Abstract
The objective of this contribution is to characterise the distribution of adhesive between the plug wrap paper and the tipping paper on a finished cigarette. On the one hand, it is well known that this distribution influences various properties of the cigarette, but on the other hand, there are no methods available to completely determine this distribution. The area covered by adhesive, the amount of adhesive, and the thickness and position of the adhesive layer between the plug wrap and the tipping paper were chosen as essential quantities. Image analysis was used to evaluate the area covered by adhesive, and the amount of adhesive between the papers. The thickness and position of the adhesive layer were determined by processing pictures of paper cross-sections obtained with a time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometer (TOF-SIMS).