Abstract: A process for making a cohesive tobacco composition in which tobacco pectins within the tobacco itself serve as the binder by contacting dry tobacco particles with a solution, which contains an agent to destroy the alkaline earth metal cross-links of the tobacco pectins, under a high shear condition. A reconstituted tobacco sheet is made by forming the resulting mixture into a sheet and drying. In one embodiment ammonia and tobacco volatiles contained in vapors from the sheet drying step are recovered and recycled into the solution.

Abstract: A method of producing a smokable material having reduced particulate matter, particularly tar, nicotine and puff count, while still maintaining the desirable characteristics of a smoking material is disclosed. The method comprises pyrolyzing a carbohydrate material to a weight loss of at least 10%, forming a slurry of tobacco-parts, adding the pyrolyzed carbohydrate material to the slurry, homogenizing the slurry and processing the resultant product to a form desired for the smoking material. The smokable material obtained by such method is also described.