Magnetic shielding solutions for MRI Systems
Itel Healthcare provides and installs magnetic shielding solutions, also for high field MRI systems, which are calculated and simulated through a specialized software solution, in order to ensure maximum magnetic confinement according to the site’s specific conditions. For the most challenging installations, Itel Healthcare is able to solve all magnetic field interferences with active compensation systems.
Generally speaking, the magnetic shielding process consists of a partial ortotal installation of special steel plates on the walls of a room. While a partialinstallation is limited only to one wall, a complete installation provides shieldingfor all walls (including floor and roof).Special attention must be paid to the choice of the material, whose physical-chemical features along with its thickness may vary according tothecircumstances and depend not only on the final result sought, but also on thesite’s specific environmental situation.The design of a (partial or total) shielded room should also carefully considerthe features of the MRI system and requires therefore an accurate computinganalysis which could foresee the effects on the confinement of the dispersedmagnetic field and most of all the field homogeneity of the MRI system,particularly where the employment of spectroscopic techniques is envisaged.
In addition, the possibility of implementing the necessary supporting structureson the installation site and the available space are also determining factorsfor magnetic shielding design. To properly design magnetic shielding, ItelHealthcare uses a specialized software solution called “Vector Fields OPERA”,developed by Vector Fields, a leading company in the field of simulationsoftware solutions for electromagnetic fields.OPERA applies the method of”finite elements” inorder to solve differentialequations for partial derivatives, which describe the behavior of electrical andmagnetic fields.The actual model is thus split into various steps as follows:· Physical model: individuation of the specific features of the electromagneticproblem, in terms of geometry and materials, characterized by first magnetizationcurves, which are certified by competent bodies.· Geometric model: geometry reduction considering its active parts related tothe electromagnetic problem.· Mathematical model: individuation of potentialtype and surroundingconditions.Thanks to powerful workstations, it is possible to simulate and optimizemagnetic shielding thickness, in order to comply with project certificationsrelating to dispersed magnetic induction field, while ensuring field homogeneityin the whole volume of the investigated object.
