Updated: 12th Nov 2018

Production drilling
and
Exploratory drilling,
Drillability of rocks
Dr. A. K. Verma
 Introduciton
• Drilling is an important unit operation in mining
• Drilling is required for variety of mining or mining-related activities
including
– Placement of explosives (Blasting), support installation i.e rock bolt, anchors,
cables etc, utility installation i.e electrical and telephone line, water line,
exploration, and much more.
• Drilling is used for smaller diameter holes, with a few exceptions such
as shaft drilling and raise drilling
• Most borehole drilled for mine production or placement of explosive
are known as blastholes and process is known as Production drilling.
• Most of the production drilling is performed by two primary methods
– Percussive drilling or rotary-percussive drilling
– Rotary drilling
Drilling
• Exploratory Drilling or Diamond core drilling
– Conventional coring
o In this method of drilling is used for acquiring rock samples. To retrieve the
core samples, the complete rod string and core barrel assembly has to be
removed from the hole.
– Wireline coring
o In this method of drilling it possible for the core sample to be retrieved from
the bottom of the hole without removing the entire rod string.
o To retrieve the core sample, an overshot is lowered inside the drill rods on a
wireline cable until it latches onto the spearhead point of the core barrel
head assembly. Positive latching lifting dogs securely attach, and the core
barrel inner tube containing the core sample is retracted to the surface
using the wireline cable and winch.

• Production Drilling
– Development
– Exploitation/ Production
Exploratory drilling
Core is defined as a volumetric cylinder of
material, created by the advancement of a
rotating hollow centered diamond drill bit
through an in-situ formation, and subsequently
removed.

Core recovery is a quantifiable measurement

defined as the total linear amount of physical
core sample extracted over the total linear
advance in a borehole, expressed as a
percentage.
 Video
Comparing
both
The core being created is encapsulated methods

within, and subsequently extracted by, a

retrievable sampling device called a Video
Wireline
core barrel. The core barrel is a coring
Video-1
Core mechanically designed device
Barrel consisting of many interconnected
engineered components. It is Video Core
Sampling
Video-2 connected to a consumable core
Core
Barrel drilling bit. As the drill bit penetrates
samplin through the rock, it creates a core in its
g wake, entering the core barrel until it’s
recipient tube is full. After which sample
recipient tube is removed, emptied of its
core, replaced and drilling resumed.
Diamond Drill Bits for Exploratory
drilling
Impregnated Diamond Core Bits
are manufactured with very
small, high quality synthetic
diamonds, mixed evenly through
a metal alloy matrix. The matrix
erodes away at the same rate as
the diamonds become worn and
rounded. Thus new sharp
diamonds are exposed to
continue cutting through the
rock. In most geological
formations, impregnated bits are
more economical to use than
other bits.
Standard Diamond Drill Core Size
Core drilling: the main objective of core drilling is to produce
the core of high quality. The core sample is used to check
the mineral content and the quality of the rock or the soil.
Core drilling is a rotary cutting drilling method in which ring
shaped drill bit on with cutting tools for example tungsten
carbide (or artificial diamond) is forced against the rock
rotated clockwise at a high speed. A round bar called core
sample is cut out of the rock/ soil. The most common area of
application of core drilling are exploration drilling, definition
drilling and site investigation.
Diameter AQ BQ NQ NQ2 NX HQ PQ
Dia. (mm) 27 36.5 47.6 50.5 54.7 63.5 85.8
Exploratory Drilling
Exploration determines as accurately as possible the size and
value of mineral deposit.
During exploration, the samples can be obtained from chipping
outcrop, trenching, tunneling and drilling. The borehole logs are
used to study the geologic and structural makeup of the deposit.
The samples may be subjected to chemical, metallurgical, X ray,
spectrographic, or radiometric evaluation techniques that are
used to enhance the knowledge of mineral deposits.
Core barrels are used to collect the borehole logs. The different
types of Core barrels are as follows:
– Single-tube core barrel
– Double-tube rigid type of core barrel
– Swivel type double-tube core barrel with core lifter located in the bit
– Swivel type double-tube core barrel with core lifter mounted on the inner
tube
Core Barrel
Single Tube core barrel
The single tube core barrel is composed of a tube acting as an
extension of the bit-body as well as core receiver. The assembly is
made of a head, an outer tube, a reaming shell, a diamond bit and
core lifter located in the bit assembly
• Advantages:
– Low capital cost
– Common design
– Good performance in hard and compact rock formation.
• Disadvantage:
– Very poor diamond bit performance in fractured formation
– Poor core recovery, core gets damaged while drilling
– Broken core pieces get blocked in the barrel
– Bit erosion due to re-drilling of core fragments
Double tube core barrel
The outer tube acting as an extension of the bit body and an inner tube
acting as a core receiver. The complete assembly consists of a head, an
outer tube, and an inner tube, which are connected and rotate
simultaneously, a reaming shell, a bit and a core lifter located in the bit.
• Advantages
– Protection of the greater part of the core
– Annular space separating the inner and outer tubes allows
passage of the circulating fluid, thereby preventing excessive
core wash.
– Good performance
– Enables coring of relatively firm and compact formations, which is
not possible with the single-tube core barrel.
• Disadvantages
– Low performance in fractured rock
– Poor core recovery in fractured rock formations.
Modified double tube core barrel
This is known as Swivel type double-tube core barrel with
core lifter mounted on the inner tube. The assembly consists
of a swivel head, an outer tube, an inner tube connected
to the swivel head, a reaming shell, a bit and a core lifter
located in the bit.
• Advantages:
– Core protected as soon as it enters the inner tube
– Outer tube rotates but the inner tube remains stationary.
The core is thus protected against erosion and crushing.
• Disadvantage
– It is necessary to pull up the whole rod string for each core
recovery.
 Main functional components of any
drilling system
1. Drill (source of energy)
2. Drill steel (transmitter)
3. Bit (applicator)

