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Hazard Zoning Around Electric Substations of Petrochemical Industries by Stimulation of Extremely Low-Frequency Magnetic Fields Publisher Pubmed



Hosseini M1, 2 ; Monazzam MR2, 3 ; Farhang Matin L1 ; Khosroabadi H4
Authors
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Authors Affiliations
  1. 1. Department of Physics, Islamic Azad University–North Tehran Branch, Tehran, Iran
  2. 2. Center for Air Pollution Research (CAPR), Institute for Environmental Research (IER), Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
  3. 3. Department of Occupational Hygiene, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
  4. 4. National Petrochemical Company, Tehran, Iran

Source: Environmental Monitoring and Assessment Published:2015


Abstract

Electromagnetic fields in recent years have been discussed as one of the occupational hazards at workplaces. Hence, control and assessment of these physical factors is very important to protect and promote the health of employees. The present study was conducted to determine hazard zones based on assessment of extremely low-frequency magnetic fields at electric substations of a petrochemical complex in southern Iran, using the single-axis HI-3604 device. In measurement of electromagnetic fields by the single-axis HI-3604 device, the sensor screen should be oriented in a way to be perpendicular to the field lines. Therefore, in places where power lines are located in different directions, it is required to keep the device towards three axes of x, y, and z. For further precision, the measurements should be repeated along each of the three axes. In this research, magnetic field was measured, for the first time, in three axes of x, y, and z whose resultant value was considered as the value of magnetic field. Measurements were done based on IEEE std 644-1994. Further, the spatial changes of the magnetic field surrounding electric substations were stimulated using MATLAB software. The obtained results indicated that the maximum magnetic flux density was 49.90 μT recorded from boiler substation, while the minimum magnetic flux density of 0.02 μT was measured at the control room of the complex. As the stimulation results suggest, the spaces around incoming panels, transformers, and cables were recognized as hazardous zones of indoor electric substations. Considering the health effects of chronic exposure to magnetic fields, it would be possible to minimize exposure to these contaminants at workplaces by identification of risky zones and observation of protective considerations. © 2015, Springer International Publishing Switzerland.