AEROSOL GENERATING SUBSTRATE AND AEROSOL GENERATING ARTICLE

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO PRIOR APPLICATION

This application is a continuation of International Patent Application No. PCT/CN2023/135427, filed on Nov. 30, 2023, which claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. 202310091250.X, filed on Jan. 20, 2023. The entire disclosure of both applications is hereby incorporated by reference herein.

FIELD

This application relates to the technical field of aerosol generating articles, and in particular, to an aerosol generating substrate and an aerosol generating article.

BACKGROUND

Aerosol generating articles include aerosol generating articles that form aerosols by burning and aerosol generating articles that form aerosols by heating-not-burning. In a typical heat-not-burn cigarette article, it contains an aerosol generating substrate such as a tobacco raw material, a flavor raw material, and/or an aerosol former that can volatilize to generate aerosols when heated. The aerosol generating substrate is heated by an external heat source to a sufficient degree to diffuse. The aerosol generating substrate does not burn. When loaded with a large dose of aerosol former, the aerosol former is released by high-temperature heating to form aerosols.

In the existing technology, when aerosol generating articles are inhaled, the resistance to draw (RTD) is relatively high, and the difference in aerosol volume between puffs is significant, thus reducing the user experience.

SUMMARY

In an embodiment, the present invention provides an aerosol generating substrate, comprising: at least one airway that passes through at least one end of the aerosol generating substrate along a length direction, and wherein a wall thickness range of the at least one airway is 0.1 mm to 9.8 mm.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Subject matter of the present disclosure will be described in even greater detail below based on the exemplary figures. All features described and/or illustrated herein can be used alone or combined in different combinations. The features and advantages of various embodiments will become apparent by reading the following detailed description with reference to the attached drawings, which illustrate the following:

FIG. 1 is a schematic structural diagram of a first type of aerosol generating article according to an embodiment of this application;

FIG. 2 is a sectional diagram of the aerosol generating article shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a schematic structural diagram of a second type of aerosol generating article according to an embodiment of this application;

FIG. 4 is a schematic structural diagram of a first type of aerosol generating substrate according to an embodiment of this application;

FIG. 5 is a schematic structural diagram of a second type of aerosol generating substrate according to an embodiment of this application;

FIG. 6 is a schematic structural diagram of a third type of aerosol generating substrate according to an embodiment of this application;

FIG. 7 is a schematic structural diagram of a fourth type of aerosol generating substrate according to an embodiment of this application;

FIG. 8 is a schematic structural diagram of a fifth type of aerosol generating substrate according to an embodiment of this application;

FIG. 9 is a schematic structural diagram of a sixth type of aerosol generating substrate according to an embodiment of this application;

FIG. 10 is a schematic structural diagram of a seventh type of aerosol generating substrate according to an embodiment of this application;

FIG. 11 is a schematic structural diagram of an eighth type of aerosol generating substrate according to an embodiment of this application;

FIG. 12 is a schematic structural diagram of a ninth type of aerosol generating substrate according to an embodiment of this application;

FIG. 13 is a schematic structural diagram of a tenth type of aerosol generating substrate according to an embodiment of this application;

FIG. 14 is a schematic structural diagram of an eleventh type of aerosol generating substrate according to an embodiment of this application;

FIG. 15 is a schematic structural diagram of a twelfth type of aerosol generating substrate according to an embodiment of this application;

FIG. 16 is a schematic structural diagram of a thirteenth type of aerosol generating substrate according to an embodiment of this application;

FIG. 17 is a schematic structural diagram of a fourteenth type of aerosol generating substrate according to an embodiment of this application;

FIG. 18 is a schematic structural diagram of a fifteenth type of aerosol generating substrate according to an embodiment of this application;

FIG. 19 is a schematic structural diagram of a sixteenth type of aerosol generating substrate according to an embodiment of this application;

FIG. 20 is a schematic structural diagram of a seventeenth type of aerosol generating substrate according to an embodiment of this application;

FIG. 21 is a schematic structural diagram of an eighteenth type of aerosol generating substrate according to an embodiment of this application;

FIG. 22 is a schematic structural diagram of a nineteenth type of aerosol generating substrate according to an embodiment of this application;

FIG. 23 is a schematic structural diagram of a twentieth type of aerosol generating substrate according to an embodiment of this application;

FIG. 24 is a schematic structural diagram of a twenty-first type of aerosol generating substrate according to an embodiment of this application;

FIG. 25 is a schematic structural diagram of a twenty-second type of aerosol generating substrate according to an embodiment of this application;

FIG. 26 is a schematic structural diagram of a twenty-third type of aerosol generating substrate according to an embodiment of this application;

FIG. 27 is a schematic structural diagram of a twenty-fourth type of aerosol generating substrate according to an embodiment of this application;

FIG. 28 is a sectional diagram of a twenty-fifth type of aerosol generating substrate according to an embodiment of this application;

FIG. 29 is a sectional diagram of a twenty-sixth type of aerosol generating substrate according to an embodiment of this application; and

FIG. 30 is a sectional diagram of a third type of aerosol generating article according to an embodiment of this application.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In an embodiment, the present invention provides an aerosol generating substrate and an aerosol generating article that can improve the user experience.

In an embodiment, the present invention provides an aerosol generating substrate. The aerosol generating substrate is provided with at least one airway. The airway passes through at least one end of the aerosol generating substrate along a length direction, and a wall thickness range of the airway is 0.1 mm to 9.8 mm.

In an embodiment, the airway passes through the two opposite ends of the aerosol generating substrate along the length direction.

In an embodiment, the wall thickness range of the airway is 0.15 mm to 3.5 mm.

In an embodiment, the number of the airways is more than one, and the wall thickness of the airway includes the wall thickness D of a substrate wall between two adjacent airways, and the range of D is 0.1 mm to 2.5 mm.

In an embodiment, the wall thickness of the airway includes the wall thickness L of a substrate wall between the outermost airway and the outer sidewall of the aerosol generating substrate, and the range of L is 0.1 mm to 3.5 mm.

In an embodiment, at least one of the inside of the aerosol generating substrate and the outer sidewall of the aerosol generating substrate is provided with the airway.

