Patent EP0280817A2 successfully refreshed from Google Patents.
EP0280817A2
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EP
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Process for the removal of basic materials from plant products
Assignee: Philip Morris Products Inc
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Filing: 1987-12-24
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Granted: —
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Expires: 2007-12-24
Abstract
Abstract A process is provided for the selective removal of basic materials from plant products, in particular, for removing nicotine from tobacco without materially affecting the content of the other components of the tobacco. Tobacco is. traversed with a solvent in the supercritical state or in the liquid state wherein nicotine and the other components dissolve in the solvent. The solvent is then passed through an acid-containing trap where the solvent is essentially freed of nicotine. The solvent, depleted of nicotine and enriched in the other components, is then recycled to the tobacco to reextract nicotine. In addition, the tobacco may be pretreated with a chemical base which does not substantially react withe the tobacco components under ambient conditions but rather is activated under the conditions of the extraction process. Pretreatment of the tobacco with a chemical base neutralizes nicotine salts and permits the extraction process to be carried out under milder conditions.
Inventors
- 👤 Harvey J. Grubbs
- 👤 Ravi Prasad
- 👤 Tony M. Howell
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
EP
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-08 15:51
CPC Classifications
C; C11; C11B; C11B9/00; C11B9/02; A; A24; A24B; A24B15/00; A24B15/18; A24B15/24
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 25
Claim 1
Independent Claim
46 words
A method for the selective removal of basic components from an extraction solvent, in the supercritical state or in the liquid state, containing a plurality of substances, characterised in that the solvent is contacted with a non-volatile acid which is not soluble in the extraction solvent.
Claim 2
Independent Claim
46 words
A method for the selective removal of basic components from an extraction solvent, in the supercritical state or in the liquid state, containing a plurality of substances, characterised in that the solvent is contacted with a non-volatile acid which is not soluble in the extraction solvent.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
18 words
A method according to claim 1 wherein the acid is a polycarboxylic acid or a monovalent salt thereof.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
26 words
The method according to claim 1 or 2 wherein the extraction solvent comprises carbon dioxide, argon, SF6, N 2 O, lower halogenated hydrocarbon or lower hydrocarbon.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
26 words
The method according to claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein the non-volatile acid is dissolved or suspended in water, acid, aqueous acid or aqueous salt solution.
Claim 6
Independent Claim
16 words
The method according to any preceding claim wherein the acid is contained on a support medium.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
20 words
The method according to claim 5 wherein the support medium is cotton cloth, tobacco stem, carbon, cellulose or tobacco filler.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
25 words
The method according to claim 6, wherein the support medium is tobacco stems which are long stems, cut and rolled, shredded, expanded, treated or untreated.
Claim 9
Independent Claim
13 words
The method according to any preceding claim wherein the basic component is nicotine.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
97 words
The method according to claim 8 wherein the nicotine is derived from tobacco by extraction with a normally gaseous solvent in the presence of-at least 10% by weight of moisture, based on the weight of the tobacco, said solvent being either in the liquid state at a pressure of from 50 to 300 atmospheres or in the supercritical state at a temperature from the critical temperature of the solvent to 120°C at a pressure of from 780 to 1500 atmospheres, and wherein nicotine is selectively removed from the solvent by the non-volatile acid while preserving aroma-producing components.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
19 words
The method according to claim 9 wherein the moisture content of the tobacco is up to 30% by weight.
Claim 12
Independent Claim
14 words
The method according to any preceding claim wherein the non-volatile acid is monopotassium citrate.
Claim 13
Independent Claim
126 words
The method according to any preceding claim wherein the basic components are derived from a plant product containing a plurality of substances including acid salt forms of said basic components, and wherein said plant product is first contacted with a chemical base which does not substantially react under ambient conditions with the acid salt forms of said- basic components or with other plant components but can react with the said acid salts under the conditions of an extraction process, and the plant product is then contacted with said extraction solvent, in the supercritical or liquid state, under conditions such that the chemical base does react with the acid forms of the basic components in the plant product, prior to contacting said solvent with said non-volatile acid.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
21 words
The method according to claim 12 wherein the chemical base has a pK a greater than 7.2 and less than 10.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
28 words
The method according to claim 12 or 13 wherein the chemical base is ammonium bicarbonate, a glycosylamine, an N-glycoside of an aldose or an N-glycoside of a ketose.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
27 words
The method according to claim 12 or 13 wherein the chemical base is sodium carbonate, sodium bicarbonate, potassium carbonate, potassium bicarbonate, ammonia, aqueous ammonia, triethylamine or trimethylamine.
Claim 17
Independent Claim
115 words
A method for the selective removal of basic components from a plant product containing a plurality of substances including acid salt forms of said basic components, characterised in that said plant product is first contacted with a chemical base which does not substantially react under ambient conditions with the acid salt forms of said basic components or with other plant components but can react with the said acid salts under the conditions of an extraction process, and the plant product is then contacted with an extraction solvent, in the supercritical or liquid state, under conditions such that the chemical base does react with the acid salt forms of the basic components in the plant product.
Claim 18
Independent Claim
115 words
A method for the selective removal of basic components from a plant product containing a plurality of substances including acid salt forms of said basic components, characterised in that said plant product is first contacted with a chemical base which does not substantially react under ambient conditions with the acid salt forms of said basic components or with other plant components but can react with the said acid salts under the conditions of an extraction process, and the plant product is then contacted with an extraction solvent, in the supercritical or liquid state, under conditions such that the chemical base does react with the acid salt forms of the basic components in the plant product.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
21 words
The method according to claim 16 wherein the chemical base has a pK a greater than 7.2 and less than 10.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
28 words
The method according to claim 16 or 17 wherein the chemical base is ammonium bicarbonate, a glycosylamine, an N-glycoside of an aldose or an N-glycoside of a ketose.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim
27 words
The method according to claim 16 or 17 wherein the chemical base is sodium carbonate, sodium bicarbonate, potassium carbonate, potassium bicarbonate, ammonia, aqueous ammonia, triethyiamine or trimethylamine..
Claim 22
Independent Claim
28 words
The method according to any of claims 16 to 19 wherein the extraction solvent is carbon dioxide, argon, SF6, N 2 0, lower halogenated hydrocarbon or lower hydrocarbon.
Claim 23
Independent Claim
20 words
The method according to any of claims 16 to 20 wherein the basic component in the plant product is nicotine.
Claim 24
Independent Claim
122 words
The method according to any of claims 16 to 20 for the selective extraction of nicotine from tobacco while preserving aroma-producing components, wherein the chemical base does not significantly react with acid salts of nicotine under ambient conditions but does react with the nicotine salts under the extraction conditions, and wherein the tobacco is extracted with a normally gaseous solvent in the presence of at least 10% by weight of moisture based on the weight of the tobacco, said solvent being either in the liquid state at a pressure of from 50 to 300 atmospheres or in the supercritical state at a temperature from the critical temperature of the solvent to 120° C at a pressure of from 70 to 1500 atmospheres.
Claim 25
Dependent Claim
19 words
The method according to claim 22 wherein the moisture content of the tobacco is up to 30% by weight.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
No citation records indexed.
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