Year: 2020
Type: article
Abstract: Nowadays, information and communication technologies (mobile phones, connected objects) strongly occupy our daily life. The increasing use of these technologies and the complexity of network infrastructures raise issues about radiofrequency electromagnetic fields (Rf-Emf) exposure. Most previous studies have assessed individual exposure to Rf-Emf, and the next level is to assess populational exposure. In our study, we designed a statistical tool for Rf-Emf populational exposure assessment and mapping. This tool integrates geographic databases and surrogate models to characterize spatiotemporal exposure from outdoor sources, indoor sources, and mobile phones. A case study was conducted on a 100 × 100 m grid covering the 14th district of Paris to illustrate the functionalities of the tool. Whole-body specific absorption rate (SAR) values are 2.7 times higher than those for the whole brain. The mapping of whole-body and whole-brain SAR values shows a dichotomy between built-up and non-built-up areas, with the former displaying higher values. Maximum SAR values do not exceed 3.5 and 3.9 mW/kg for the whole body and the whole brain, respectively, thus they are significantly below International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) recommendations. Indoor sources are the main contributor to populational exposure, followed by outdoor sources and mobile phones, which generally represents less than 1% of total exposure.
Institutions: Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Institut national de l'environnement industriel et des risques, Périnatalité & Risques Toxiques, Laboratoire Amiénois de Mathématique Fondamentale et Appliquée, Université de Picardie Jules Verne, Télécom Paris, Institut Polytechnique de Paris, Laboratoire Traitement et Communication de l’Information, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Institute of Electronics, Computer and Telecommunication Engineering, National Research Council, Ghent University, Utrecht University
Language: English
Subfield: Biophysics
Domain: Life Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $2,429
Award: G7773920739
OpenAlex ID: W3044116447