[Chemical and biological characterization of electrofilter dusts of a waste incinerator. 1. Comparison of different extraction methods for organic dust contents and their mutagenicity].

Particles collected by electrostatic precipitation from a municipal waste incinerator were used to study sample extraction methods for the mutagenicity bioassay. The Ames-Salmonella typhimurium plate incorporation method with tester strain TA 100 was employed. A series of organic solvents with different polarities was employed to identify the most efficient solvent for removing mutagens from the ashes: Soxhlet extraction with toluene and pretreatment with diluted HCl; Soxhlet extraction with toluene following 2-ethoxy-ethanol; reflux extraction with toluene: 2-ethoxy-ethanol: HCl conc.; Soxhlet extraction with dichloromethane. The results demonstrate that the amount of extractable mass correlates with the polarity of the solvents; however, the extractable mass did not correlate with the mutagenic activity of the extracts. The Soxhlet extraction with toluene and pretreatment with diluted HCl proved to be the best method for the extraction of mutagenic compounds present in particles collected by electrostatic precipitation from municipal waste incinerators, although it does not remove the maximum amount of extractable organic matter from the particles.