1
|
Aerts S, Calderon C, Valič B, Maslanyj M, Addison D, Mee T, Goiceanu C, Verloock L, Van den Bossche M, Gajšek P, Vermeulen R, Röösli M, Cardis E, Martens L, Joseph W. Measurements of intermediate-frequency electric and magnetic fields in households. ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH 2017; 154:160-170. [PMID: 28086101 DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2017.01.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/06/2016] [Revised: 12/22/2016] [Accepted: 01/02/2017] [Indexed: 05/14/2023]
Abstract
Historically, assessment of human exposure to electric and magnetic fields has focused on the extremely-low-frequency (ELF) and radiofrequency (RF) ranges. However, research on the typically emitted fields in the intermediate-frequency (IF) range (300Hz to 1MHz) as well as potential effects of IF fields on the human body remains limited, although the range of household appliances with electrical components working in the IF range has grown significantly (e.g., induction cookers and compact fluorescent lighting). In this study, an extensive measurement survey was performed on the levels of electric and magnetic fields in the IF range typically present in residences as well as emitted by a wide range of household appliances under real-life circumstances. Using spot measurements, residential IF field levels were found to be generally low, while the use of certain appliances at close distance (20cm) may result in a relatively high exposure. Overall, appliance emissions contained either harmonic signals, with fundamental frequencies between 6kHz and 300kHz, which were sometimes accompanied by regions in the IF spectrum of rather noisy, elevated field strengths, or much more capricious spectra, dominated by 50Hz harmonics emanating far in the IF domain. The maximum peak field strengths recorded at 20cm were 41.5V/m and 2.7A/m, both from induction cookers. Finally, none of the appliance emissions in the IF range exceeded the exposure summation rules recommended by the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection guidelines and the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC 62233) standard at 20cm and beyond (maximum exposure quotients EQE 1.0 and EQH 0.13).
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Sam Aerts
- Department of Information Technology, Ghent University/iMinds, iGent, Technologiepark-Zwijnaarde 15, B-9052 Ghent, Belgium.
| | - Carolina Calderon
- Centre for Radiation, Chemical and Environmental Hazards, Public Health England, Chilton, Didcot, Oxon OX11 0RQ, United Kingdom
| | - Blaž Valič
- Institute of Non-Ionizing Radiation (INIS), Pohorskega bataljona 215, Ljubljana 1000, Slovenia
| | - Myron Maslanyj
- Centre for Radiation, Chemical and Environmental Hazards, Public Health England, Chilton, Didcot, Oxon OX11 0RQ, United Kingdom
| | - Darren Addison
- Centre for Radiation, Chemical and Environmental Hazards, Public Health England, Chilton, Didcot, Oxon OX11 0RQ, United Kingdom
| | - Terry Mee
- Centre for Radiation, Chemical and Environmental Hazards, Public Health England, Chilton, Didcot, Oxon OX11 0RQ, United Kingdom
| | - Cristian Goiceanu
- Centre for Radiation, Chemical and Environmental Hazards, Public Health England, Chilton, Didcot, Oxon OX11 0RQ, United Kingdom
| | - Leen Verloock
- Department of Information Technology, Ghent University/iMinds, iGent, Technologiepark-Zwijnaarde 15, B-9052 Ghent, Belgium
| | - Matthias Van den Bossche
- Department of Information Technology, Ghent University/iMinds, iGent, Technologiepark-Zwijnaarde 15, B-9052 Ghent, Belgium
| | - Peter Gajšek
- Institute of Non-Ionizing Radiation (INIS), Pohorskega bataljona 215, Ljubljana 1000, Slovenia
| | - Roel Vermeulen
- Institute for Risk Assessment Sciences, Department of Environmental Epidemiology, Utrecht University, Yalelaan 2, 3508 Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Martin Röösli
- Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute (Swiss TPH), Socinstrasse 57, P.O. Box, 4002 Basel, Switzerland; University of Basel, Petersplatz 1, 4003 Basel, Switzerland
| | - Elisabeth Cardis
- Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal) and Municipal Institute of Medical Research (IMIM-Hospital del Mar), Doctor Aiguader, 88, 08003 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Luc Martens
- Department of Information Technology, Ghent University/iMinds, iGent, Technologiepark-Zwijnaarde 15, B-9052 Ghent, Belgium
| | - Wout Joseph
- Department of Information Technology, Ghent University/iMinds, iGent, Technologiepark-Zwijnaarde 15, B-9052 Ghent, Belgium
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
de Vocht F, Olsen RG. Systematic Review of the Exposure Assessment and Epidemiology of High-Frequency Voltage Transients. Front Public Health 2016; 4:52. [PMID: 27066469 PMCID: PMC4810027 DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2016.00052] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/20/2015] [Accepted: 03/14/2016] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Conclusions of epidemiological studies describing adverse health effects as a result of exposure to electromagnetic fields are not unanimous and often contradictory. It has been proposed that an explanation could be that high-frequency voltage transients [dirty electricity (DE)] which are superimposed on 50/60-Hz fields, but are generally not measured, are the real causal agent. DE has been linked to many different health and wellbeing effects, and on the basis of this, an industry selling measurement and filtering equipment is growing. We reviewed the available