In situ exposure assessment of intermediate frequency fields of diverse devices

Bossche, Matthias Van den; Verloock, Leen; Aerts, Sam; Joseph, Wout; Martens, Luc

doi:10.1093/rpd/ncu257

Cited by 5 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 16 publications

(30 reference statements)

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“…The occupational exposures to IF-EMF were investigated by the development of a source-based measurement database ( 6 ) and source-exposure matrix ( 7 ). Also, the measured IF-EMF levels emitted from a wide variety of home appliances have been reported ( 8 , 9 ). These studies show that one of the devices that causes high human exposure to IF-EMF is the walk-through gate for the Electronic Article Surveillance (EAS) systems.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Measurement and Exposure Assessment of Intermediate Frequency Magnetic Fields From Electronic Article Surveillance (EAS) Gates in Libraries

Ikuyo

Esaki

Aimoto

et al. 2022

Front. Public Health

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Exposure to magnetic fields from the electronic article surveillance (EAS) gate was evaluated in consideration of the application to epidemiological studies of library workers who are exposed continually to intermediate frequency magnetic fields from the EAS gate. Two types of exposures were investigated. One was transient exposure due to passing through or beside the gate and another was chronic exposure in the room. We measured magnetic fields from five EAS gate models which were commonly used in libraries in Japan. Detailed measurements were performed for two of them in consideration of the phase difference of vector components of magnetic flux density. The polarization of the magnetic field in the gate was investigated with the index of ellipticity. The induced electric field in a human body was numerically calculated for exposures to magnetic fields of the two gate models. The results provide a quantitative understanding of exposures during passing through or by the EAS gate. Magnetic field distribution was measured in a large room for one gate model to quantify the chronic exposure of library workers during the work at the desk. It was found that the magnetic field was distributed as a function of the horizontal distance to the nearest gatepost. The 45-point average value BIEC defined by the IEC standard was suggested to be a useful quantity to characterize the magnitude of the magnetic field from the EAS gate. Exposures to different EAS gates are expected to be compared through this quantity without detailed measurements. These results are expected to provide useful means for exposure assessment of epidemiological studies on the association between the IF-EMF exposure and possible health outcomes.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Measurement and Exposure Assessment of Intermediate Frequency Magnetic Fields From Electronic Article Surveillance (EAS) Gates in Libraries

Ikuyo

Esaki

Aimoto

et al. 2022

Front. Public Health

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“…Intermediate frequency electromagnetic fields (IF-EMF) are electromagnetic fields with frequencies ranging from 300 Hz to 100 kHz ( 1 ). Although several studies have examined exposures to IF-EMF from home appliances ( 2 , 3 ), induction heating cooktops ( 4 , 5 ), and electronic article surveillance (EAS) systems ( 6 – 11 ), this frequency range has not been comprehensively assessed for safety ( 12 ). Few studies have involved IF-EMF safety assessments.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessment of combined exposure to intermediate-frequency electromagnetic fields and pulsed electromagnetic fields among library workers in Japan

Yamaguchi-Sekino

Taki

Ikuyo

et al. 2022

Front. Public Health

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ObjectiveTo assess exposure levels to electromagnetic fields (EMFs) among library workers in Japan, focusing on co-exposure to intermediate-frequency EMF (IF-EMF) and pulsed EMF, to propose a new epidemiological research methodology.MethodsThe evaluated exposure sources were an electromagnetic type-electronic article surveillance gate (EM-EAS, IF-EMF (operating frequency 220 Hz-14 kHz)) and an activator/deactivator of anti-theft tags termed as “book check unit” (BCU, pulsed EMF). Short-term exposures were: (E1) whole-body exposure from the EAS gate when sitting within 3 m; (E2) local exposure to transient IF-EMF while passing through or beside the EAS gate; and (E3) local exposure to a pulsed magnetic field on BCU use. E1–E3 were evaluated based on exposure levels relative to magnetic flux density at the occupational reference level (RL; E1) or as per occupational basic restrictions (BR; E2 and E3) delineated by the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) 2010 guidelines. Exposure indices based on mid-term exposure (D1–D3), assuming exposure according to employment on a weekly basis, were used to assess exposure in actual working conditions. D1 represents continuous exposure from an EAS gate when sitting within 3 m of the gate. D2 and D3 represent repeated transient exposures occurring during gate pass or on the operation of a BCU. A link to a web-based questionnaire was distributed to librarians working at all libraries where the authors had mailed institutional questionnaires (4,073 libraries). Four exposure patterns were defined according to various exposure scenarios.ResultsWe obtained information on exposure parameters and working conditions from the 548 completed questionnaires. The ICNIRP guideline levels were not exceeded in any of the E1–E3 scenarios. Median of the D1 (% ICNIRP RL × hour/week) was 1, and >85% respondents had values <10. However, the maximum value was 513. Altogether, these results indicate that continuous exposure was low in most cases. The same tendency was observed regarding repeated transient exposure from EM-EAS gates (i.e., the median value for D2 (% ICNIRP BR × gate pass) was 5). However, there were several cases in which D1 and D2 values were >10 times the median. The median of D3 (% ICNIRP BR × BCU operation) was 10, and most respondents' D3 values were greater than their D2 values, although the derived results depended on the assumptions made for the estimation.ConclusionWe conducted an assessment of combined exposures to IF-EMF and pulsed EMF among library workers in Japan by evaluating both short-term exposures (E1–E3) and exposure indices based on mid-term exposures (D1–D3) assuming actual working conditions per questionnaire results. These results provide useful information for future epidemiological studies.

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Measurements of intermediate-frequency electric and magnetic fields in households

Aerts

Calderón

Valič³

et al. 2017

Environmental Research

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In situ exposure assessment of intermediate frequency fields of diverse devices

Cited by 5 publications

References 16 publications

Measurement and Exposure Assessment of Intermediate Frequency Magnetic Fields From Electronic Article Surveillance (EAS) Gates in Libraries

Measurement and Exposure Assessment of Intermediate Frequency Magnetic Fields From Electronic Article Surveillance (EAS) Gates in Libraries

Assessment of combined exposure to intermediate-frequency electromagnetic fields and pulsed electromagnetic fields among library workers in Japan

Measurements of intermediate-frequency electric and magnetic fields in households

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