Occupational exposures to radiofrequency radiation (18-31 MHz) from RF dielectric heat sealers.

Details

• Personal Author:
  Cox, Clinton ; Foley EP ; Murray WE Jr.
• Description:
  Occupational exposure to radiofrequency radiation in the range 18 to 31 megahertz (MHz) from radiofrequency dielectric heat sealers was measured for 82 operators in 13 facilities. The electric (E) and magnetic (H) field intensities of exposure and their variation with anatomic site and brand of heat sealer employed were investigated. With the operator in the normal work position, measurements were made at the eye, waist, and knee areas. The OSHA exposure standard for radiofrequency radiation in the range of 10 to 100,000MHz corresponds to an exposure of 200 volts/meter (V/m) for the E-field and 0.5 amps/meter (A/m) for the H-field. Measurements indicated that 55 percent of operators were exposed to E-field levels above 200V/m, and 21 percent of operators were exposed to H-field levels above 0.5A/m. The geometric means for the exposure levels were at least 200V/m and 0.094A/m for E-field and H-field, respectively. Exposure levels did not increase proportionally with an increase in power output, but varied with heat sealer brands and varied significantly among some facilities. The authors concluded that many radiofrequency heat sealer operators are exposed to radiofrequency levels exceeding the OSHA standard. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Electricity Magnetic Fields Manufacturing And Industrial Facilities Occupational Exposure Occupational Health Radiation Safety
• Keywords:
  Electrical-fields Electromagnetic-radiation Industrial-factory-workers Magnetic-fields NIOSH-Author Nonionizing-radiation Occupational-exposure
• ISSN:
  0002-8894
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  149-153
• Volume:
  43
• Issue:
  3
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:00166857
• Citation:
  Am Ind Hyg Assoc J 1982 Mar; 43(3):149-153
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  1982
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Source Full Name:
  American Industrial Hygiene Association Journal
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:bb390777ff14efec5ce938136f60638af6421f481a43d7541d72f1929c6bffd64452bd94f3f1cb0a86fdf2df88039051ec0cc70e65703f8d1c877cdc39079cf0
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/185121/cdc_185121_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 550.49 KB ]