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Tobacco Control 2003; 12: 406-10 For full text, see www.tobaccocontrol.com
Hand rolling cigarette papers
as the reference point for regulating cigarette fire safety
M Laugesen1, M
Duncanson2, T Fraser3, V
McClellan4, B Linehan5 and R
Shirley6
1 Health New Zealand, Auckland, New Zealand
2 Wellington School of Medicine and Health Sciences,
University of Otago, Wellington, New Zealand
3 ASH NZ (Action on Smoking and Health), Auckland, New Zealand
4 Research and Evaluation Services, New Plymouth, New Zealand
5 Medlab, Hamilton, New Zealand
6 E-Lab, Hamilton, New Zealand
Correspondence to:
Murray Laugesen
PO Box 32099, Devonport, North Shore, Auckland 1330, New Zealand; laugesen@healthnz.co.nz
Received 19 May 2003 Accepted 9 September 2003
ABSTRACT
Aim: To compare the burning characteristics of the tobacco and
paper of manufactured and hand rolled cigarettes, and set a fire
safety standard of manufacture to largely reduce the fire risk
from discarded cigarettes.
Methods: (1) Cigarette extinction test of ignition strength:
40 cigarettes per brand, lit and placed on
15 layers of filter paper, in accordance with ASTM test
standard E2187-02. (2) Citrate extracted by 0.1N hydrochloric
acid from cigarette papers and from tobacco in manufactured
cigarettes, the supernatant analysed by
high performance liquid chromatography using ultraviolet visual
light spectrophotometer. (3) Survey of 750 nationally representative
adults age 18 years and over, by telephone, including 184
smokers.
Materials: (a) New Zealand made Holiday, and Horizon, and US
made Marlboro manufactured cigarettes; (b) US manufactured Merit
with banded paper; (c) Holiday, Horizon and Marlboro hand rolling
tobaccos, hand rolled in Rizla cigarette
papers; (d) manufactured cigarettes as in (a), reconstructed
using Rizla hand rolling cigarette
papers.
Results: 1. (a) For each brand of manufactured cigarettes,
40/40 burnt full length; (b) for Merit banded paper cigarettes
29/40 (73%) burnt full length; (c) for each brand of hand
rolled cigarettes 0/40 burnt full length; (d) 0/40
manufactured cigarettes reconstructed with Rizla
hand rolling paper burnt full length. 2. Citrate content: (a)
In manufactured cigarette papers: 0.3–0.8 mg; in tobacco
of manufactured cigarettes: Holiday 0, Horizon 0, Marlboro 8.8
mg; (b) Merit: in banded paper 0.418 mg; in tobacco 10.23 mg;
(c) In hand rolled cigarettes: in the papers < 0.08 mg; in
hand rolled tobacco 13.3–15.0 mg; (d) In hand rolling
papers of reconstructed cigarettes: < 0.018 mg. 3.
Requiring manufactured cigarettes to compulsorily self-extinguish when
left unattended was supported by 67% of smokers, 61% of manufactured
cigarette smokers, 82% of hand rolled smokers, and by 68% of
non-smokers.
Conclusion: The wrapping paper is a key determinant of whether
or not unpuffed cigarettes burn their
full length. Using international test methods, popular brands
of manufactured cigarettes all burnt full length, but none did
so when re-wrapped in hand rolling cigarette paper. This
provides a ready-to-hand smoker acceptable standard for
reducing ignition potential from manufactured cigarettes, as a
basis for regulation or litigation.
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