Abstract: In order to investigate the variations of lead(Pb)and cadmium(Cd)contents during the production of paper-making reconstituted tobacco,an analytical method based on wet digestion-graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry to quantify the Pb and Cd contents in a series of samples was developed by optimizing wet digestion system,ashing temperature and atomization temperature. The transfer patterns of Pb and Cd during the production of paper-making reconstituted tobacco were also studied using the method. The results showed that: 1)The optimized acid digestion systems for Pb and Cd in the samples were 5 mL HNO₃ and 1 mL H₂O₂,the ashing temperatures for Pb and Cd were 850℃ and 500℃ ,respectively,and the atomization temperatures at 1600℃ and 1500℃,respectively. 2)The detection limits of Pb and Cd were 0.24 and 0.028 μg/L with the relative standard deviations(RSDs)less than 5%, and the recoveries in the ranges of 96.1%-108.1% and 91.4%-108.9%,respectively. 3) In the raw tobacco materials,tobacco dust contributed more Pb and Cd to the concentrated liquid than tobacco stem did. The Pb in paper base was mainly from raw materials and fillers,while the Cd in paper base was mainly from raw materials. The addition of modulation liquid reduced the Pb and Cd contents in the formulation liquid,however the reuse of coating liquid increased the Pb content in the coating liquid. Furthermore,during the process of extraction,Pb and Cd entered were more from the liquid materials than those from the solid materials.