In an embodiment, the airway has the cross section perpendicular to the length direction of the aerosol generating substrate; and the shape of the cross section of the airway provided inside the aerosol generating substrate is one of a circular shape, an elliptical shape, a runway shape, a polygonal shape, and a special shape.

In an embodiment, the shape of the cross section of the airway provided in the outer sidewall of the aerosol generating substrate is one of a semi-circular shape, a semi-elliptical shape, a trapezoidal shape, a polygonal shape, and a special shape, or the shape of the cross section of the airway provided in the outer sidewall of the aerosol generating substrate is the same as the local shape of the cross section of the airway provided inside the aerosol generating substrate.

In an embodiment, the airway has the cross section perpendicular to the length direction of the aerosol generating substrate; and the area of the cross section of the airway provided inside the aerosol generating substrate is 0.0019 mm² to 30 mm².

In an embodiment, the area of the cross section of the airway provided in the outer sidewall of the aerosol generating substrate is 0.001 mm² to 55 mm².

In an embodiment, the inside of the aerosol generating substrate is provided with multiple airways, and the airways are distributed on multiple trajectory lines. The airways on a single trajectory line are linearly arranged along a first direction, the multiple trajectory lines are arranged along a second direction, and the first direction and the second direction are not in parallel.

In an embodiment, the airways on the multiple trajectory lines are uniformly distributed.

In an embodiment, the airways on a single trajectory line are linearly arranged along the first direction, and the multiple trajectory lines are arranged along the second direction perpendicular to the first direction.

In an embodiment, the airways on a single trajectory line are arranged along the circumferential direction surrounding the center of the aerosol generating substrate, and the multiple trajectory lines are concentrically arranged along the radial direction of the aerosol generating substrate.

In an embodiment, the airways on a single trajectory line are repeatedly arranged, and the apertures of the airways on each trajectory line gradually increase or gradually decrease radially outward along the aerosol generating substrate.

In an embodiment, the airways on a single trajectory line are repeatedly arranged, and the distance between the airways on two adjacent trajectory lines gradually increases or gradually decreases radially outward along the aerosol generating substrate.

In an embodiment, the inside of the aerosol generating substrate is provided with multiple airways, and the airways are randomly distributed.

In an embodiment, the inside of the aerosol generating substrate is provided with multiple airways; and the airways are distributed in various regions inside the aerosol generating substrate.

In an embodiment, the inside of the aerosol generating substrate is provided with a first region and a second region, and the airways are distributed in the first region.

An embodiment of this application further provides an aerosol generating article, which includes:

• • the aerosol generating substrate described above;
  • a function segment, arranged at one end of the aerosol generating substrate along a length direction and at least including a filtering section for filtering aerosols; and
  • an outer wrapping layer, wrapping the circumferential outsides of the function segment and the aerosol generating substrate.

In an embodiment, the function segment further includes a cooling section, and the cooling section is located between the filtering section and the aerosol generating substrate.

The embodiments of this application provide the aerosol generating substrate and the aerosol generating article. The aerosol generating substrate is provided with at least one airway. The airway passes through at least one end of the aerosol generating substrate along the length direction, and the wall thickness range of the airway is 0.1 mm to 9.8 mm. When heating the aerosol generating substrate, aerosols are released by heating the aerosol generating substrate. The aerosols flow out through gaps or micropores in the substrate walls between the airways, are collected in the airway, and are conveyed to an inhalation end under the action of negative inhalation pressure. That is to say, by providing the airway, the surface area of the aerosol generating substrate can be increased (the sidewall of the airway is equivalent to a part of the surface of the aerosol generating substrate), so that the heat of the aerosol generating substrate can enter the inside of the aerosol generating substrate from the surface of the aerosol generating substrate. Compared with the structure that the heat is directly transferred inside the aerosol generating substrate in the related technologies, the heating efficiency can be improved. In addition, since the wall thickness of the airway is set to 0.1 mm to 9.8 mm, the flow resistance of the aerosol generating substrate is relatively small, the flow rate of the aerosols is appropriate, the aerosols inside the aerosol generating substrate can be easily extracted, the aerosols can be released uniformly, the utilization rate is higher, the aerosol generating substrate is less prone to burning, the user experience is better, and the manufacturing is facilitated. That is, compared with the material of the aerosol generating section in the related technologies, the aerosol generating substrate provided in the embodiment of this application can improve the user experience.

Without causing any conflict, the embodiments of this application and the technical features in the embodiments may be combined with each other, and the detailed description in the specific embodiments should be understood as an explanation of the purpose of this application and should not be regarded as an undue limitation on this application.

An embodiment of this application provides an aerosol generating article. Referring to FIG. 1 to FIG. 3, the aerosol generating article 100 includes a function segment 20, an outer wrapping layer 30, and an aerosol generating substrate 10. The function segment 20 is arranged at one end of the aerosol generating substrate 10 along a length direction. The function segment 20 at least includes a filtering segment for filtering aerosols. The filtering segment may also be referred to as a filter.

The outer wrapping layer 30 wraps the peripheral sides of the function segment 20 and the aerosol generating substrate 10.

The aerosol generating article 100 is used in conjunction with an aerosol generating device with a heating component. Specifically, the heating component heats the aerosol generating substrate 10 to produce aerosols, and the user inhales the filtered aerosols through the filtering segment of the function segment 20.

The aerosol generating article 100 generates aerosols by virtue of the aerosol generating substrate 10, while the function segment 20 does not generate aerosols.

The aerosol generating article in the embodiment of this application is applicable to inhalation by means of heating and burning, and is also applicable to inhalation by means of heating-not-burning. In the embodiment of this application, description is made by taking the aerosol generating article 100 being applicable to inhalation by means of heating-not-burning as an example.

There are various heating methods for the heating component. Exemplarily, the heating methods include central heating, circumferential heating, bottom air heating, and the like. The central heating method refers to baking and heating the aerosol generating article 100 from the inside to the outside through the heating component inserted into the aerosol generating article 100. The circumferential heating method refers to baking and heating the aerosol generating article 100 from the outside to the inside through the heating component arranged on the periphery of the aerosol generating article 100. The bottom heating method refers to first heating the air by using the heating component, and then baking and heating the aerosol generating article 100 from the bottom to the top through the hot air. These heating methods may specifically include resistance heating, electromagnetic heating, infrared heating, microwave heating, laser heating, and the like, which will not specifically limited here.