peer-reviewed evidence for DE as a causal agent for adverse human health effects. A literature search was performed in the Cochrane Library, PubMed, Web of Science, Google Scholar, and additional publications were obtained from reference lists and from the gray literature. This search resulted in 25 publications; 16 included primary epidemiological and/or exposure data. All studies were reviewed by both authors independently, and including a re-review of studies included in a review of data available up to July 31, 2009 by one of the authors. DE has been measured differently in different studies and comparison data are not available. There is no evidence for 50 Graham/Stetzer (GS) units as a safety threshold being anything more than arbitrary. The epidemiological evidence on human health effects of DE is primarily based on, often re-used, case descriptions. Quantitative evidence relies on self-reporting in non-blinded interventions, ecological associations, and one cross-sectional cohort study of cancer risk, which does not point to DE as the causal agent. The available evidence for DE as an exposure affecting human health at present does not stand up to scientific scrutiny.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Frank de Vocht
- School of Social and Community Medicine, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
| | - Robert G. Olsen
- School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Washington State University, Pullman, WA, USA
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Van Den Bossche M, Verloock L, Aerts S, Joseph W, Martens L. In situ exposure assessment of intermediate frequency fields of diverse devices. RADIATION PROTECTION DOSIMETRY 2015; 164:252-264. [PMID: 25125596 DOI: 10.1093/rpd/ncu257] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2014] [Accepted: 07/11/2014] [Indexed: 06/03/2023]
Abstract
In this study, in situ exposure assessment of both electric and magnetic fields of different intermediate frequency (IF) sources is investigated. The authors investigated smart boards and touchscreens, energy-saving bulbs, fluorescent lamps, a portable hearing unit and an electrosurgical unit (ESU). For most of these sources, the electric field is the dominating quantity. International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection reference levels are exceeded for touchscreens (44 kHz: up to 155.7 V m(-1) at 5 cm), energy-saving bulbs (38-52 kHz: up to 117.3 V m(-1)), fluorescent lamps (52 kHz: up to 471 V m(-1) at 5 cm) and ESUs (up to 920 kHz: 792 V m(-1) at 0.5 cm). Magnetic field strengths up to 1.8 and 10.5 A m(-1) were measured close to the ESU and portable hearing unit (69 V m(-1)), respectively. Large differences of measured field values exist among the various operating modes of the IF equipment. Compliance distances for general public range from 15.3 cm (touchscreen) to 25 cm (fluorescent lamps).
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Matthias Van Den Bossche
- Department of Information Technology, Ghent University/iMinds, Gaston Crommenlaan 8, Box 201, Ghent B-9050, Belgium
| | - Leen Verloock
- Department of Information Technology, Ghent University/iMinds, Gaston Crommenlaan 8, Box 201, Ghent B-9050, Belgium
| | - Sam Aerts
- Department of Information Technology, Ghent University/iMinds, Gaston Crommenlaan 8, Box 201, Ghent B-9050, Belgium
| | - Wout Joseph
- Department of Information Technology, Ghent University/iMinds, Gaston Crommenlaan 8, Box 201, Ghent B-9050, Belgium
| | - Luc Martens
- Department of Information Technology, Ghent University/iMinds, Gaston Crommenlaan 8, Box 201, Ghent B-9050, Belgium
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Gosselin MC, Kühn S, Kuster N. Experimental and numerical assessment of low-frequency current distributions from UMTS and GSM mobile phones. Phys Med Biol 2013; 58:8339-57. [PMID: 24216774 DOI: 10.1088/0031-9155/58/23/8339] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Abstract
The evaluation of the exposure from mobile communication devices requires consideration of electromagnetic fields (EMFs) over a broad frequency range from dc to GHz. Mobile phones in operation have prominent spectral components in the low-frequency (LF) and radio-frequency (RF) ranges. While the exposure to RF fields from mobile phones has been comprehensively assessed in the past, the LF fields have received much less attention. In this study, LF fields from mobile phones are assessed experimentally and numerically for the global system for mobile (GSM) and universal mobile telecommunications system (UMTS) communication systems and conclusions about the global (LF and RF) EMF exposure from both systems are drawn. From the measurements of the time-domain magnetic fields, it was found that the contribution from the audio signal at a normal speech level, i.e., -16 dBm0, is the same order of magnitude as the fields induced by the current bursts generated from the implementation of the GSM communication system at maximum RF output level. The B-field induced by currents in phones using the UMTS is two orders of magnitude lower than that induced by GSM. Knowing that the RF exposure from the UMTS is also two orders of magnitude lower than from GSM, it is now possible to state that there is an overall reduction of the exposure from this communication system.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Marie-Christine Gosselin
- Foundation for Research on Information Technologies in Society (IT'IS), Zeughausstrasse 43, 8004 Zurich, Switzerland. ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | | | | |
Collapse
|