The Nakamura method, which utilizes the Horizontal to Vertical Spectral Ratio (HVSR) analysis, is widely used for seismic microzonation studies. The HVSR is an easy tool for estimation of site response resonances based on recorded ambient noise; however, it gives amplifications at resonant frequencies that are poorly correlated to the actual amplifications during strong ground motion.

Generally, the site response, including any resonant effects, depends on the amplitude, frequency and duration of ground motion. An approach was proposed previously by McGuire [1], in which the transfer function of the soil response was approximated as a Single Degree of Freedom (SDOF) oscillator with one resonant frequency, obtained from the maximum in HVSR. A new approach is developed here, in which the entire HVSR curve is approximated by a manageable set of parallel band-pass resonators. Each individual oscillator is defined by three parameters: center frequency, gain, and steepness (Q factor). This approximation allows for the development and use of an analytical model of the HVSR curve.

The application of the new approach is demonstrated on data recorded by the stations of the Southern Ontario Seismic Network (SOSN/Polaris), which have well studied characteristics and site response [2,3]. Data collected at each site consists of noise recordings to obtain the HVSR, as well as earthquake records. The analytical HVSR curves for each station are used to remove the site effect component from the recorded seismograms.

Back analysis for evaluation of the merits of the short-term seismic hazard indicators (precursors) used in the mines and their potential application for early warning was carried out for fourteen seismic events that potentially caused damage in Kiirunavaara Mine, Sweden, selected according to our designed criteria. Five short-term hazard indicators: Seismic Activity Rate (SAR), Cumulative Seismic Moment (CSM), Energy Index (EI), Cumulative Apparent Volume (CAV) and Seismic Apparent Stress Frequency (ASF) were tested. The behaviour of the indicators was studied using the parameters of all seismic events within a sphere around the hypocenter location of the analyzed seismic source within one month before the main (damaging) event. The size of the sphere equals the estimated radius of the analyzed seismic source (area of inelastic deformation). mXrap software (Australian Centre for Geomechanics) was used for data visualization, manipulation, analysis and extraction. The results from the main analysis showed a good agreement between the expected and actual behaviour of the SAR, CSM and CAV indicators. In overall, CSM and CAV ranked the highest positive/expected behaviour followed by SAR (Table 3). The EI and ASF ranked lowest and showed to be sensitive to the number of events within the source sphere. The rate of false warnings and missed warnings was also investigated for the 25 days-long period before the damaging events. A similar trend was observed as for the main analysed event. The results from this study can be used for further improvement of the short-term hazard estimations and early warning system in deep underground mines.

Mining induced seismicity is an undesired consequence of mining operations, which poses significant hazard to miners and infrastructures and requires an accurate analysis of the rupture process. Seismic moment tensors of mining-induced events help to understand the nature of mining-induced seismicity by providing information about the relationship between the mining, stress redistribution and instabilities in the rock mass. In this work, we adapt and test a waveform-based inversion method on high frequency data recorded by a dense underground seismic system in one of the largest underground mines in the world (Kiruna mine, Sweden). A stable algorithm for moment tensor inversion for comparatively small mining induced earthquakes, resolving both the double-couple and full moment tensor with high frequency data, is very challenging. Moreover, the application to underground mining system requires accounting for the 3-D geometry of the monitoring system. We construct a Green's function database using a homogeneous velocity model, but assuming a 3-D distribution of potential sources and receivers. We first perform a set of moment tensor inversions using synthetic data to test the effects of different factors on moment tensor inversion stability and source parameters accuracy, including the network spatial coverage, the number of sensors and the signal-tonoise ratio. The influence of the accuracy of the input source parameters on the inversion results is also tested. Those tests show that an accurate selection of the inversion parameters allows resolving the moment tensor also in the presence of realistic seismic noise conditions. Finally, the moment tensor inversion methodology is applied to eight events chosen from mining block #33/34 at Kiruna mine. Source parameters including scalar moment, magnitude, double-couple, compensated linear vector dipole and isotropic contributions as well as the strike, dip and rake configurations of the double-couple term were obtained. The orientations of the nodal planes of the double-couple component in most cases vary from NNW to NNE with a dip along the ore body or in the opposite direction.