The function segment 20 may be provided with only a filtering segment 21 as shown in FIG. 2, or may be provided with a filtering segment 21 and a cooling segment 22 as shown in FIG. 30. For the function segment 20 provided with the cooling segment 22, the cooling segment 22 is provided between the filtering segment 21 and an aerosol generating substrate structure 10 to cool the aerosols before the filtering segment 21 filters the aerosols.

The cooling segment is used for cooling the aerosols before the filtering segment filters the aerosols, so as to reduce the temperature of the aerosols and improve the situation that “the mouth feels hot” when the user inhales the aerosols.

In some embodiments, the function segment 20 may be further provided with a supporting segment. The supporting segment has certain structural strength and plays a role of axially limiting the aerosol generating substrate 10. Specifically, when the aerosol generating article 100 is inserted into a heating chamber of a cigarette device, or when a heating element is inserted into the aerosol generating substrate 10, the supporting segment provides a reaction force to the aerosol generating substrate 10, so as to prevent the aerosol generating substrate 10 from moving axially.

Another embodiment of this application provides an aerosol generating substrate. The aerosol generating substrate 10 is used for the aerosol generating article 100 described in the embodiment of this application. Referring to FIG. 1 to FIG. 25, the aerosol generating substrate 10 is provided with at least one airway 10a. The airway 10a passes through at least one end of the aerosol generating substrate 10 along the length direction, that is, the airway 10a extends along the longitudinal direction of the aerosol generating substrate 10. In some embodiments, referring to FIG. 28, the airways 10a pass through the same end of the aerosol generating substrate 10 along the length direction, and the other end is a closed end.

In some other embodiments, referring to FIG. 29, some of the airways 10a pass through one end of the aerosol generating substrate 10 along the length direction, while the other airways 10a pass through the other end of the aerosol generating substrate 10 along the length direction.

In yet some other embodiments, referring to FIG. 2 to FIG. 7, each airway 10a passes through the two ends of the aerosol generating substrate 10 along the length direction. It can be understood that compared with the airway 10a passing through one end of the aerosol generating substrate 10 along the length direction, the airway 10a passing through the two ends of the aerosol generating substrate 10 along the length direction is more conducive to reducing the resistance to draw (RTD) when the user inhales the aerosols.

The hole wall of the airway 10a forms the surface of the aerosol generating substrate 10. The airway 10a can increase the surface area of the aerosol generating substrate 10, thus facilitating the heat transfer and improving the heating efficiency. In addition, the aerosols flow out through micropores, are collected into the airway 10a, and are conveyed to an inhalation end under the action of negative inhalation pressure, thus reducing the RTD when the user inhales the aerosols and improving the user experience. The RTD is positively correlated with the flow resistance of the aerosols. The smaller the flow resistance of the aerosols in the aerosol generating substrate 10, the smaller the RTD experienced by the user; and the larger the flow resistance of the aerosols in the aerosol generating substrate 10, the larger the RTD experienced by the user.

The specific structure of the aerosol generating substrate 10 is not limited here. Exemplarily, in an embodiment, the aerosol generating substrate 10 may be made of an atomizing substrate itself, such as an aerosol generating flavor substrate.

In some other embodiments, the aerosol generating substrate 10 may also include a substrate and an atomizing substrate arranged on the substrate. The substrate may be, for example, high-temperature resistant carbon fibers. By arranging the substrate, the strength of the aerosol generating substrate 10 can be improved, and it can also withstand certain degree of high temperature without producing peculiar smells.

The aerosol generating substrate 10, for example, is a recombinant tobacco substrate containing components such as an aerosol generating agent and tobacco, is manufactured through an extrusion process, and is an integral structure. In this way, when the aerosol generating substrate 10 is heated for inhaling or heating is stopped, it is an integral substrate without the problem of disintegration and falling, thus solving the problems that the filamentary or granular aerosol generating substrate 10 falls apart and is difficult to clean in the existing technology.

The aerosol generating substrate 10 may be formed through a process such as compression or extrusion molding.

In addition, micropores are formed between granules of a granular combination, and the micropores are communicated to form micro airways communicated with the airway 10a. The airway 10a passes through the two ends of the substrate, playing a role of uniformly introducing air and collectively conveying the aerosols. The recombinant tobacco substrate containing components such as an aerosol generating agent and tobacco releases aerosols when heated. The aerosols are collected into the airway 10a through gaps or micropores between wall materials and conveyed to the inhalation end under the action of negative inhalation pressure.

The wall thickness range of the airway 10a is 0.1 mm to 9.8 mm. In the case of one airway 10a, referring to FIG. 4 to FIG. 6, the wall thickness of the airway 10a may be the wall thickness of a substrate wall between the airway 10a and the outer sidewall of the aerosol generating substrate 10. In the case of multiple airways 10a, referring to FIG. 7, the wall thickness of the airway 10a may be the wall thickness of a substrate wall between the hole wall of the airway 10a and the outer sidewall of the aerosol generating substrate 10, as well as the wall thickness of the substrate wall between two adjacent airways 10a.

Different combinations of substrate wall thickness may be designed to regulate the RTD, effective component release rate, heat transfer rate, inhalation uniformity and the like of the aerosol generating substrate 10.

In the embodiment of this application, the wall thickness range of the airway 10a is 0.1 mm to 9.8 mm. The thicker the substrate wall, the larger the mass of the aerosol generating substrate 10 and the more inhalation ports it has, but the overall RTD of the aerosol generating substrate 10 is large and the heat transfer efficiency is low, which is not conducive to aerosol release and leads to overheating of the contact surface with the heat source; and the thinner the substrate wall, the better the penetration or diffusion of heat and the higher the heat transfer efficiency, but the smaller the mass of the aerosol generating substrate 10 and the fewer inhalation ports it has, and the thinner the substrate wall, the lower the overall structural strength of the aerosol generating substrate 10. That is to say, the wall thickness setting of the airway 10a needs to be coordinated and unified with the aerosol release amount, heat transfer efficiency, and the overall structural strength of the aerosol generating substrate 10. Therefore, when the wall thickness range of the airway 10a is 0.1 mm to 9.8 mm, the flow resistance of the aerosol generating substrate 10 is relatively small (that is, the RTD is relatively small), the flow rate of the aerosols is appropriate, the aerosols inside the aerosol generating substrate 10 can be easily extracted, the aerosols can be released uniformly, the utilization rate is higher, the aerosol generating substrate 10 is less prone to burning, the user experience is better, and the manufacturing is facilitated.

