Measurement of Ground Electrical Conductivity for Planning Medium Wave Radio Broadcast Stations in South Western Nigeria

Abstract

Results of propagation measurements are often required to improve the coverage of Medium Frequency (MF) broadcast transmitters. To achieve this, ground electrical conductivity measurement is one of the parameters often determined. In this study, ground conductivity has been measured around MF radio transmitters in some parts of Western Nigeria, using the Vertical Electrical Sounding (VES) technique based on the Wenner Array geophysical prospecting method. Four of the radio transmitters belong to the Ondo State Radio Corporation (ODRC) and are located at Irese and Oba-Ile (both near Akure), Okitipupa, and Ido-Ani, while one each belongs to the Ekiti State Broadcasting Service (ESBS) at Ifaki-Ekiti, and the Osun State Broadcasting Corporation at Osu. The mean ground electrical conductivity obtained in this study ranged from mS/m at Okitipupa to mS/m at Ido-Ani. Investigation shows that the penetration depth at the frequency of transmission of each station varies from a minimum of m at Ido-Ani at a transmitting frequency of 1035 kHz to a maximum of m at Okitipupa at a transmitting frequency of 765 kHz.


Nigeria Journal of Pure and Applied Physics VOLUME 1, AUGUST 2000, pp. 11-16