Journal of Health and Safety at Work

Introduction: This study was conducted to assess noise pollution in one of thepetrochemical complex andtakepractical measures to reduce it. Thecompanyis located in site 4 of Mahshahr Special Economic Zone.

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Method and Materials: In the first phase of the research, environmental noise was measured to determine the noise levelsin the different sections of the plant and also identify the main sound sources.Then,using the basic acoustic knowledge, aformulahasbeenproposedasan indexof noise control priority to select one section of the plant as the first priority forcontrolling noise. The main soundsource of the selected section wasknownby referring to noise maps and contours and finally its acoustic properties were analyzed.

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Results: The results showed that safety caution and danger areasof the plant under study were 16.7%, 74.5% and 8.8% respectively and a major part of the danger zone (about 54%) was related to unit Air. Noise level in 24 percent of the caution zone ranged from80 to 85 dBA and alsoitwas above 90 dBA in 33.4% of danger areas.

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Conclusion: Compressionsectionwhich was located in unit Air was knownas first priority based on Noise Control Priority Index.Dryer machineswere the main sound source in this section.