Facility for chronic exposure of rats to ELF magnetic fields

The facility consists of a 12 x 11.5 x 2.4 m high room containing six sets of exposure apparatus and the other equipment necessary to maintain a pathogen-free system. The apparatus sets produced 5 mT (rms), 0.5 mT, or a sham exposure. The apparatus was arranged in the room to minimize the fringing field of the 5 mT set at the sham position. Each set was 3.85 x 1.80 x 0.66 m in outside dimension, containing 24 cages in the magnetically homogeneous region. The apparatus was designed using Harvey's figure-eight-configuration and generated a horizontal sinusoidal alternating field. In order to save electric power, the coil of the apparatus constituted a 50 Hz LC resonance circuit with a condensor bank to which electric power was supplied to compensate losses. Magnetic flux density was kept constant by controlling the coil current. Although mild steel was used in the skeleton of the building, the fringing flux at the sham was as low as 0.1 to 1 microT. Stainless steel was used for ventilating ducts, racks for the cages, cage covers, feeder baskets, and watering nozzles. The homogeneity of the field was measured to be +/- 10% in the animal residence area, and food and water consumption was found to be unaffected by the field. At 5 mT, the coil current was 370 A, and the hollow coil was cooled by a stream of 20 degrees C water to prevent both heat and dew on the coil surface. Vibration and acoustic noise was prevented by fiber reinforced plastic framework of the coil. High harmonic distortion was not observed at the output terminal of the coil driver. The facility has operated without trouble for 2 years.