Kiirunavaara (Kiruna) iron ore mine owned by LKAB (Sweden) is one of the largest underground mines. Miningstarted in 1898 as an open pit mine. In mid-1950, the mine started a transition to underground mining andpassed to only underground mining in 1962. More substantial problems with seismicity started in 2007-2008when the deepest mining level was 907 m (ca. 670 m below surface). By 2016, the mining production is at1,022–1,079 m Level (ca. 785–845 m below surface). More than one billion tonnes of ore have been extractedsince the beginning of mining. The average yearly production in recent years is 28 million tonnes.By 2016 the mine has the largest underground seismic system in the world with 204 operational geophones.The number of the sensors (geophones with natural frequencies of 4.5, 14, and a few of 30 Hz) changed withthe increasing of production depth. The major stages with seismic system upgrades are: August 2008–June2009 with 112 installed geophones, and July 2012–September 2013 with 95 installed geophones. During2016–2017 it is planned to install some additional 45 geophones.The study was carried out to identify some trends in seismicity as the mining goes deeper and to find thecorrelation with some main controlling parameters – volume and depth of the production in order to obtaininformation for future seismic hazard and risk analysis. Custom made applications within mXrap were utilisedto carry out the spatial variations of seismicity.The analysis showed substantial difference between the seismicity in the three studied blocks – 15/16, 28/30,and 33-37/34, with the weakest seismic activity in Block 15/16 (Mmax 1.6, maximum observed magnitude),followed by Block 28/30 (Mmax 2.2), and then largest seismicity in Block 33-37/34 (Mmax 2.2). The dailyseismicity rate increased substantially through the years only for Block 33-37/34. The seismicity correlatesstrongly with the production depth. In general a straightforward correlation between the production volumeand number of larger events (M > 0) was not found for the three studied blocks, assuming there are otherfactors affecting the seismicity, e.g. geological structures, areas with contrast in geomechanical properties,etc. The spatial variations of some seismic source parameters were traced for varying periods of time,depending on the major production stages (opening of new levels, full production, closing) for the threeblocks. The distributions of the cumulative seismic energy showed a maximum around and below theproduction. The cumulative seismic moment and number of events in most cases showed a maximum aroundand above the production, indicating caving in these areas. The static stress drop shows the largest valuesaround and below the production on the footwall side, corresponding also to the areas with increased stress.The energy index showed increased stresses in the same areas (EI > 1).This study is only the first overview of the seismicity in Kiruna Mine. For seismic hazard assessment and riskanalysis further more detailed studies with smaller time intervals need to be carried out to obtain more precisecorrelations between the seismic parameters and the production volume and depth, and other possible factorsaffecting seismicity (geological structures, areas with contrast geomechanical properties, etc.).

Forty-six mining-induced seismic events with moment magnitude between −1.2 and 2.1 that possibly caused damage were studied. The events occurred between 2008 and 2013 at mining level 850–1350 m in the Kiirunavaara Mine (Sweden). Hypocenter locations were refined using from 6 to 130 sensors at distances of up to 1400 m. The source parameters of the events were re-estimated using spectral analysis with a standard Brune model (slope −2). The radiated energy for the studied events varied from 4.7 × 10⁻¹ to 3.8 × 10⁷ J, the source radii from 4 to 110 m, the apparent stress from 6.2 × 10² to 1.1 × 10⁶ Pa, energy ratio (E_s/E_p) from 1.2 to 126, and apparent volume from 1.8 × 10³ to 1.1 × 10⁷ m³. 90% of the events were located in the footwall, close to the ore contact. The events were classified as shear/fault slip (FS) or non-shear (NS) based on the E_s/E_p ratio (>10 or <10). Out of 46 events 15 events were classified as NS located almost in the whole range between 840 and 1360 m, including many events below the production. The rest 31 FS events were concentrated mostly around the production levels and slightly below them. The relationships between some source parameters and seismic moment/moment magnitude showed dependence on the type of the source mechanism. The energy and the apparent stress were found to be three times larger for FS events than for NS events.

In order to assess the performance of ground support components and systems when subjected to seismic activity and strong ground motion, Luleå University of Technology together with three Swedish mining companies (Lundin Mining, LKAB and Boliden) started a three year research project in September 2014. The aim of the project is to develop new methods for evaluating the rock support performance in-situ that use all available information about i) the source of the seismic event (obtained from the seismic network in the mine and additional seismic sensors), ii) seismic loading (ground motion) recorded by temporary local seismic networks, and iii) the consequences of the seismic loading in terms of damage to the underground excavations and the rock support.The sites with high potential of seismic damage were defined after the historical damaging seismic events were reviewed and the mining-induced stress disturbance was investigated with 3D numerical models. As of 31 December 2015, four sites in three different mines have been instrumented. Geophones (in depth and at surface), multi-points extensometers and instrumented bolts were installed to monitor the ground motion, the deformation of the rock mass and the elongation of the bolts. Observation boreholes were drilled to investigate the rock lithology, structures as well as fracture distribution and development. The data from locally installed geophones will be integrated with seismic data recorded by the mine-wide network. For each monitoring point, all of the instruments and observation boreholes were located at very close area within 0.5-1 m distance from each other. These results will be used to establish the relationship between the dynamic loading and the response of rock mass and rock bolts. Additionally, laser scanning is used to measure the surface deformation of the whole volume of instrumented sites with time. Two damaging seismic events occurred near the instrumented sites after the instruments were installed and the results of site investigation show that installed instruments have captured the response of the rock mass and bolts due to production blasting and seismic events.

