How does puffing on a joint/ cigarette keep it burning?
In: 5
Fire requires oxygen
Oxygen is in the air
Puffing draws air through the joint/cig, thus bringing oxygen to the flame
You draw in fresh oxygen from the surrounding and and actively pull the hot combustion gases over unburnt tobacco fuel causing it to vaporize and ignite. It works similar to blowing on an open fire, but in a more directed fashion with less cooling effect.
Drawing air across a burning ember adds oxygen to the reaction and moves it towards the fresher unburnt fuel. Any combustion in too-stagnant air will eventually burn itself out. It doesn’t usually happen that way with bigger fires because the extra heat lets it spread on its own, and means convection refreshes the airflow. But small enough instances like the lit end of a cigarette might be so slow-burning that they need a little help to keep going.
When you suck on the cigarette, you are pulling air into the flame and the burning tobacco/paper. This increases the oxygen available to the flame, so it flares up a bit.
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