Exposure to electromagnetic fields from smart utility meters in GB; part I) laboratory measurements

Abstract

Laboratory measurements of electric fields have been carried out around examples of smart meter devices used in Great Britain. The aim was to quantify exposure of people to radiofrequency signals emitted from smart meter devices operating at 2.4 GHz, and then to compare this with international (ICNIRP) health-related guidelines and with exposures from other telecommunication sources such as mobile phones and Wi-Fi devices. The angular distribution of the electric fields from a sample of 39 smart meter devices was measured in a controlled laboratory environment. The angular direction where the power density was greatest was identified and the equivalent isotropically radiated power was determined in the same direction. Finally, measurements were carried out as a function of distance at the angles where maximum field strengths were recorded around each device. The maximum equivalent power density measured during transmission around smart meter devices at 0.5 m and beyond was 15 mWm , with an estimation of maximum duty factor of only 1%. One outlier device had a maximum power density of 91 mWm . All power density measurements reported in this study were well below the 10 W m ICNIRP reference level for the general public. Bioelectromagnetics. 2017;38:280-294. © 2017 Crown copyright. BIOELECTROMAGNETICS © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Exposure to Electromagnetic Fields From Smart Utility Meters in GB; Part III) On‐Site Measurements in Homes

“…All the duty factors measured in the homes were less than 1.2%. In addition, the geometric mean of the peak power density from smart meters at 0.5 m in the homes was found to be very similar to that measured under a controlled laboratory condition [Peyman et al, 2017]. Maximum 6-min RMS power densities, which are affected by duty factor, were 60 times lower than the maximum peak power density observed in the laboratory.…”

“…For the bank of meters, the highest value recorded was 0.5 m away from the front of the bank. Power densities recorded behind the wall were generally lower; this is probably due to the directional nature of the transmitting antennas [Peyman et al, 2017] rather than any attenuation of the materials used in the construction of the wall. Power density measurements at 1 m behind the wall were higher than the 0.5 m values.…”

“…The LR mode displays peak and RMS measurements over a period of time, in this case set to 6 min, in accordance with the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) guidelines [ICNIRP, 1998]. The RBW was set to 2 MHz, where the Zigbee signal is contained [Farahani, 2008;Peyman et al, 2017].…”

Assessment of exposure to radio frequency electromagnetic fields from smart utility meters in GB; part II) numerical assessment of induced SAR within the human body

“…These two tables depict the estimated WBSAR and maximum SAR (10 g) values, respectively, at the measured power density levels. The comparison between SAR values were restricted to maximum and average measured power density levels due to the large number of measurements on SM devices [Peyman et al, ].…”

Are Exposures to Multiple Frequencies the Key to Future Radiofrequency Research?

“… a Laboratory measurements made at 1.5 m in direction of maximum electric field strength. Smart meter devices have a duty factor of around 1% ( 10 ); this has been included in the SAR value only. Unless specified, all measurements include duty factors.…”