Handbook of Occupational Safety and Health, 3rd Edition

CHAPTER 11RADIATION: NONIONIZING AND IONIZING SOURCES

DONALD L. HAES JR.,

Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Bldg. 16‐268, 77 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge, MA, 02139‐4307

and

MITCHELL S. GALANEK

Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Bldg. 56‐235, 77 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge, MA, 02139‐4307

11.1 NONIONIZING RADIATION

11.1.1 Introduction

While the use of nonionizing radiation (NIR) in the workplace is not new, acknowledgment for its potential hazards is still unfolding. Standards for NIR safety are numerous, but are often incomprehensible and hard to find. It is imperative that NIR sources in industry be identified and evaluated and their potential for hazards controlled. While sources of NIR can be found in the workshop, they can also be found in administrative and physical plant activities. These sources include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Static (direct current [DC]) magnets.
• Industrial alternating current (AC) line voltage.
• Radio‐frequency (RF) induction ovens.
• RF heaters/sealers.
• Handheld two‐way communications.
• Microwave (MW) ovens.
• Cellular telephones.
• Infrared (IR).
• Visible light (VL)
• Ultraviolet (UV) radiation.
• Lasers (visible and invisible).

Comprehending the basic physics of exposures will be central to this struggle.

11.1.2 Nonionizing Radiation in Industry

11.1.2.1 Physics of Nonionizing Radiation

NIR is a practical term for the frequency band of the electromagnetic spectrum that lacks the energy to break chemical and/or molecular bonds, ...