• Drill is a prime mover, it converts energy from its

original form (hydraulic, pneumatic, electric, diesel)
into mechanical energy to actuate the system.
• The drill steel transmits energy from the prime mover
or source to the bit.
• The bit is the applicator of energy in the system,
attacking rock mechanically to achieve
penetration.
 Drill – source of energy

Drill Steel –
energy transmitter

Drill bit –
applicator of energy

Three types of drills (or application of source of energy):

A-top hammer drill; B- DTH drill; C- Simple rotary drill
a) tip, b) bit, c) rod, d)sleeve, e) drill pipe; f) piston; g) cylinder, h) percussive
mechanism, i) rotary mechanism; j) flushing.
 Video Top Hammer Drill
THD
• A top hammer is so called because it always remains at the top of the drill
string and hence out of the hole.

• It creates impacts by causing to and from movement of a piston

contained within it. In addition, it also generates rotary motion through a
motor within it.

• Top hammer gives fastest penetration rates in hard rocks. The diameter of
holes that can be drilled with THD is usually within 38 mm to 152 mm.

• The efficiency of top hammer drilling reduces rapidly as more drill holes are
added to reach greater depth. Drilling holes deeper than 50 m with THD is
difficult because of the energy lost at the connections of the drill rods.
 DTH Drilling Video Down the Hole Hammer Drill

• A DTH hammer is attached to the bottom of the drill string followed by a drill bit. A
DTH hammer always goes inside the hole along with the bit.

• The movement of the piston in the DTH hammer is caused by compressed air. The
rotary movement for drilling is generated by the rotary head in the drill and is
passed on to the drill bit through drill string components and DTH hammer.

• DTH hammers give fast penetration rates in hard rocks. The diameter of holes that
are usually made is within 100 mm to 200 mm. Many large hammers, used with
specially built drills, are capable of drilling holes of diameter upto 900 mm and in
case of especially built hammers even to 1500 mm.

• Holes of depth 1000 m or even more can be drilled by DTH drilling as the impact
energy used for drilling is generated right above the bit and is, therefore not lost in
transmission.
Bit used for production drilling
• Percussive drilling
– Button bit Cross bit
– X-bit Tapered
– special designs are known as button bit
– Retrac bits,
– Reaming bits,
– Drop center bits, and
– Ballistic bits.

• Rotary drilling
– Tricone roller bit
Bits: Rotary – Percussive drilling

Button Bits
• These bits have buttons or cylindrical inserts of tungsten carbide
distributed in various pattern on the face.
• Button bits are better adapted to rotary drilling.
• They are also more wear resistant.
Insert Bits Button bit
• There are two design configurations: 1) cross bits and 2) X-bits
• CROSS BIT consists of four tungsten carbide inserts at 90o apart.
• In X-bits have four inserts at right angles to 75o and 10o to each
other.
• Cross bits are manufactured from 35 mm to 57 mm dia.
• X-bits from 64 mm and higher.

