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Abstract
Many mutagenic PAHs and chlorinated PAHs were detected in the exhaust gas from municipal waste incineration plants by GC/MS after fractionation using column chromatography and HPLC. This was confirmed by experiments with an electric furnace where PAHs were chlorinated with HC1 gas at near 600 °C and were then chlorinated more effectively with chlorine gas in a wide range of temperatures. The mono‐ and di‐chlorinated PAHs which were found in the exhaust gas were synthesized in a laboratory and their Ames mutagenicity was tested. About half of the mono‐ and di‐chlorinated PAHs showed mutagenic activities. These, however, were a low levels and the mutagenic activities of the exhaust gas could not be explained by these compounds. On the other hand, the mutagenic activities of the exhaust gas increased with non‐volatile total organic halogen (NVTOX) in the exhaust gas. Therefore, it is estimated that polychlorinated PAHs with 3 or more chlorines, which could not be detected by GC/MS but could be estimated by NVTOX, contributed to the mutagenic activities of the exhaust gas.