Cigarettes are made from four components, each of which is describe below.1. Filters2. Tobacco3. Additives4. Cigarette wrapperCigarettes today are typically 85 or 100 mm long, and have diameters of about 8 mm. Their filters are usually 20 to 30 mm long, so a typical cigarette has 55 to 80 mm of tobacco.
1. Filters:Cigarette filters are specifically designed to absorb vapors and to accumulate particulate smoke components. Filters also prevent tobacco from entering a smoker's mouth and provide a mouthpiece that will not collapse as the cigarette is smoked. Filters generally have the following components:
A "plug" of acetate cellulose filter tow95% of cigarette filters are made of cellulose acetate (a plastic), and the balance are made from papers and rayon. The cellulose acetate tow fibers are thinner than sewing thread, white, and packed tightly together to create a filter; they can look like cotton. Other materials have been tried and rejected in favor of the taste that acetate produces. Filters vary in filtration efficiency, depending on whether the cigarette is to be "light" or regular.
1. Filters:Cigarette filters are specifically designed to absorb vapors and to accumulate particulate smoke components. Filters also prevent tobacco from entering a smoker's mouth and provide a mouthpiece that will not collapse as the cigarette is smoked. Filters generally have the following components:
A "plug" of acetate cellulose filter tow95% of cigarette filters are made of cellulose acetate (a plastic), and the balance are made from papers and rayon. The cellulose acetate tow fibers are thinner than sewing thread, white, and packed tightly together to create a filter; they can look like cotton. Other materials have been tried and rejected in favor of the taste that acetate produces. Filters vary in filtration efficiency, depending on whether the cigarette is to be "light" or regular.
