Chinese Vape Company Patented 6MN Salt for E-cigs & Oral Products

According to China’s National Intellectual Property Administration, a patent for a 6MN salt formulation in oral products and electronic atomizing devices was granted to HG Innovation Limited, a Hong Kong company, which is also the brand owner of Lost Mary and Elfbar.

1. What is 6MN Salt?

6MN is short for 6-methylnicotine, an analogue of nicotine that shares a similar structure. Because of its chemical structure, 6MN may have similar effects to nicotine, hypothetically.

Pure nicotine (freebase nicotine) tastes harsh in high quantities. As a result, nicotine salt was invented to make vapes more flavorful despite the high nicotine strength. 6MN salt, which is 6-methylnicotine combined with an acid, might fulfil the same role.

In short, this patent gives HG Innovation exclusive control over a specific 6-MN salt technology in China.

2. 6MN VS Nixodine

(1) Similarity between 6MN and Nixodine

The one thing in common between 6-MN and Nixodine is that they are nicotine alternatives and are added to disposable vapes, e-liquid, and nicotine pouches.

Irresponsible claims are made by brand owners or distributors that products with 6-MN or nixodine are exempt from the Tobacco Control Act and not taxed.

(2) Differences between Nixodine and 6-MN

6-MN, short for 6-mythylnicotine, is a substance. On the contrary, Nixodine is not only a combination of substances but also a trademark. In short, vape manufacturers can produce 6MN vapes without extra cost. If they want to use Nixodine to name their disposable vapes or e-juice, they need to pay for the trademark as well as the raw ingredient so that nixodine vapes can carry the blue or white “N” logo.

3. How will 6-MN Salt impact the Vape Market?

(1) More Nicotine Analog Vapes Emerge

From an anonymous information source, vape brands operating in the United States need to pay Mipod for the use of the Nixodine trademark and symbol. Other manufacturers use made-up names of their own, like NIX or Nonic, to name their vapes. There will be more nicotine alternative vapes and fewer Nixodine vapes because of the herd effect.

For your reference, Lost Mary has rolled out the nixodine version, Lost Mary MT35000 Nixodine Edition, long ago and it’s possible that it will adopt the patented 6-MN in the near future. Lost Mary is owned by the patent holder, HG Innovation

(2) Higher Risks for Disposable Vape Users

Vapers who depend on single-use vapes might pick the wrong version accidentally, especially for those in Texas, Indiana, and other states with vape bans. It’s recommended to convert to refillable vapes, but e-liquid comes in nixodine too. If you want to avoid nixodine vapes, you can refer to my Nixodine vape list to find the ingredients and pictures of such products.

(3) Upcoming 6-Methyl Nicotine Bans

E-cigarettes with nicotine analogs are easily the next target of the FDA, not only because they are no different from nicotine vapes, but also because they are a type of product with unknown or little-known substances that could be addictive or harmful.

Although there might not be a Federal law that bans nicotine analogs, states are going to make laws to ban this substance. As of September 2026, nicotine analogues have been regulated in 3 states, including California, Illinois, and Nebraska. How easy will it be for other states to ban nicotine alternative vapes? It only takes an amendment to existing laws.

4. Is 6-MN Harmful?

The effects of 6-MN and 6-MN salt are little unknown. If they do have similar effects to nicotine as advertised, the nicotine analogue could be addictive and thus harmful.

Do you know whether 6-MN or 6-MN salt is harmful or addictive? There are only a few experiments, and they are limited in all aspects. Let’s take the experiments done by HG Innovation as an example.

The patent mentions 4 actual tests, and they are quite limited. Only the “suction taste test” mentions that there were merely 6 participants tested with ambiguous evaluation criteria, such as “smoothness” or “throat hit”. These two tests, in my opinion, only function as marketing tactics.

Safety tests, such as the BEAS-2B cell cytotoxicity test and Aerosol heavy-metal test, are also limited. They are not long-term tests and lack comparison groups, as pure 6-MN was not tested against 6-MN salt.

5. Summary

A Chinese vape manufacturer with a patent for a nicotine analogue doesn’t seem like a big deal at first sight. However, this company owns Elfbar and Lost Mary, the two most influential vape brands in the world. Vape manufacturers mimic each other’s designs every day. This could be a signal for other vape brands to replace their popular vapes with 6-MN salt or other nicotine analogues. I assume that there will be a nicotine analogue ban in at least one state, and I hope there won’t be a second wave of EVALI because of unknown substances added to disposable vapes.

6-MN/Nicotine Analog Related Questions