Hirotaka Kudo

Determination and mutagenic activity of nitrogen-containing thiophenic compounds in coal-derived products

Abstract Polycyclic aromatic compounds containing both nitrogen and sulphur heteroatoms in aromatic rings were determined in a coal-derived liquid and a coal tar by capillary column gas chromatography and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. G.c. with a flame photometric detector was used to analyse the nitrogen-containing polycyclic aromatic compound fraction obtained by adsorption chromatography on neutral alumina. The four possible isomers of the azadibenzothiophenes, and various other azathiophenic compounds, were positively identified by comparison with retention data of newly synthesized standard compounds. The aminodibenzothiophenes were the major nitrogen/sulphur-containing heterocycles in the coal liquid, while the azathiophenic compounds were the major ones in the coal tar. The differences between the two coal-derived products were related to the reaction conditions during their production. The four isomers of the azadibenzothiophenes were assayed for mutagenicity using the Ames test and compared with the mutagenicities previously reported for the aminodibenzothiophenes. It was found that the azadibenzothiophenes were not mutagenic, as opposed to the aminodibenzothiophenes.