Shell Sarnia Manufacturing Centre
Location: Corunna, Ontario, Canada
Owner/Operator: Shell Canada
Shell’s Sarnia Manufacturing Centre (SMC), also known as Shell’s Corunna Refinery, is located about 10 kilometres south of Sarnia in Corunna, Ontario. Originally built in 1952 by Canadian Oil Companies Limited, the refinery became part of Shell’s operations in 1963 when Shell purchased Canadian Oil.
The refinery can process up to 85,000b/d of crude oil, which is then converted and refined to help meet southern Ontario’s transportation fuel needs (gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel). The refinery also provides key base materials for chemicals and propane producers in the Sarnia area, including the Shell Chemical plant located next to the refinery. Since the refinery’s start, there have been numerous upgrades and expansions, including modernization of equipment and processes as well as additions of new facilities and technologies to meet current and future product regulations and environmental legislation.
Site-wide Acoustic Assessment of the Oil Refinery
In 2013, HGC was retained to conduct an Acoustic Assessment of the entire site, including the adjacent Chemical plant. This involved visiting the facility and measuring over eight hundred sound sources using sound intensity techniques, compile input data for creation of a complete acoustical model of the facility.
The sources of noise measured and considered in the Assessment included the following types of equipment: liquid pumps with electric drive motors, compressors, heaters, sound from surfaces of various ducting and piping, air-coolers, exhaust fans and stacks, boilers, cooling towers, diesel power generators, steam vents, etc.
HGC further assisted the facility with evaluating multiple variants of noise control measures, and application of specific noise control solutions towards meeting the Provincial regulatory noise requirements.
Acoustical Consulting Services Included:
- Detailed acoustical measurements of all sound sources at the facility
- Preparation of the Acoustic Assessment Report to obtain an Environmental Compliance Approval (ECA) from the Ontario Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks (MECP)
- Assessment of sound levels in accordance with MECP guideline NPC-300
- Evaluation and design of solutions to reduce noise impact
