Mutagenicity assay of emission extracts from wood stoves: comparison with other emission parameters

The emission from wood stoves of several types of air pollutants has been measured under standardized burning conditions with emphasis on the amount of organic compounds and determination of the mutagenic activity with the Salmonella/microsome assay. The study corroborates earlier findings that conventional wood stoves can be a significant source of hydrocarbon and tar compounds in the ambient air. The emission of mutagenic compounds comprise both compounds requiring mammalian activation and compounds which are active in the test without exogenous activation. The mutagenicity tests show that nitroaromatic compounds are present in wood stove emissions, although the emission of nitrogen oxides is low. A wood stove constructed using the downdraft principle emitted much less hydrocarbons and tar, less mutagenic components and slightly less carbon monoxide than conventional wood stoves.