Characterization of Noise Propagation in a Hard Rock Mine Ventilation Application
Darryl Witow, Hatch; Cody Gobbs, Lundin; Josh Lam, Lundin; Wendy Harris, Hatch ; Eleanor Magdzinski, Sudbury Integrated Nickel Operations; Mervyn Choy, Hatch; Ariel Kadiayi, Hatch
Design of engineering controls to limit occupational noise in the underground mining workplace and community noise on the surface rely on accurate calculation inputs. Sound in mines can carry considerable distances. Mine ventilation engineers rely on noise propagation calculations to estimate silencer performance criteria for key mine fan installations that that are often in proximity to occupied areas of a mine and can remain in service for decades. The blasted and rock-bolted walls of hard rock mining tunnels have unique acoustical properties. Underground testing in an operating metal mine in Sudbury, Canada was performed and results processed to characterize noise propagation in mines, with the goal of improving accuracy of noise calculations.
