Influence of the surface averaging procedure of the current density in assessing compliance with the ICNIRP low-frequency basic restriction by means of numerical techniques

Although the calculation of the surface average of the low-frequency current density distribution over a cross-section of 1 cm2 is required by ICNIRP guidelines, no reference averaging algorithm is indicated, neither in the ICNIRP guidelines nor in the Directive 2004/40/EC that is based on them. The lack of a general standard algorithm that fulfils the ICNIRP guidelines' requirements is particularly critical in the prospective of the 2004/40/EC Directive endorsement, since the compliance to normative limits refers to well-defined procedures. In this paper, two case studies are considered, in which the calculation of the surface average is performed using a simplified approach widely used in the literature and an original averaging procedure. This analysis, aimed at quantifying the expected differences and to single out their sources, shows that the choice of the averaging algorithm represents an important source of uncertainty in the application of the guideline requirements.