The injection of dry Ca-based sorbents for removing acid gases had been investigated previously. However, the utilization of Ca-based sorbents for adsorbing other air pollutants was rarely examined. The objective of this study was to investigate the reduction of organic compounds polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylene (BTEX) and heavy metals by using the desulfurization sorbents in a dry scrubber integrated with a fabric filter. Four surfactants, calcium lignosulfonate, sodium lignosulfonate, alkyl naphthalene sodium sulfonate and beta-naphthalene sodium sulfonate condensates, were used as additives to modify the surface characteristics of desulfurization sorbent calcium hydroxide (Ca(OH)(2)). Modifying the desulfurization sorbents with surfactants showed different effects on removal of PAHs, BTEX, and heavy metals, and exploited the potential of Ca-based sorbents for adsorbing air pollutants other than SO2. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.