In a case that the wall thickness of the substrate wall is less than 0.1 mm, the mass of the aerosol generating substrate 10 is small, the aerosol release time is short, the supportability of the aerosol generating substrate 10 is poor, and the yield rate of the aerosol generating substrate 10 during manufacturing is low. In a case that the wall thickness of the substrate wall is greater than 9.8 mm, the mass of the aerosol generating substrate 10 is large, which is not conducive to aerosol release, and the overall RTD of the aerosol generating substrate 10 is large, thus reducing the user experience. Therefore, the wall thickness range of the airway 10a should be set between 0.1 mm and 9.8 mm.

Preferably, the wall thickness range of the airway 10a is 0.15 mm to 3.5 mm.

The outer wrapping layer 30 wraps the circumferential outsides of the function segment 20 and the aerosol generating substrate 10.

The material of the outer wrapping layer 30 is not limited, for example, includes, but is not limited to, one or a combination of more of materials such as fiber paper, metal foil, metal foil composite fiber paper, polyethylene composite fiber paper, PE, and PBAT.

In some embodiments, referring to FIG. 2, the function segment 20 only includes the filtering segment 21. In some other embodiments, referring to FIG. 20, in addition to the filtering segment 21, it further includes the supporting segment and/or the cooling segment 22. The supporting segment and/or the cooling segment 22 are arranged between the aerosol generating substrate 10 and the filtering segment 21.

The cooling segment 22 is used for cooling the aerosols before the filtering segment 21 filters the aerosols, so as to reduce the temperature of the aerosols and improve the situation that “the mouth feels hot” when the user inhales the aerosols.

The material of the cooling segment 22 includes, but is not limited to, one or a combination of more of PE (polyethylene), PLA (polylactic acid, also known as polylactide), PBAT (butyleneadipate-co-terephthalate), PP (polypropylene), acetate fiber, and propylene fiber materials. The material of the filtering segment includes, but is not limited to, one or a combination of more of PE (polyethylene), PLA (polylactic acid, also known as polylactide), PBAT (butyleneadipate-co-terephthalate), PP (polypropylene), acetate fiber, and propylene fiber materials.

The materials of the cooling segment 22 and the filtering segment may be the same or different.

The supporting segment has certain structural strength and plays a role of axially limiting the aerosol generating substrate 10.

Specifically, when the aerosol generating article 100 is inserted into a heating chamber 200a of an aerosol generating device 200, or when a heating element is inserted into the aerosol generating substrate 10, the supporting segment provides a reaction force to the aerosol generating substrate 10, so as to prevent the aerosol generating substrate 10 from moving axially.

The specific components of the aerosol generating substrate 10 are not limited here. Exemplarily, in an embodiment, the aerosol generating substrate 10 may include a plant component, an auxiliary component, an aerosol generating agent component, a binder component, and the like.

In an embodiment, the plant component is one or a combination of more of powder formed by crushing tobacco raw materials, tobacco leaf fragments, tobacco stems, tobacco dust, fragrant plants, and the like. The plant component is used for generating aerosols containing alkaloids when heated.

In an embodiment, the auxiliary component may be one or a combination of more of an inorganic filler, a lubricant, and an emulsifier. The inorganic filler includes one or a combination of more of heavy calcium carbonate, light calcium carbonate, zeolite, attapulgite, talc powder, and diatomite. The inorganic filler can provide skeleton support for the plant component. At the same time, the inorganic filler also has micropores, which can increase the porosity of the wall material after the formation of the plant component, thus improving the aerosol release rate.

The lubricant includes one or a combination or more of candle wax, Brazilian palm wax, shellac, sunflower wax, rice bran, beeswax, stearic acid, and palmitic acid. The lubricant can increase the fluidity of granules, reduce the friction between the granules, make the overall density of the granules more uniform, also reduce the pressure required for molding, and reduce the mold wear.

The emulsifier includes one or a combination of more of polyglycerol fatty acid esters, Tween-80, and polyvinyl alcohol. The emulsifier can to some extent slow down the loss of flavor substances during storage, increase the stability of the flavor substances, and improve the sensory quality of the product.

In an embodiment, the function of the aerosol generating agent component is to generate a large amount of aerosol when heated, thus increasing the aerosol amount of the aerosol generating article. The aerosol generating agent may include, for example, one or a combination of more of monohydric alcohols (such as menthol); polyols (such as propylene glycol, triethylene glycol, 1,3-butanediol, and glycerol); esters of polyols (such as glycerol monoacetate, glycerol diacetate, or glyceryl triacetate); monocarboxylic acids; polycarboxylic acids (such as lauric acid and myristic acid) or fatty esters of polycarboxylic acids (such as dimethyl dodecanedioate, dimethyl tetradecanedioate, erythritol, 1,3-butanediol, tetraethylene glycol, triethyl citrate, propylene carbonate, ethyl laurate, triactin, racemic erythritol, glycerol diacetate mixture, diethyl octanoate, triethyl citrate, benzyl benzoate, benzyl phenylacetate, ethyl vanillate, glyceryl tributyrate, and lauryl acetate).

In an embodiment, the binder component is a natural plant extract and non-ionized modified viscous polysaccharide, including one or a combination of more of tamarind polysaccharide, pullulan polysaccharide, seaweed polysaccharide, locust bean gum, guar gum, and xyloglucan. The binder is used for bonding the granules together, so that they are not easily loose. In addition, the water resistance of the aerosol generating substrate 10 is improved, the aerosol generating substrate is harmless to the human body, and has certain health-care effect.

In some embodiments, referring to FIG. 18, the airways 10a pass through the same end of the aerosol generating substrate 10 along the length direction, and the other end is a closed end.

In some other embodiments, referring to FIG. 19, some of the airways 10a pass through one end of the aerosol generating substrate 10 along the length direction, while the other airways 10a pass through the other end of the aerosol generating substrate 10 along the length direction.

