Fire Safe Cigarette

Fire Safe Cigarette

Fire safe cigarettes (abbreviated "FSC": also known as Lower Ignition Propensity, Reduced Fire Risk, self-extinguishing, fire-safe or Reduced Ignition Propensity cigarettes) are cigarettes that are designed to extinguish more quickly than standard cigarettes if ignored, with the intention of preventing accidental fires. In the United States, "FSC" above the barcode signifies that the cigarettes sold are Fire Standards Compliant (FSC).

Fire safe cigarettes are produced by adding two bands of the FSC chemical to the cigarette paper during manufacture in order to slow the burn rate at the bands. Because this process decreases the burn rate and does not prevent unattended cigarettes from igniting nearby materials or tinder, the term "fire-safe" has been called a misnomer which could lead smokers to believe that these cigarettes are less likely to cause fires than standard cigarettes.

Many materials can be used to make the bands in the paper, including cellulosic or other polymeric materials. Different companies use different materials (including thicker bands of paper) for the ‘speed bumps’ in order to comply with regulations. Most commercial cigarette papers in fact use cellulosic and alginate bands; however many patents have been registered in the literature in relation to materials that could be used to make the bands, including EVA polymer ethylene vinyl acetate. When burned, the polymer of EVA becomes unstable, and the health risks of inhalation are not known. EVA and PVA polyvinyl acetate polymer adhesives have been used by the tobacco industry for many years, and are the industry standards.

A similar quantity of PVA polymer is required to glue the paper seam in a fire safe cigarette as in a standard cigarette.

EVA polymer must not be confused with the EVA monomer, which is a reactive species with some toxic properties.