Cross bit
Bit - THD
• Bits for THD are of various shapes
• Cross bit consist of cross-shaped bit with four chisel-shaped
tungsten carbide (TC) inserts
• For harder rock, chisel-shaped bits are replaced with button bits.
• Longer, pointed inserts are used for softer rock, while shorter,
rounded inserts are used for harder rock.
 Rotary Bits

Claw or Klaw bits

Tricone roller bits

o Epsilon bits
o Omega bits PDC bits
(Polycrystalline Diamond Compact)
Drilling – based on mechanical
operation
• Percussive drilling
– With small hole sizes (dia. up to 150 mm), the impact and rotation of the
bit used to fracture the rock is transmitted from the drill (top hammer) to
the bit through a drill rod or series of drill rods coupled together
– With larger hole sizes (dia from 75 mm to 508 mm) the hammer is located
down-the-hole (DTH) or in-the-hole (ITH) at the bottom of the drill string
immediately above the bit, and the impact is transmitted directly to the
bit.

• Rotary drilling
– Drag bit are used for 75-250 mm holes in soft rock
– Tricone bits are used for 75-300 mm holes in medium and harder rock
– Larger roller bits are used for holes larger than 300 mm
Percussive Drilling
• Rock is broken by combination of rotation of the bit and high-frequency
percussive impacts transmitted by the bit to the rock.
• The percussive impact is delivered by either pneumatic or hydraulic
pressure.
• The depth of THD is limited to approximately 76m, due mainly to losses in
energy transfer at joints in the drill string.
• Larger and dipper holes can be achieved using DTH drills.
– In DTH drilling, compressed air is supplied through the drill rod to drive the
hammer, which is located immediately behind the bit.
– The compressed air activates the a hammer that delivers impact directly to the
bit.
– This eliminates the load of impact energy in joints and is a more efficient
mechanism of percussive drilling.
– Rotation of the bit is provided by the motor at the top and transferred through
the drill string.
• Diameter of drill rod 150 mm or more, helps limit deviation of the hole,
which improves drilling accuracy
Indexing in percussive drilling

• For efficient drilling with single or

multiple type cutting wedges, the bit
must rotate as each blow is applied Indexing
angle

to the drill rod. Rotation of the bit

presents a new surface to the bit for
each blow, causing chipping,
crushing and consequently
penetration. This is known as indexing One blow, angular

and the angular twist for each of the

Gap between each successive
Blow is known as indexing

successive blows is known as indexing

angle.
Down-the-Hole Hammer (DTH)

• A DTH rig consists of hammer, drill string, rotary head, mounting and air
compressor. The hammer is compressed‐air operated and compressed air,
a constant supply as well as the hammer exhaust air, constitutes the
flushing medium. The rotary head can be either air or hydraulically
powered. The mounting can be simple wagon‐drill style frame, a crawler
unit or a large truck. The frequency of blows is 600 – 1600 Blows per Min.
• DTH is a percussive device in cylindrical form with integral drill bit that is
fitted directly onto the bottom of a drill string. DTH is one of the most
efficient ways of drilling rock, using a rapid hammer action to break the
rock into sizeable chips which are then evacuated from the bore hole by
the air exhausted from the DTH Hammer. The technique provides fast
drilling of accurately aligned, straight and clean holes in most ground
conditions.
• Advantages
– Suitable for all types of rock (except clay)
– Greater versatility in terms of hole sizes
– Low capital outlay
– Simple and easy to operate
 DTH drilling
• The energy available for each impact is lower than for a percussive
drifter.
• The piston diameter for the DTH drill in comparison to the blast
hole diameter, is less. Unlike the jack hammer top hammer drills.
• To improve the drilling speeds, higher air pressures are in use. The
general operating air pressure are 10.5 ‐21kg/sq.cm.
• Because of the limitation of piston size in DTH drilling imposed by
the hole wall, power improvement can only be obtained by:

– Increasing the air pressure

– Increasing the stroke, or
– Decreasing the piston weight .

