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CORESTA Congress, Online, 2020, Smoke Science/Product Technology Groups, ST 30

Dokha tobaccos – does their chemistry follow their growth in popularity?

LAUTERBACH J.H.
Lauterbach & Associates, LLC, Macon, GA, U.S.A.

Dokha tobaccos reportedly are increasing in popularity. They are high-alkaloid Oriental tobaccos, grown under dry conditions in Middle Eastern countries and designed to be smoked in a narrow pipe known as a medwakh. However, they can also be smoked in a filter tube. They are typically sold with the designations of “Cold”, “Warm” and “Hot”, referring to their nicotine content. Some dokha tobaccos are added to shisha tobaccos to increase the nicotine content. However, little has been reported about their chemistry. Several samples of dokha tobacco were obtained from Internet-based retailers. Their chemical properties obtained using both routine chemical measurements (obtained from a commercial tobacco laboratory) and liquid chromatography analyses. Results were compared with those for the University of Kentucky RT3 Ground Oriental Research Tobacco. The following data (mean of two determinations) were obtained and presented in the order of RT3, “Cold”, “Warm”, and “Hot” and are on a dry-weight-basis. Alkaloids (nicotine): 0.63, 3.76, 7.08, 8.12; total sugars: 4.01, 6.92, 4.70, 4.51; reducing sugars: 3.44, 6.09, 4.37, 3.96; quick oven volatiles: 14.33, 12.97, 10.46, 10.21. Tobacco pH was determined using CORESTA Recommended Method (CRM) 69. Values were: 5.11, 4.72, 4.80, and 4.97. Two types of LC analyses were done. The first was based on polyphenol methods using 60/40 MeOH/H20 extraction of the tobacco followed by analyses on a 250 × 4.6 mm YMC Triart C18 column using several mobile-phase and UV-detection conditions. The results for the polyphenols showed much similarity between the RT3 and dokha tobaccos. The second was based on 87/13 ACN/H2O extraction followed by analyses of a Cogent Amide column with RI detection under conditions used for tobacco sugars. The main finding was the differences among the profiles for the dokha samples and the RT3. Smoke from the “Hot” dokha packed in a filter tube was very mild given its high nicotine content.