In yet some other embodiments, referring to FIG. 4 to FIG. 13, each airway 10a passes through the two ends of the aerosol generating substrate 10 along the length direction. It can be understood that compared with the airway 10a passing through one end of the aerosol generating substrate 10 along the length direction, the airway 10a passing through the two ends of the aerosol generating substrate 10 along the length direction is more conducive to reducing the RTD when the user inhales the aerosols.

Exemplarily, referring to FIG. 4 to FIG. 13, the aerosol generating substrate 10 is cylindrical, that is, on a plane perpendicular to the length direction of the aerosol generating substrate 10, the cross-sectional profile of the aerosol generating substrate 10 is approximately circular. The cylindrical aerosol generating substrate 10 has a regular shape, thus reducing the difficulty of the manufacturing process.

The number of the airways 10a is not limited, and may be one, two, or more than two.

Exemplarily, referring to FIG. 7, the number of the airways 10a is more than one, the wall thickness of a substrate wall between two adjacent airways 10a is D, and the range of D is 0.1 mm to 2.5 mm.

In a case that D is less than 0.1 mm, the mass of the aerosol generating substrate 10 is small, the aerosol release time is short, and the aerosol generating substrate 10 is prone to burning. In addition, the aerosol generating substrate 10 is prone to non-uniform aerosol release in the heating process (for example, the aerosol release amount at the first two puffs is large, while the aerosol release amount at the last few puffs is small), thus affecting the user experience during inhaling. In addition, the supportability of the aerosol generating substrate 10 is poor, and the yield rate during the manufacturing of the aerosol generating substrate 10 is low.

In a case that D is greater than 2.5 mm, the mass of the aerosol generating substrate 10 is large, and the heating rate of the aerosol generating substrate 10 is slow, which is not conducive to aerosol release and affects the user experience during inhaling. Therefore, in this embodiment, a wall thickness range of the substrate wall between two adjacent airways 10a should be set to 0.1 mm to 2.5 mm.

Preferably, the wall thickness range of the substrate wall between two adjacent airways 10a is 0.1 mm to 1.5 mm.

Exemplarily, referring to FIG. 4 to FIG. 6, the wall thickness between the airway 10a and the outer sidewall of the aerosol generating substrate 10 is L, that is, the wall thickness of the substrate wall between the inner sidewall of the airway 10a and the outer sidewall of the aerosol generating substrate 10 is L, and the range of L is 0.1 mm to 3.5 mm.

In a case that L is less than 0.1 mm, the mass of the aerosol generating substrate 10 is small, the aerosol release time is short, and the aerosol generating substrate 10 is prone to burning. In addition, the aerosol generating substrate 10 is prone to non-uniform aerosol release in the heating process (for example, the aerosol release amount at the first two puffs is large, while the aerosol release amount at the last few puffs is small), thus affecting the user experience during inhaling. In addition, the supportability of the aerosol generating substrate 10 is poor, and the yield rate during the manufacturing of the aerosol generating substrate 10 is low.

In a case that L is greater than 3.5 mm, the mass of the aerosol generating substrate 10 is large, and the heating rate of the aerosol generating substrate 10 is slow, which is not conducive to aerosol release and affects the user experience during inhaling. Therefore, in this embodiment, the wall thickness range of the substrate wall between adjacent two airways 10a should be set to 0.1 mm to 3.5 mm.

Preferably, the wall thickness range of the substrate wall between the hole wall of the airway 10a and the outer sidewall of the aerosol generating substrate 10 is 0.15 mm to 1.5 mm.

In an embodiment, referring to FIG. 1 to FIG. 27, at least one of the inside of the aerosol generating substrate 10 and the outer sidewall of the aerosol generating substrate 10 is provided with the airway 10a.

Referring to FIG. 4 to FIG. 18, as shown in FIG. 4 to FIG. 18, the airway 10a may be provided only inside the aerosol generating substrate 10, that is, the inlet and outlet of the airway 10a can be respectively seen from the two opposite ends of the aerosol generating substrate 10 along the length direction. However, the airway 10a cannot be seen from the side surface of the aerosol generating substrate 10, and equivalently a hole-like airway 10a may be provided inside the aerosol generating substrate 10.

Of course, the airway 10a may also be provided only in the outer sidewall of the aerosol generating substrate 10, that is, the outer sidewall of the aerosol generating substrate 10 is partially recessed to form the airway 10a, equivalently a groove-shaped airway 10a may be seen on the outer sidewall of the aerosol generating substrate 10, and the groove-shaped airway 10a cooperates with the outer wrapping layer 30 to form an airflow channel located outside of aerosol generating substrate 10 (referring to FIG. 3).

Referring to FIG. 19 to FIG. 21, as shown in FIG. 19 to FIG. 21, the airways 10a may also be respectively provided inside the aerosol generating substrate 10 and in the outer sidewall of the aerosol generating substrate 10 at the same time.

The section of the airway 10a perpendicular to the length direction of the aerosol generating substrate 10 is the cross section of the airway 10a. The shape of the cross section of the airway 10a provided inside the aerosol generating substrate 10 is not limited. Exemplarily, the shape of the cross section of the airway 10a provided inside the aerosol generating substrate 10 may be a circular shape as shown in FIG. 7, may be a polygonal shape such as a triangular shape as shown in FIG. 10 and FIG. 14, a square shape as shown in FIG. 8 and FIG. 13, a regular pentagonal shape as shown in FIG. 11, a regular hexagonal shape as shown in FIG. 12, and a prismatic shape as shown in FIG. 9, or may be an elliptical shape, a runway shape, or a special shape.

The runway shape refers to a shape similar to an athletics track, which is composed of two semicircles and two parallel straight sides alternately connected.

Similarly, the shape of the cross section of the airway 10a provided in the outer sidewall of the aerosol generating substrate 10 is not limited. Exemplarily, in some embodiments, the shape of the cross section of the airway 10a provided in the outer sidewall of the aerosol generating substrate 10 may be a semicircular shape as shown in the figure, or may be a semi-elliptical shape, a polygonal shape, or a special shape.

