NOISE EVALUATION FOR THE DUMPER DRIVERS IN MINING ACTIVITIES: A CASE STUDY

Mining activities are carried out employing a variety of machineries and equipment; in many cases these can generate relevant health problems for workers. One of the biggest hazards for workers is noise, since prolonged exposure to a noise source could cause damage through long-term exposure. Various researchers pointed out that the damage that can be generated by exposure to noise is of various types with sometimes very serious consequences. Specially drivers of particular vehicles of the mining sector, such as dumper truck and excavator, are exposed to the risk of whole-body vibrations and at the same time noise generated by the engine truck. This problem is especially founded for Load-Haul-Dump (LHD) vehicles where the driver's seat is positioned near to the engine. The objective of this study is to assess how different work phases can affect the noise exposure of LHD drivers. A measurement campaign was carried out at a site if mining 100 km from Rome a mountain context. The measurements were carried out on dump truck drivers with the aim of assessing noise exposure. The measurements were carried out with a device to detect the sound signal. The measurements were repeated several times to be able to characterize the actual working cycle during all driving phases of the LHD vehicle. The signal after being acquired was processed with a specific instrument in order to determine the sound levels and frequency spectrum and the signal analysis was carried out in third-band octave frequencies. The results obtained in the measurement campaign carried out showed a significant influence of the different phases of vehicle use on the driver's noise exposure.