Road and railway tunnels in cold regions are often affected by problems related to water leakage and freezing temperatures. Water leakage in a tunnel leads to ice growth when the temperature goes below freezing and creates favourable environment for fallouts of shotcrete and rock. This paper presents results and observations from laboratory freezing – thawing experiments on rock blocks covered with shotcrete and focuses on the degradation of the shotcrete-rock interface due to ice growth.. The initiation and the development of freeze-induced micro cracks in shotcrete-rock interface were studied by continuously monitoring acoustic emissions (AE) and temperature. The clustering of the AE events during freezing and thawing indicates that micro cracks appeared in the shotcrete-rock interface and caused adhesion failure. The larger number of AE events in the panels, with access to water during freezing, confirmed that water contributes to material deterioration and also reduces the adhesive strength.

Three local seismic systems were installed by August 2015 in deep underground mines in Sweden – Zinkgruvan Mine (Lundin Mining AB), Garpenberg Mine (Boliden AB), and Kiirunavaara Mine (LKAB) as part of a project for developing new methods for Evaluating the Rock Support Performance (ERSP, Vinnova). The areas were chosen within the most probable volumes where large rockbursts can be expected. The local systems were installed at mine levels between 730 and 1150 m in different mines. The horizontal extend of each instrumented areas is between 70 and 100 m. The seismic system in each mine is a combination of uni-axial and three-axial 4.5 Hz geophones installed on the surface, in shallow (~0.5 m) and deeper (6-9 m) boreholes in profiles across drifts. These profiles are in close proximity to profiles with extensometers, instrumented bolts, and observation holes. The seismic systems are manufactured and installed by the Institute of Mine Seismology (IMS). The aim of the seismic systems is to record the seismic events that occur in the vicinity of the instrumented areas and provide valuable data about the variability of seismic waveforms around the underground openings and changes when seismic waves approach them. Data is used to study: 1) the attenuation/decrease of the maximum ground velocity (PPV) with the distance, especially at small distances; 2) site effects, including maximum amplitudes, predominant frequency, and duration of the seismic signals, 3) the attenuation/amplification of the seismic waves approaching the underground opening. The final aim is to obtain new information that can be used for improved requirements for the rock support design in rockburst prone areas.The installation of the seismic systems started in May 2015 (Zinkgruvan Mine) and was completed by August 2015. They run mostly in triggered mode with initial automatic arrival time picking and source parameter calculation and subsequent manual processing of seismic event of interest. More than 200,000 seismic events with magnitude from -4.5 to 2.0 were recorded by December 2015. At present only a small portion of all data was processed manually and the procedures for processing of the events were developed on this subset. The first results from the monitoring showed that there are differences in the amplitudes and shape of the seismic signals recorded by the sensors installed in deeper borehole (behind the most blast-damaged zone (6 – 9 m)) and close to the surface (0.5 m) or on the surface of the openings. There are also differences between the waveforms recorded on the walls and the roof along the same profiles or on nearby profiles. Data from the investigated rockbursts showed maximum velocity recorded from a seismic events at close distances with magnitude larger than 0.5 in the order of 10 cm/s with clipping levels 10 – 20 cm/s.

The Nakamura method, which involves horizontal-to-vertical spectral ratio (HVSR) analysis, is widely used for seismic microzonation studies. The noise from local traffic in city conditions presents a challenge for the application ofHVSR analysis. This article presents a technique developed for separation of the transient noise due to local traffic (high-level noise) and background ambient noise (low-level noise) and the application of theHVSR analysis to both partitions of the noise. This approach is applied to identify the predominant frequencies for almost 200 noise samples from the Greater Toronto area. The results demonstrated that the developed technique is effective and allows estimation of the fundamental resonant frequency in theHVSR in urban environment, even in the presence of intensive nearby traffic. The interpretation of the obtained results showed that, most probably, the lower (fundamental) frequency appears due to multiple reflections from the overburden/bedrock boundary. In some cases, a resonance with higher amplitude is dominant, and it is due to a contrast boundary between soil layers in the overburden

tudying the deterioration of shotcrete due to freezing and thawing is important for improvement of the understanding of the failure mechanisms/debonding of shotcrete in cold regions. Water leakage in a tunnel leads to ice growth during freezing temperature and ultimately creates favorable environment for fallouts of shotcrete and rock. Repeated freezing and thawing of shotcrete lead to development of new micro cracks and propagation of pre-existing micro cracks. In this study, test panels of granite with dimension 800 x 800 x 80 mm covered with 50-mm thick shotcrete were subjected to freezing and thawing action in a controlled environment. The initiation and the development of freeze-induced micro cracks in shotcrete-rock interface were studied by continuously monitoring acoustic emissions (AE) and temperature. The clustering of the AE events during freezing and thawing indicates that micro cracks appeared in the shotcrete-rock interface and caused adhesion failure. The larger number of AE events in the panels, with access to water during freezing, confirmed that water contributes to material deterioration and also reduces the adhesive strength. The test results showed that most of the acoustic emission occurred during the freezing cycle and the number of acoustic emission events did not increase with the successive increase of the number of freezing and thawing cycles.