In some other embodiments, the shape of the cross section of the airway 10a provided in the outer sidewall of the aerosol generating substrate 10 is the same as the local shape of the cross section of the airway 10a provided inside the aerosol generating substrate 10. In the molding process, the same mold for the airways 10a may be used for forming grooves as the airways 10a, thus facilitating the mold design, reducing the mold costs, and lowering the production costs.

In yet some other embodiments, referring to FIG. 22 to FIG. 25, the shape of the cross section of at least part of the outermost airways 10a provided inside the aerosol generating substrate 10 is the same as the local shape of the cross section of the inner airway 10a provided in the aerosol generating substrate 10, that is, along the radial direction of the aerosol generating substrate 10, the shape of the cross section of at least part of the outermost airways 10a away from the center of the aerosol generating substrate 10 is the same as the local shape of the cross section of any other airway 10a provided inside the aerosol generating substrate 10. In the molding process, the same mold for the airways 10a may be used for forming grooves as the airways 10a, thus facilitating the mold design, reducing the mold costs, and lowering the production costs. In a specific embodiment, referring to FIG. 25, along the radial direction of the aerosol generating substrate 10, except for the outermost row of airways 10a, the cross sections of the other airways 10a are regular hexagonal holes in a honeycomb-shaped distribution. Since the manufacturing is achieved through extrusion molds, edge molds cooperate with circumferential molds to form the cross section of the outermost airway 10a provided inside the aerosol generating substrate 10. The shape of the cross section of the outermost airway 10a is a local part of the regular hexagonal hole. This shape is similar to a trapezoidal shape. The side of this shape close the outer sidewall of the aerosol generating substrate 10 is an arc.

In addition, in a case that multiple airways 10a are provided inside the aerosol generating substrate 10, the shapes of the cross sections of the airways 10a may be the same, or the shapes of the cross sections of at least two airways 10a may be different. For example, the shape of the cross section of at least one airway 10a may be a circular shape, and the shape of the cross section of at least one airway 10a may be a polygonal shape.

In addition, in a case that multiple airways 10a are provided in the outer sidewall of the aerosol generating substrate 10, the shapes of the cross sections of the airways 10a may be the same, or the shapes of the cross sections of at least two airways 10a may be different. For example, the shape of the cross section of at least one airway 10a may be a semicircular shape, and the shape of the cross section of at least one airway 10a may be a polygonal shape.

Providing the airway 10a inside the aerosol generating substrate 10 can increase the internal surface area of the aerosol generating substrate 10, improve the heating efficiency, and improve the user experience during inhaling.

Providing the airway 10a in the outer sidewall of the aerosol generating substrate 10 can increase the external surface area of the aerosol generating substrate 10. In addition to improving the heating efficiency and improving the user experience during inhaling, it is also conducive to the extraction of effective components. In addition, in a case that the heating component is circumferential heating, the overall heating rate of the aerosol generating substrate 10 can also be adjusted through this heating method, thus further improving the user experience.

Providing the airways 10a both inside the aerosol generating substrate 10 and in the outer sidewall of the aerosol generating substrate 10 can simultaneously increase the internal surface area and the external surface area of the aerosol generating substrate 10. Compared with providing the airway 10a only inside the aerosol generating substrate 10 or providing the airway 10a only in the outer sidewall of the aerosol generating substrate 10, a better effect can be achieved.

In an embodiment, the area of the cross section of the airway 10a provided inside the aerosol generating substrate 10 is 0.0019 mm² to 30 mm². For example, it may be 0.002 mm², 0.1 mm², 0.2 mm², 0.4 mm², 0.5 mm², 0.8 mm², 1 mm², 1.3 mm², 1.6 mm², 1.8 mm², 2 mm², 2.1 mm², 2.2 mm², 2.4 mm², 2.6 mm², 2.8 mm², 3 mm², 4 mm², 5 mm², 6 mm², and the like.

In a case that the area of the cross section of the airway 10a provided inside the aerosol generating substrate 10 is greater than 30 mm², the mass of the aerosol generating substrate 10 is small, the aerosol release time is short, and the aerosol generating substrate 10 is prone to burning. In addition, the aerosol generating substrate 10 is prone to non-uniform aerosol release in the heating process (for example, the aerosol release amount at the first two puffs is large, while the aerosol release amount at the last few puffs is small), thus affecting the user experience during inhaling.

In a case that the area of the cross section of the airway 10a provided inside the aerosol generating substrate 10 is less than 0.0019 mm², it is not conducive to aerosol release, and the overall RTD of the aerosol generating substrate 10 is large, thus reducing the user experience. In addition, it may significantly increase the difficulty of the molding process, make it difficult to control the size of the airway 10a, and increase the defect rate of the aerosol generating substrate 10.

It can be understood that the area of the cross section of the airway 10a has the function of regulating the flow rate and RTD of the aerosols. In a case that the area of the cross section of the airway 10a provided inside the aerosol generating substrate 10 is set within the range of 0.0019 mm² to 30 mm², the flow resistance of the aerosol generating substrate 10 is relatively small (that is, the RTD is relatively small), the flow rate of the aerosols is appropriate, the aerosols inside the aerosol generating substrate 10 can be easily extracted, the aerosols can be released uniformly, the utilization rate is higher, the aerosol generating substrate 10 is less prone to burning, the user experience is better, and the manufacturing is facilitated.

Preferably, the area of the cross section of the airway 10a provided inside the aerosol generating substrate 10 is 0.007 mm² to 7.1 mm².

In an embodiment, the area of the cross section of the airway 10a provided in the outer sidewall of the aerosol generating substrate 10 is 0.001 mm² to 55 mm².

In a case that the area of the cross section of the airway 10a provided in the outer sidewall of the aerosol generating substrate 10 is greater than 55 mm², the mass of the aerosol generating substrate 10 is small, the aerosol release time is short, and the aerosol generating substrate 10 is prone to non-uniform aerosol release in the heating process (for example, the aerosol release amount at the first two puffs is large, while the aerosol release amount at the last few puffs is small), thus affecting the user experience during inhaling and making it inconvenient to manufacture.

In a case that the area of the cross section of the airway 10a provided in the outer sidewall of the aerosol generating substrate 10 is less than 0.001 mm², the aerosol flow resistance of the outer airway 10a is large, which is not conducive to the extraction of the aerosols from the outer edge of the aerosol generating substrate 10, causing low substrate utilization rate.

