FILTERING MATERIAL AND FILTER FOR RETAINING POLYAROMATIC HYDROCARBONS, CARBONYLS AND OTHER COMPOUNDS FROM SMOKE FROM TOBACCO PRODUCTS

Abstract

A hybrid graphene material and a filter capable of retaining, in whole or in part, polyaromatic hydrocarbons, carbonyl and other smoke compounds from tobacco products or industrial processes, having as adsorbent substances activated carbon and graphene materials, both supported by the same matrix and in the same filter compartment, which may or may not be attached to another conventional filter compartment of cellulose acetate fibers or similar polymer, and a method for manufacturing such material.

Claims

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21. Hybrid graphene material (composite) having porous three-dimensional microarchitectures covering a range of pore size distribution covering nano, micro and/or macro pores, consisting of micronized graphite, activated carbon and one or more of the following materials: graphene oxide, graphene, few-layer graphene sheets, where the bond between graphene materials and activated carbon is through surface forces, in particular, Van der Waals forces, being these composites associated with a polymeric mass support of controlled porosity and pressure drop, with sintering effect for activated carbon loads of more than 70% by weight, of the type of Ticona GMBH'S GUR 2122 or GUR 4120/4150 products or of other products of similar properties and where the weight ratio of the content of carbon materials (e.g. graphene or graphene oxide) may vary between 1 and 30%, activated carbon content between 30 and 70%, and support porous mass content between 5 and 60% of the total composition by weight, resulting in a specific surface greater than 900 m2/g.

22. A filter capable of retaining, in whole or in part, polyaromatic hydrocarbons, carbonyl and other compounds in the smoke of tobacco products, characterized by containing in the same compartment graphene materials associated with activated carbon (composites) as specified in claim 21, both supported by the same matrix forming a structural unit, where such compartment may or may not be attached to another conventional filter compartment of cellulose acetate fibers or similar polymer, being the composite materials capable of reducing the content of the following polyaromatic hydrocarbons in a gaseous stream and in the specified quantities compared to the University of Kentucky International Reference Cigarette 1R6F: naphthalene (94%), acenaphthylene (74%), acenaphthene (73%), fluorene (68%), anthracene (63%), phenanthrene (54%), fluoranthene (52%), chrysene (52%), pyrene (49%), benzo(a)anthracene (45%), benzo(b)pyrene (53%); being these composite materials also able to reduce, simultaneously with the previous ones, the following carbonyl compounds compared to the same University of Kentucky cigarette in the following proportions: formaldehyde (72%), acetaldehyde (82%), acetone (87%), acrolein (89%), propionaldehyde (82%), crotonaldehyde (88%), methyl-ethylketone (85%) and butanal (85%).

23. A process to prepare the material of claim 21 wherein it may include all or some of the following stages: a) commercially available graphite micronization by applying ultrasound to an aqueous dispersion, to which surfactants and/or stabilizers, such as polysorbates, polyvinylpyrrolidone, N-methylpyrrolidone, sodium dodecyl sulphate, are preferably added, b) synthesis of nanocarbon materials mainly graphene, few-layer graphene sheets, and/or exfoliated graphene, which may be done by two modalities: the modified Hummer method, or preferably, exfoliation in liquid phase assisted by the presence of surfactants and/or stabilizers in the medium, such as those mentioned above, using a high-power rotor-stator type equipment, c) the nanocarbon materials thus synthesized are supported on microparticles of activated carbon of granulometry ranging from 35 to 70 mesh, mixing them in suspension with agitation and at a temperature, for example, ranging between 50° C. and 90° C. until the suspension is temporarily stabilized, d) vacuum evaporation of the suspension temporarily stabilized at a temperature ranging between 50° C. and 70° C., obtaining the dry carbon material, which is then mixed with high molecular weight polyethylene, e) warm up the mixture to 180° C.-200° C. for 20 to 40 minutes.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

[0061] FIG. 1 illustrates a diagram describing the chemical composition of cigarette smoke.

[0062] FIG. 2 illustrates a scheme describing the different stages of obtaining the material subject to this invention.

[0063] FIG. 3 illustrates a scheme of the interactions of the σ-π orbital set between the aromatic rings of graphene and the graphene nanocrystals of activated carbon.

[0064] FIG. 4 illustrates a SEM (Scanning Electron Micrography) image of a porous mass synthesized from very high molecular weight polyethylene, and its porous structure may be observed.

[0065] FIG. 5 illustrates a SEM image of the filter of the present invention, where the synthesized particles and clear tones are observed, which create a supporting structure between the carbon particles.

EXAMPLES OF THE EFFICIENCY OF THE FILTER DISCLOSED BY THIS PATENT

[0066] Case 1.

