The researchers studied what makes tobacco burn easily. They found that the best way to measure how well tobacco burns is by looking at how long it burns and how much is burnt. Different minerals in tobacco affect how easily it burns, with potassium having a positive effect. The amount of organic substances in tobacco and how tightly packed the leaves are also play a role in how well it burns. By looking at all these factors together, they came up with a new way to measure how easily tobacco burns.