Preferably, the area of the cross section of the airway 10a provided inside the aerosol generating substrate 10 is 0.003 mm² to 15 mm².

In the embodiment where the inside of the aerosol generating substrate 10 is provided with multiple airways 10a, the arrangement of the airways 10a is not limited.

The airways 10a may be formed in the aerosol generating substrate 10 in a uniform distribution manner, or may be formed in the aerosol generating substrate 10 in a non-uniform distribution manner.

“Uniform distribution” of the airways 10a includes that the airways 10a are in matrix or concentric distribution, that is, the arrangement of the airways 10a is uniform. It can be understood that the airways 10a may not be uniformly distributed within the cross section of the aerosol generating substrate 10, that is to say, the airways 10a are uniformly distributed, but the airways 10a do not uniformly divide the entire aerosol generating substrate 10. For example, in a case that the cross section of the aerosol generating substrate 10 is circular, the airways 10a in matrix distribution are not uniformly distributed within the circular cross section.

In an embodiment, referring to FIG. 7 to FIG. 21, the inside of the aerosol generating substrate 10 is provided with multiple airways 10a, and the multiple airways 10a may be distributed on multiple trajectory lines. The airways 10a on a single trajectory line are linearly arranged along a first direction, the multiple trajectory lines are arranged along a second direction, and the first direction and the second direction are not in parallel. The first direction and the second direction form a planar two-dimensional coordinate system, and the arrangement of the airways 10a can be defined by the first direction and the second direction. That is to say, the airways 10a have a special arrangement pattern, thus facilitating the manufacturing of each airway 10a according to a predetermined arrangement pattern in the molding process.

Exemplarily, the airways 10a on a single trajectory line are equidistantly arranged. Equidistant arrangement refers to that the distances between the hole centers of every two adjacent airways 10a are equal. In this way, the shapes and sizes of partition walls between every two adjacent airways 10a are approximately and respectively the same. Therefore, in the heating and inhaling process, the uniformity of the aerosols released from the aerosol generating substrate 10 can be improved, the uniformity of aerosol transmission and heating is facilitated, and thus the user experience during inhaling can be improved. That is to say, the aerosol generating substrate 10 provided in the embodiment of this application can improve the user experience.

The first direction may be a straight line or a curve, and the second direction may be a straight line or a curve.

Exemplarily, the airways 10a on a single trajectory line may be linearly arranged along the first direction, while the multiple trajectory lines may be arranged in the second direction perpendicular to the first direction. That is to say, the multiple airways 10a may be arranged in a matrix shape as shown in FIG. 7 and FIG. 8, or may be arranged in a grid shape as shown in FIG. 9.

Exemplarily, referring to FIG. 13 and FIG. 15 to FIG. 18, the airways 10a on a single trajectory line may be arranged along a circumferential direction surrounding the center of the aerosol generating substrate 10, and the multiple trajectory lines may be concentrically arranged along the radial direction of the aerosol generating substrate 10.

The circumferential direction surrounding the center of the aerosol generating substrate 10 is equivalent to the first direction, and the radial direction of the aerosol generating substrate 10 is equivalent to the second direction, that is, the multiple airways 10a may be arranged in a ring shape.

Continuously referring to FIG. 7 to FIG. 14 and FIG. 19 to FIG. 21, the airways 10a on the multiple trajectory lines may be formed in the aerosol generating substrate 10 in a uniform distribution manner, that is to say, the airways 10a are the same, the airways 10a on a single trajectory line are equidistantly arranged, and the multiple trajectory lines are also equidistantly arranged.

Uniformly distributing the airways 10a can make the mass per unit volume of the aerosol generating substrate 10 in regions provided with the multiple trajectory lines relatively uniform. Therefore, in the heating and inhaling process, the uniformity of the aerosols released from the aerosol generating substrate 10 can be better improved, thus improving the inhaling consistency.

In some other embodiments, the airways 10a on the multiple trajectory lines may also be non-uniformly distributed. The non-uniformly distributed airways 10a, when combined with different heating methods, can achieve the uniform heating of the aerosol generating substrate 10 and the consistency of the aerosols inhaled at the first few puffs and the last few puffs.

In an embodiment, the airways 10a on a single trajectory line are repeatedly arranged. Repeated arrangement refers to that the airways 10a of the same row of airways 10a are completely the same. The apertures of the airways 10a on each trajectory line may gradually increase radially outward along the aerosol generating substrate 10, that is to say, the apertures of the airways 10a on different trajectory lines are different. The farther away from the center of the aerosol generating substrate 10, the larger the aperture of the airway 10a. Exemplarily, referring to FIG. 15, taking the multiple trajectory lines arranged in a ring shape as an example, the apertures of the airways 10a may gradually increase from the airways 10a on the first trajectory line close to the center of the aerosol generating substrate 10 to the airways 10a on the last trajectory line away from the center of the aerosol generating substrate 10. Of course, in other embodiments, the airways 10a may also be arranged in a matrix shape, and the apertures of the airways 10a on each trajectory line may gradually increase radially outward along the aerosol generating substrate 10.

In an embodiment, the airways 10a on a single trajectory line are repeatedly arranged, and the distance between the airways 10a on two adjacent trajectory lines may gradually decrease radially outward along the aerosol generating substrate 10. That is to say, the multiple trajectory lines are non-equidistantly arranged. The farther away from the center of the aerosol generating substrate 10, the smaller the wall thickness of the partition wall between two adjacent trajectory lines. Exemplarily, referring to FIG. 17, taking the multiple trajectory lines arranged in a ring shape as an example, the wall thicknesses of the partition walls between the airways 10a on two adjacent trajectory lines may gradually decrease from the airways 10a on the first trajectory line close to the center of the aerosol generating substrate 10 to the airways 10a on the last trajectory line away from the center of the aerosol generating substrate 10. Of course, in other embodiments, the airways 10a may also be arranged in a matrix shape, and the wall thicknesses of the partition walls between the airways 10a on two adjacent trajectory lines may gradually decrease radially outward along the aerosol generating substrate 10.

