Pyrolyses of tobacco dust were performed in a thermogravimetric analyser from room temperature to 1000 K, at heating rates of 10, 30, 50, 70 and 100 K min(-1). The global mass loss during tobacco dust pyrolysis was modelled by a combination of a volatile evolution of four independent, parallel, mass-loss events for moisture and for non-moisture volatiles. The decomposition corresponding to each mass-loss event was characterized by a single reaction, first-order with respect to the amount of volatile yet to evolve. The evolution of non-moisture, volatile mass-loss events is attributed to the decomposition of hemicellulose, cellulose and lignin. In spite of both the heterogeneous nature of tobacco dust and the assumed oversimplification (simple reaction, first order approach), the model proposed suitably predicts the global mass loss process of tobacco dust.