Temporal 24-hour assessment of radio frequency exposure in schools and homes

Abstract Temporal radio frequency (RF) exposure from present and emerging technologies in sensitive microenvironments such as schools and homes is important for evaluations of compliance to international limits. For the first time, temporal 24-hour measurements of all present RF signals, including LTE (Long term Evolution), are performed with accurate spectral narrowband equipment in these environments where children are present. The largest maximal variations are obtained for the cordless telephony (DECT) signals (10.6 dB) and for the WiFi 2.4 GHz signals (12.7 dB), while variations of broadcasting signals and telecommunication signals were much lower namely, 2.9 dB and 3.3 dB, respectively. Thus, indoor sources exhibit the largest variations indoor and are the most critical for practical exposure assessment and comparison with existing guidelines. It is recommended to perform exposure measurements during school days as highest field values were measured then. All field values measured over 24 hour satisfied the ICNIRP reference levels.

[1]  Cora Iftode,et al.  The application of a channel-individualized method for assessing long-term, realistic exposure to radiofrequency radiation emitted by mobile communication base station antennas , 2012 .

[2]  Georg Neubauer,et al.  Temporal and spatial variability of personal exposure to radio frequency electromagnetic fields. , 2009, Environmental research.

[3]  Nesrin Seyhan,et al.  Radio frequency radiation (RFR) from TV and radio transmitters at a pilot region in Turkey. , 2009, Radiation protection dosimetry.

[4]  Dries Naudts,et al.  Determination of the duty cycle of WLAN for realistic radio frequency electromagnetic field exposure assessment. , 2013, Progress in biophysics and molecular biology.

[5]  A. Ahlbom.  Guidelines for limiting exposure to time-varying electric, magnetic, and electromagnetic fields (up to 300 GHz) , 1998 .

[6]  W. Soichi,et al.  Guidelines for limiting exposure to electric fields induced by movement of the human body in a static magnetic field and by time-varying magnetic fields below 1 Hz. , 2014, Health physics.

[7]  L. Martens,et al.  Reconstruction of the polarization ellipse of the EM field of Telecommunication and broadcast antennas by a fast and low-cost measurement method , 2006, IEEE Transactions on Electromagnetic Compatibility.

[8]  Joe Wiart,et al.  Influence of traffic variations on exposure to wireless signals in realistic environments. , 2012, Bioelectromagnetics.

[9]  Theodoros Samaras,et al.  Spatial and temporal RF electromagnetic field exposure of children and adults in indoor micro environments in Belgium and Greece. , 2013, Progress in biophysics and molecular biology.

[10]  Luc Martens,et al.  PROCEDURE FOR ASSESSMENT OF GENERAL PUBLIC EXPOSURE FROM WLAN IN OFFICES AND IN WIRELESS SENSOR NETWORK TESTBED , 2010, Health physics.

[11]  Luc Martens,et al.  Assessment of general public exposure to LTE and RF sources present in an urban environment , 2010, Bioelectromagnetics.

[12]  J. Bolte,et al.  Calibration and uncertainties in personal exposure measurements of radiofrequency electromagnetic fields , 2011, Bioelectromagnetics.

[13]  Luc Martens,et al.  Conduct of a personal radiofrequency electromagnetic field measurement study: proposed study protocol , 2010, Environmental health : a global access science source.

[14]  Simona Miclaus,et al.  Long-term exposure to mobile communication radiation: an analysis of time-variability of electric field level in GSM900 downlink channels. , 2013, Radiation protection dosimetry.

[15]  Wout Joseph,et al.  INFLUENCE OF MOBILE PHONE TRAFFIC ON BASE STATION EXPOSURE OF THE GENERAL PUBLIC , 2010, Health physics.

[16]  P ? ? ? ? ? ? ? % ? ? ? ? , 1991 .

[17]  Luc Martens,et al.  In-Situ Measurement Procedures for Temporal RF Electromagnetic Field Exposure of the General Public , 2009, Health physics.

[18]  Luc Martens,et al.  Low-cost extrapolation method for maximal LTE radio base station exposure estimation: test and validation. , 2013, Radiation protection dosimetry.

[19]  G. Vermeeren,et al.  In situ LTE exposure of the general public: Characterization and extrapolation , 2012, Bioelectromagnetics.

[20]  G. Thuróczy,et al.  Comparison of personal radio frequency electromagnetic field exposure in different urban areas across Europe. , 2010, Environmental research.

[21]  Luc Martens,et al.  Assessment of RF Exposures from Emerging Wireless Communication Technologies in Different Environments , 2012, Health physics.

[22]  Luc Martens,et al.  Comparison of temporal realistic telecommunication base station exposure with worst-case estimation in two countries. , 2013, Radiation protection dosimetry.

[23]  Johannes Tomitsch,et al.  Survey of electromagnetic field exposure in bedrooms of residences in lower Austria. , 2010, Bioelectromagnetics.

[24]  S Mann,et al.  Exposure to radio frequency electromagnetic fields from wireless computer networks: duty factors of Wi-Fi devices operating in schools. , 2011, Progress in biophysics and molecular biology.

[25]  Achilles Boursianis,et al.  Continuous electromagnetic radiation monitoring in the environment: analysis of the results in Greece. , 2012, Radiation protection dosimetry.