For both the aerosol generating substrate 10 where the farther away from the center of the aerosol generating substrate 10, the larger the aperture of the airway 10a, and the aerosol generating substrate 10 where the farther away from the center of the aerosol generating substrate 10, the smaller the distance between two adjacent rows of airways 10a, the closer to the center region of the aerosol generating substrate 10, the larger the mass per unit volume of the aerosol generating substrate 10. In a case that these two types of aerosol generating substrate 10 are combined with the central heating method, the time required for heat to be transferred from the inside to the outside is longer, thus prolonging the time for the outer sidewall of the aerosol generating substrate 10 to be heated, improving the uniformity of the aerosols released from the aerosol generating substrate 10, increasing the inhaling duration and the number of puffs, maintaining the consistency of aerosol release, and providing a comfortable inhaling experience to the user.

In an embodiment, the airways 10a on a single trajectory line are repeatedly arranged, and the apertures of the airways 10a on each trajectory line may gradually decrease radially outward along the aerosol generating substrate 10, that is to say, the apertures of the airways 10a on different trajectory lines are different. The farther away from the center of the aerosol generating substrate 10, the smaller the aperture of the airway 10a. Exemplarily, referring to FIG. 16, taking the multiple trajectory lines arranged in a ring shape as an example, the apertures of the airways 10a may gradually decrease from the airways 10a on the first trajectory line close to the center of the aerosol generating substrate 10 to the airways 10a on the last trajectory line away from the center of the aerosol generating substrate 10. Of course, in other embodiments, the airways 10a may also be arranged in a matrix shape, and the apertures of the airways 10a on each trajectory line may gradually decrease radially outward along the aerosol generating substrate 10.

In an embodiment, the airways 10a on a single trajectory line are repeatedly arranged, and the distance between the airways 10a on two adjacent trajectory lines may gradually increase radially outward along the aerosol generating substrate 10. That is to say, the airways 10a on the multiple trajectory lines are non-equidistantly arranged. The farther away from the center of the aerosol generating substrate 10, the larger the wall thicknesses of the partition walls between the airways 10a on two adjacent trajectory lines. Exemplarily, referring to FIG. 18, taking the multiple trajectory lines arranged in a ring shape as an example, the wall thicknesses of the partition walls between the airways 10a on two adjacent trajectory lines may gradually increase from the airways 10a on the first trajectory line close to the center of the aerosol generating substrate 10 to the airways 10a on the last trajectory line away from the center of the aerosol generating substrate 10. Of course, in other embodiments, the airways 10a may also be arranged in a matrix shape, and the wall thicknesses of the partition walls between the airways 10a on two adjacent trajectory lines may gradually increase radially outward along the aerosol generating substrate 10.

For both the aerosol generating substrate 10 where the farther away from the center of the aerosol generating substrate 10, the smaller the aperture of the airway 10a, and the aerosol generating substrate 10 where the farther away from the center of the aerosol generating substrate 10, the larger the distance between two adjacent rows of airways 10a, the closer to the outer sidewall of the aerosol generating substrate 10, the larger the mass per unit volume of the aerosol generating substrate 10. In a case that these two types of aerosol generating substrate 10 are combined with the circumferential heating method, the time required for heat to be transferred from the outside to the inside is longer, thus prolonging the time for the center of the aerosol generating substrate 10 to be heated, improving the uniformity of the aerosols released from the aerosol generating substrate 10, increasing the inhaling duration/the number of puffs, maintaining the consistency of aerosol release, and providing a comfortable inhaling experience to the user.

The non-uniform distribution of the airways 10a on the multiple trajectory lines is not limited to the above four modes. Various adjustments may be made as needed. For example, the spacing between the airways 10a on a single trajectory line may be changed, the shapes of the cross sections of the airways 10a in different rows may be changed, or the embodiment of changing aperture may be combined with the embodiment of changing spacing.

In an embodiment, the multiple airways 10a provided inside the aerosol generating substrate 10 may also be randomly distributed. Among the multiple airways 10a that are randomly distributed, the shapes of the cross sections of the airways 10a may be the same, or the shapes of the cross sections of at least two airways 10a may be different. Similarly, the apertures of the airways 10a may be the same, or the apertures of at least two airways 10a may be different.

In addition, for the aerosol generating substrate 10 provided with the multiple airways 10a inside, whether adopting the arrangement method of multiple trajectory lines or the arrangement method of random distribution, in an embodiment, referring to FIG. 7 to FIG. 14, the airways 10a may be distributed in various regions inside the aerosol generating substrate 10, that is to say, almost every region inside the aerosol generating substrate 10 is provided with the airways 10a, and there is no region without airways 10a (FIG. 7 to FIG. 14 do not consider a small circular region close to the outer sidewall of the aerosol generating substrate 10 where no airways 10a are provided).

In another embodiment, referring to FIG. 26 and FIG. 27, the inside of the aerosol generating substrate 10 is provided with a first region 10b and a second region 10c. The airways 10a may be distributed in the first region 10b, that is to say, the airways 10a may be provided only in the first region 10b, while no airways 10a are provided in the second region 10c. The number and location of the first region 10b and the second region 10c may be determined as needed, which are not limited here.

While the invention has been illustrated and described in detail in the drawings and foregoing description, such illustration and description are to be considered illustrative or exemplary and not restrictive. It will be understood that changes and modifications may be made by those of ordinary skill within the scope of the following claims. In particular, the present invention covers further embodiments with any combination of features from different embodiments described above and below. Additionally, statements made herein characterizing the invention refer to an embodiment of the invention and not necessarily all embodiments.

The terms used in the claims should be construed to have the broadest reasonable interpretation consistent with the foregoing description. For example, the use of the article “a” or “the” in introducing an element should not be interpreted as being exclusive of a plurality of elements. Likewise, the recitation of “or” should be interpreted as being inclusive, such that the recitation of “A or B” is not exclusive of “A and B,” unless it is clear from the context or the foregoing description that only one of A and B is intended. Further, the recitation of “at least one of A, B and C” should be interpreted as one or more of a group of elements consisting of A, B and C, and should not be interpreted as requiring at least one of each of the listed elements A, B and C, regardless of whether A, B and C are related as categories or otherwise. Moreover, the recitation of “A, B and/or C” or “at least one of A, B or C” should be interpreted as including any singular entity from the listed elements, e.g., A, any subset from the listed elements, e.g., A and B, or the entire list of elements A, B and C.