprises a support element between the aerosol-cooling element and the rod of aerosol-generating substrate, the support element comprising a hollow tubular segment defining a longitudinal cavity providing an unrestricted flow channel.

Description

[0309] In the following, the invention will be further described with reference to the drawings of the accompanying Figures, wherein:

[0310] FIG. 1 shows a schematic side sectional view of an aerosol-generating article in accordance with the invention; and

[0311] FIG. 2 shows a schematic side sectional view of another aerosol-generating article in accordance with the invention.

[0312] The aerosol-generating article 10 shown in FIG. 1 comprises a rod 12 of aerosol-generating substrate 12 and a downstream section 14 at a location downstream of the rod 12 of aerosol-generating substrate. Further, the aerosol-generating article 10 comprises an upstream section 16 at a location upstream of the rod 12 of aerosol-generating substrate. Thus, the aerosol-generating article 10 extends from an upstream or distal end 18 to a downstream or mouth end 20.

[0313] The aerosol-generating article has an overall length of about 45 millimetres.

[0314] The downstream section 14 comprises a support element 22 located immediately downstream of the rod 12 of aerosol-generating substrate, the support element 22 being in longitudinal alignment with the rod 12. In the embodiment of FIG. 1, the upstream end of the support element 18 abuts the downstream end of the rod 12 of aerosol-generating substrate. In addition, the downstream section 14 comprises an aerosol-cooling element 24 located immediately downstream of the support element 22, the aerosol-cooling element 24 being in longitudinal alignment with the rod 12 and the support element 22. In the embodiment of FIG. 1, the upstream end of the aerosol-cooling element 24 abuts the downstream end of the support element 22.

[0315] As will become apparent from the following description, the support element 22 and the aerosol-cooling element 24 together define an intermediate hollow section 50 of the aerosol-generating article 10. As a whole, the intermediate hollow section 50 does not substantially contribute to the overall RTD of the aerosol-generating article. An RTD of the intermediate hollow section 26 as a whole is substantially 0 millimetres H.sub.2O.

[0316] The support element 22 comprises a first hollow tubular segment 26. The first hollow tubular segment 26 is provided in the form of a hollow cylindrical tube made of cellulose acetate. The first hollow tubular segment 26 defines an internal cavity 28 that extends all the way from an upstream end 30 of the first hollow tubular segment to an downstream end 32 of the first hollow tubular segment 20. The internal cavity 28 is substantially empty, and so substantially unrestricted airflow is enabled along the internal cavity 28. The first hollow tubular segment 26—and, as a consequence, the support element 22—does not substantially contribute to the overall RTD of the aerosol-generating article 10. In more detail, the RTD of the first hollow tubular segment 26 (which is essentially the RTD of the support element 22) is substantially 0 millimetres H.sub.2O.

[0317] The first hollow tubular segment 26 has a length of about 8 millimetres, an external diameter of about 7.25 millimetres, and an internal diameter (D.sub.FTS) of about 1.9 millimetres. Thus, a thickness of a peripheral wall of the first hollow tubular segment 26 is about 2.67 millimetres.

[0318] The aerosol-cooling element 24 comprises a second hollow tubular segment 34. The second hollow tubular segment 34 is provided in the form of a hollow cylindrical tube made of cellulose acetate. The second hollow tubular segment 34 defines an internal cavity 36 that extends all the way from an upstream end 38 of the second hollow tubular segment to a downstream end 40 of the second hollow tubular segment 34. The internal cavity 36 is substantially empty, and so substantially unrestricted airflow is enabled along the internal cavity 36. The second hollow tubular segment 28—and, as a consequence, the aerosol-cooling element 24—does not substantially contribute to the overall RTD of the aerosol-generating article 10. In more detail, the RTD of the second hollow tubular segment 34 (which is essentially the RTD of the aerosol-cooling element 24) is substantially 0 millimetres H.sub.2O.

[0319] The second hollow tubular segment 34 has a length of about 8 millimetres, an external diameter of about 7.25 millimetres, and an internal diameter (D.sub.STS) of about 3.25 millimetres. Thus, a thickness of a peripheral wall of the second hollow tubular segment 34 is about 2 millimetres. Thus, a ratio between the internal diameter (D.sub.FTS) of the first hollow tubular segment 26 and the internal diameter (D.sub.STS) of the second hollow tubular segment 34 is about 0.75.

[0320] The aerosol-generating article 10 comprises a ventilation zone 60 provided at a location along the second hollow tubular segment 34. In more detail, the ventilation zone is provided at about 2 millimetres from the upstream end of the second hollow tubular segment 34. A ventilation level of the aerosol-generating article 10 is about 25 percent.

