Water and abrasive jetting, and mechanical techniques expedite hard rock drilling

Journal Article · Mon Apr 20 04:00:00 EDT 1998 · Oil and Gas Journal

OSTI ID:596992

Kolle, J J ^[1]

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1. Tempress Technologies Inc., Kent, WA (United States)

Construction activities that require the placement of gas, electrical, or communication utilities in hard rock will benefit from lightweight systems capable of precisely drilling short, constant-radius arcs. Existing mechanical drilling systems are capable of drilling shallow directional holes, but the equipment is heavy, drilling rates are low, and costs are high. A comparison of approaches for rapidly drilling small-diameter (25--50 mm) and near-surface holes along a short-radius (30 m) arc, in a variety of hard rock types, is describes. Four approaches are considered: (1) rotary diamond drilling with a downhole motor; (2) ultra-high pressure (UHP) water jet drilling; (3) mechanically assisted UHP water jet drilling; and (4) abrasive jet drilling -- abrasive water jet and abrasive slurry jet. Data relating mechanical and hydraulic drilling parameters for each approach were compiled from literature and drilling tests for all four techniques. The drilling data are summarized in a common format to provide direct drilling efficiency comparisons for: jet pressure and hydraulic power, and thrust and torque requirements and abrasive feed.

• OSTI ID: 596992
• Journal Information: Oil and Gas Journal, Journal Name: Oil and Gas Journal Journal Issue: 16 Vol. 96; ISSN 0030-1388; ISSN OIGJAV
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

03 NATURAL GAS
58 GEOSCIENCES
DIRECTIONAL DRILLING
DRILLING FLUIDS
HYDRAULIC EQUIPMENT
JET DRILLS
NATURAL GAS
PIPELINES
ROCK DRILLING
ROTARY DRILLS
UNDERGROUND POWER TRANSMISSION