ANALYSIS OF FLY-ASH FROM MUNICIPAL INCINERATORS FOR TRACE ORGANIC-COMPOUNDS

Organic compounds present at trace levels were extracted from fly ash samples collected from municipal Incinerators in Japan, Canada, The Netherlands. Samples were extracted for 12 h in a Soxhlet apparatus with 200 mL of benzene. The extract was concentrated to 100 μL and analyzed by GC and GC/MS including selected ion monitoring. Mass spectra were used to assign identities to approximately 100 organic compounds including polychlorlnated dlbenzofurans, polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxlns, polychlorinated benzenes, polychlorinated phenols, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, phthalate esters, aliphatic hydrocarbons. Estimated concentrations of total organic mass extracted were 1 to 30 μg/g. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons were present at 1 to 500 ng/g of fly ash; the sum of tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin isomers was an estimated 2 to 10 ng/g. © 1979, American Chemical Society. All rights reserved.