Heater Assembly With Tapered Heating Element For Aerosol Composition Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing aerosol-generating systems face challenges in controlling the vaporization of compounds with different boiling points, leading to undesirable interactions and changes in aerosol composition over time, as compounds with lower boiling points vaporize before or at a higher rate than those with higher boiling points, limiting the formation of desirable nicotine salts and affecting aerosol properties.
Innovation Solution
A heater assembly with a heating element formed from a band of material that progressively decreases in cross-sectional area along its length, creating a temperature gradient to simultaneously vaporize compounds with higher and lower boiling points at desirable rates and proportions, using a retention material with a fibrous or spongy structure to absorb the liquid substrate.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If a uniform heating element is used, then the heating element is simple to manufacture, but compounds with different boiling points vaporize at different rates causing inconsistent aerosol composition
Solution Approach 1:
The heating element incorporates zones with different cross-sectional areas along its length, creating local variations in heating characteristics. This allows different regions to vaporize compounds at different rates, ensuring simultaneous vaporization of compounds with different boiling points and maintaining consistent aerosol composition throughout the puff.
2Stability of the object's composition
If the heating element cross-sectional area is reduced along its length, then compounds with higher boiling points can be vaporized simultaneously with lower boiling point compounds, but the heating element becomes more complex to manufacture
Solution Approach 1:
The heating element's cross-sectional area parameter is varied along its length to create different heating zones. This geometric parameter change allows control over the temperature distribution, enabling simultaneous vaporization of compounds with different boiling points while maintaining a relatively simple elongated structure that can be manufactured through processes like extrusion or drawing.
3Productivity
If compounds are vaporized at different rates, then the vaporization process is simpler, but the aerosol properties change over time during a puff
Solution Approach 1:
Different zones of the heating element are designed with specific cross-sectional areas to vaporize different compounds at appropriate rates. This local optimization ensures that while vaporization occurs efficiently throughout the substrate, the overall aerosol composition remains consistent by balancing the contribution of each compound from its designated heating zone.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution ensures consistent generation of aerosols with desirable compositions by controlling the vaporization of compounds with different boiling points, maintaining predictable temperature gradients, and enhancing the formation of nicotine salts, thus providing a more stable aerosol output.
Implementation Method 1
a heating element configured to heat the retention material by passing a current along the length of the heating element
Implementation Method 2
compounds with lower boiling points may be vaporised before compounds with higher boiling points. Alternatively, or in addition, compounds with lower boiling points may be vaporised at a higher rate than compounds with higher boiling points
Implementation Method 3
a retention material with a fibrous or spongy structure to absorb the liquid substrate
Data Source
Figure 1
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AI summary
A heater assembly (300) for use in an aerosol-generating system (100) is provided. The heater assembly (300) comprises a liquid aerosol-forming substrate form comprising at least two compounds, wherein the first compound has a first boiling point and the second compound has a second boiling point. The heater assembly (300) comprises a retention material (302) containing the aerosol-forming substrate. The heater assembly also comprises a heating element (304) configured to heat the retention material by passing a current along the length of the heating element, wherein the heating element (304) is formed from a band of material, wherein the cross- sectional area of the band of material progressively decreases along a length of the band of material to provide a temperature gradient along a surface of the retention material (302).