Polymorphs of Nicotine Salts

Novel crystalline polymorphs of nicotine salts with tunable properties and potential for use as sublimated products

Background:

Nicotine salts such as those used in e-cigarettes (i.e. vaping devices) deliver nicotine to users similar to the way a traditional cigarette does and are easier to inhale than freebase nicotine. The nicotine salts used in the leading vaping device are provided as a liquid, requiring refrigeration and dark storage. Efforts to both improve their safety and address their handling and storage issues have led to the preparation of crystalline (i.e. solid) forms of nicotine salts that offer purity levels that cannot be matched by non-crystalline formulations.

Technology Overview:

Using coformers that are Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS), chemists at the University at Buffalo have developed methods to synthesize known and novel crystalline polymorphs of nicotine salts that also degrade into GRAS-listed products. These polymorphs have been shown to provide superior thermal- and photo-stability in comparison with pure (S)-nicotine. Further, the properties of these nicotine materials can be tuned depending on the desired form factor (i.e. solid, liquid, snus, gum, patch, lozenges, etc.) and appear to enable use as a sublimated product, thus eliminating the requirement for liquid/vape "juice", which should also avoid concerns with microbial growth and contamination. Overall, these nicotine materials appear to be more stable, more versatile and potentially less harmful than current offerings, and may provide a solution to favorably address many of the issues currently plaguing the vaping market.