[0321] In the embodiment of FIG. 1, the downstream section 14 further comprises a mouthpiece element 42 at a location downstream of the intermediate hollow section 50. In more detail, the mouthpiece element 42 is positioned immediately downstream of the aerosol-cooling element 24. As shown in the drawing of FIG. 1, an upstream end of the mouthpiece element 42 abuts the downstream end 40 of the aerosol-cooling element 18.

[0322] The mouthpiece element 42 is provided in the form of a cylindrical plug of low-density cellulose acetate.

[0323] The mouthpiece element 42 has a length of about 12 millimetres and an external diameter of about 7.25 millimetres. The RTD of the mouthpiece element 42 is about 12 millimetres H.sub.2O.

[0324] The rod 12 comprises an aerosol-generating substrate comprising a porous medium loaded with a gel composition as defined above. An example of a suitable gel composition is shown below in Table 1:

TABLE-US-00001 TABLE 1 Gel composition Component Amount (% by weight) Water 20 Glycerol 73.5 Nicotine 1.5 Gelling agent 3 Lactic acid 1 Divalent cations 1

[0325] The rod 12 of aerosol-generating substrate has an external diameter of about 7.25 millimetres and a length of about 12 millimetres.

[0326] The aerosol-generating article 10 further comprises an elongate susceptor element 44 within the rod 12 of aerosol-generating substrate. In more detail, the susceptor element 44 is arranged substantially longitudinally within the aerosol-generating substrate, such as to be approximately parallel to the longitudinal direction of the rod 12. As shown in the drawing of FIG. 1, the susceptor element 44 is positioned in a radially central position within the rod and extends effectively along the longitudinal axis of the rod 12.

[0327] The susceptor element 44 extends all the way from an upstream end to a downstream end of the rod 12. In effect, the susceptor element 44 has substantially the same length as the rod 12 of aerosol-generating substrate.

[0328] In the embodiment of FIG. 1, the susceptor element 44 is provided in the form of a strip and has a length of about 12 millimetres, a thickness of about 60 micrometres, and a width of about 4 millimetres. The upstream section 16 comprises an upstream element 46 located immediately upstream of the rod 12 of aerosol-generating substrate, the upstream element 46 being in longitudinal alignment with the rod 12. In the embodiment of FIG. 1, the downstream end of the upstream element 46 abuts the upstream end of the rod 12 of aerosol-generating substrate. This advantageously prevents the susceptor element 44 from being dislodged. Further, this ensures that the consumer cannot accidentally contact the heated susceptor element 44 after use.

[0329] The upstream element 46 is provided in the form of a cylindrical plug of cellulose acetate circumscribed by a stiff wrapper. The upstream element 46 has a length of about 5 millimetres. The RTD of the upstream element 46 is about 30 millimetres H.sub.2O.

[0330] The aerosol-generating article 110 shown in FIG. 2 has substantially the same overall structure of the aerosol-generating article 10 of FIG. 1, and will be described below insofar as it differs from the aerosol-generating article 10.

[0331] As shown in FIG. 2, the aerosol-generating article 110 comprises a rod 12 of aerosol-generating substrate 12 and a modified downstream section 114 at a location downstream of the rod 12 of aerosol-generating substrate. Further, the aerosol-generating article 10 comprises an upstream section 16 at a location upstream of the rod 12 of aerosol-generating substrate.

[0332] Like the downstream section 14 of the aerosol-generating article 10, the modified downstream section 114 if the aerosol-generating article 110 comprises a support element 22 located immediately downstream of the rod 12 of aerosol-generating substrate, the support element 22 being in longitudinal alignment with the rod 12, wherein the upstream end of the support element 22 abuts the downstream end of the rod 12 of aerosol-generating substrate.

[0333] Further, the modified downstream section 114 comprises an aerosol-cooling element 124 located immediately downstream of the support element 22, the aerosol-cooling element 124 being in longitudinal alignment with the rod 12 and the support element 22. In more detail, the upstream end of the aerosol-cooling element 124 abuts the downstream end of the support element 22.

[0334] In contrast to downstream section 14 of the aerosol-generating article 10, the aerosol-cooling element 124 of the modified downstream section 114 comprises a plurality of longitudinally extending channels which offer a low or substantially null resistance to the passage of air through the rod. In more detail, the aerosol-cooling element 124 is formed from a preferably non-porous sheet material selected from the group comprising a metallic foil, a polymeric sheet, and a substantially non-porous paper or cardboard. In particular, in the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 2, the aerosol-cooling element 124 is provided in the form of a crimped and gathered sheet of polylactic acid (PLA). The aerosol-cooling element 124 has a length of about 8 millimetres, and an external diameter of about 7.25 millimetres.