APPLICATION OF TIME-AVERAGED AND INTEGRAL-BASED MEASURE FOR MEASUREMENT RESULTS VARIABILITY REDUCTION IN GSM/DCS/UMTS...

Area of Science:

• Environmental Health
• Physics
• Electrical Engineering

Background:

• Electromagnetic field (EMF) levels from wireless telecommunication networks are non-stationary with significant temporal variations.
• Short-term measurements can be unreliable due to daily fluctuations in electric (E) field strength.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce and evaluate a novel integral-based measure for assessing electromagnetic exposure.
• To analyze the temporal variations and day-to-day repeatability of radiofrequency EMF (RF-EMF) exposure.
• To compare the new measure with traditional time-averaged methods.

Main Methods:

• Continuous 24-hour measurements using personal exposure meters over extended periods (weeks).
• Data collection across 14 urban locations, with repeat measurements at 2 locations after 6 months.
• Analysis of approximately 5.1 million data samples using both time-averaged and integral-based measures.

Main Results:

• Instantaneous E field values can vary significantly throughout the day (up to 25 dB).
• The integral-based measure and 24-hour time-averaged measure reduce daily exposure variability to within ±20% of the weekly mean.
• All measured exposures, using both methods, were well below the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) general public exposure limits.

Conclusions:

• The proposed integral-based measure provides a robust method for evaluating electromagnetic exposure, accounting for temporal variations.
• Continuous, long-term monitoring is crucial for accurate RF-EMF exposure assessment.
• Public exposure to RF-EMF from wireless telecommunication networks remains within safe limits according to ICNIRP guidelines.