[0067] Cigarettes, A and B, were analyzed, responding to the overall design of the following figure:

[0068] The composition of the porous masses of these cigarettes is as follows: [0069] Cigarette A: Activated carbon 70%+graphene 6%+GUR 24% [0070] Cigarette B: Activated carbon 70%+GUR 30% (REFERENCE)

[0071] The main difference between the two cigarettes is the presence of graphene in the porous mass of A. The other physical and chemical properties are very similar in both products, with ventilation in the nozzles being 60% in both cases. Pressure drops were maintained in the range of 120 to 140 mmH.sub.20. Tobacco in both tobacco columns is the same.

[0072] The two groups of cigarettes were simultaneously smoked in a Cerulean SM450 smoking machine under the Health Canada Intensive regimen (six replicates of each cigarette) and the extracts were analyzed according to the internal method where 13 polyaromatic hydrocarbons were quantified. The results of the analysis are summarized in Table I, which shows the significant reduction of several polyaromatic hydrocarbons in the smoke of the main cigarette current regarding cigarette B (reference).

TABLE-US-00001 TABLE I % reduction of polyaromatic hydrocarbons in cigarette A taking as reference cigarette B Benzo[a] Benzo[k] Benzo[b] Naph- Acenaph- Acenaph- Fluo- Anthra- Phenan- Fluoran- Py- Chry- anthra- fluoran- fluoran- Benzo[a] talene thylene thene rene cene trene thene rene sene cene thene thene pyrene Average cig. A 85 64 59 171 108 120 40 32 3.9 4.9 11 7 (μg/cig) Std. dev. cig. A 15 10 8 17 12 14 6 12 0.4 0.4 1.7 1 (μg/cig) Average cig. B 240 112 106 307 200 186 65 50 5.8 8 20 12 (μg/cig) Std. dev. cig. B 18 20 11 31 13 15 10 6 0.2 1 2 2 (μg/cig) % Reduction 64 43 45 44 46 36 39 36 33 37 45 42

[0073] Case 2.

[0074] Cigarette C was analyzed, whose design responds to that of case 1 compared to a reference cigarette 1R6F from the University of Kentucky. The cigarette 1R6F is an international standard cigarette for research work and serves as a basis for comparing data from different laboratories. Cigarette C has a sector containing a porous mass with the following composition:

[0075] Cigarette C: Activated carbon 71%+graphene 11%+GUR 18%

[0076] Cigarette 1R6F is a cigarette with a conventional cellulose acetate filter.

[0077] Smoking trials of both cigarettes were conducted simultaneously on a Cerulean SM450 smoking machine using the Health Canada Intensive method (six replicates of each cigarette).

[0078] The results of the analysis are summarized in Table II and allow for the comparison of the reduction capacity of several polyaromatic hydrocarbons of the filter under this patent.

TABLE-US-00002 TABLE II % reduction of polyaromatic hydrocarbons in cigarette C compared to cigarette 1R6F Benzo[a] Benzo[k] Benzo[b] Naph- Acenaph- Acenaph- Fluo- Anthra- Phenan- Fluoran- Py- Chry- anthra- fluoran- fluoran- Benzo[a] talene thylene thene rene cene trene thene rene sene cene thene thene pyrene Average cig. C 76 38 48 117 122 160 44 38 10 11 11 7 (μg/cig) Std. dev. cig. C 20 9 11 26 24 13 6 4 2 2 1 2 (μg/cig) Average 1R6F 1106 144 176 368 329 347 92 79 19 20 17 15 (μg/cig) Std. dev. 1R6F 64 19 7 38 41 39 11 9 1 1 3 3 (μg/cig) % Reduction 93 74 73 68 63 54 52 52 49 45 34 53

[0079] Case 3.

[0080] In the cigarette C smoke of case 2, the reduction of carbonyl was assessed by comparing the result with that obtained for the reference cigarette 1R6F. The two cigarettes were smoked using the ISO 3308:2012 method and extracts were analyzed according to CRM 74:2018 for the determination of eight carbonyl (six replicates of each cigarette). The result is summarized in Table III and allows comparing the carbonyl reduction capacity of the filter under this patent.

TABLE-US-00003 TABLE III % reduction in cigarette carbonyl compared to cigarette 1R6F Formaldehyde Acetaldehyde Acetone Acrolein Propionaldehyde Crotonaldehyde MEK Butanal Average cig. C 7 90 22 5 7 1.0 6 4 (μg/cig) Std. dev. cig. C 3 21 8 2 2 0.5 2 1 (μg/cig) Average 1R6F 24 502 174 48 40 8 39 30 (μg/cig) Std. dev. 1R6F 4 30 15 6 5 1 4 3 (μg/cig) % Reduction 72 82 87 89 82 88 85 85