The general diameter ranges of blast holes by DTH : 60‐132mm

DTH Drilling
• Advantages
– Advantages of DTH Drilling longer tube life than that of the rods and sleeves.
– Very small blast‐hole deviation , making it ideal for long hole drilling.
– Lower energy consumption – the specific energy requirements are the lowest even compared to
top hammer percussive drilling.
– Less rotary torque needed than in other drilling methods.
– No loading bars are necessary and with small rigs it is possible to drill large diameter holes are
greater depths.
– The cost of drilling is lower compared to any type of drilling.
– Air consumption is lower than the top hammer percussive drills.
– The noise levels are lower as the hammer is inside the blast hole and very close to the rock face.
– Energy loss due to flexural strain is least as the piston hammer at the bottom of the hole and
maximum energy is transferred to the rock.
• Disadvantages
– One of the disadvantages of using DTH equipment has been the poor or inconsistent life
expectancy of bits.
– Bits are massive and are more expensive and the bit wear are very high compared to the top
hammer percussive drills. One of the reasons is that the short distance between the piston and
rock face
Rotary Drilling
• With rotary drilling, the drill bit is rotated by applying torque at the
end of the drill string, which results in removal of chips from the face
of the hole. Power for bit rotation and penetration is either diesel or
electric.
• Tricone bits are traditional bits used for rotary drilling since 1900 and
later on drag-type bits like polycrystalline diamond compact (PDC)
bit is also popular since 1976. PDC are expensive and used for
relatively deep holes.
• Rate of advance (P, m/h) for rotary drilling is a function of the rate
of rotation (R, rpm) , bit diameter (D,mm), weight on the bit (W,t),
and rock mass properties ( , MPa) and expressed by following
relation (Calder, 1973)
214 98 0.145 ⁄ 250
New Developments in Production
Drilling
• Computer controlled drilling system since 1990
• Automatically locate collar of hole, based on a preprogrammed blast round
design, and incorporate real-time monitoring and optimization of the drilling.
• In surface mining, drill rigs are fitted with GPS systems, allowing for better
control of the drill-hole locations.
• Optimization of drilling parameters such as feed rate, weight on bit, and
torque to achieve highest possible penetration rate.
• In underground mine, multiboom jumbo drills can be programmed to drill the
desired blasthole patterns automatically, through coordination with an
automatic surveying and guidance system, and simultaneously monitor the
drilling parameters and optimize the control parameters.
• Interfaces also exists that allow for ground characterization while drilling by
comparing the current drilling rates and other parameters with stored data
for drilling in similar rock types. In this manner rock properties can be
estimated. LWD – Logging while drilling,
• Directional drilling application in oil well drilling.
Factors influencing Drilling
• Drilling is a 3D phenomena and is influenced by
many factors. Amongst them the most
important are:
– Bit types and their geometry
– Applied thrust/normal force and rotational speed
– Flushing media and flushing rate
– Rock properties.

The first three are controllable parameters and

the last (rock parameters) is not.
Drillability of Rocks
• The performance of a drilling system
is usually represented by the
drillability of rocks, which is defined as
the real or projected rate of
penetration on a given rock type.
• Drillability index may be considered
as relative indication of this property
for different drilling systems such as
percussive, rotary, and rotary-
percussive.
• Factors influencing the Drillability
of rocks
– Hardness and Abrasivity of rocks
– Rock texture- textural coefficient
– Strength properties , and
– Specific energy
The character of the strata may be
obtained in one or more of the
following ways:-
1. Sludge samples
– In the percussive method of drilling, the nature of the strata may be judged
from the cuttings brought up by the sludger. It is impossible, however, to judge
the exact position, thickness, or nature of particular beds or coal seams.
2. Examination of chippings
– In drilling methods using hollow rods and circulating water or mud-flush, the
chippings screended from each 1 m of drilling may be collected and stored.
Representative samples of these may be taken and carefully washed, being
then dried and put into glass tubes, labelled with the depth and date, and
filed in a rack in order of depth. This gives fairly complete record of the drilling,
although the chippings are bound to be mixed samples and can only permit
the indentification of the main formations passed through, within the limits of
about 3 m. Individual thin beds can not be identified.
3. Rate of penetration
– The rate at which a given type of drill running at a given speed passes through
the different layers of rock depends on the hardness or toughness of the rock
and valuable information may be obtained if a careful record is kept of the
various rates of penetration. A sudden increase in the rate, for example, may
indicate that a coal seam or soft rock formation has been reached.
The character of the strata may be
obtained in one or more of the
following ways:-
4. Rotary core-drilling
– By this method, a complete core of the strata passed through may be obtained, step by
step. Each core brought to the surface, of course, must be clearly marked as to depth for
ready identification, carefully washed to free it fo mud, and stored under cover an dis
proper sequence in a series of numbered racks. To obtain good coal cores required the use
of a double-tube core barrel. Core drilling wanbles the chemical and physical properties of
a coal seam, and the nature of its roof and floor, to be precisely determined.
5. Whipstock cores
– In holes drilled by non-coring methods, if it is desired to obtian cores of important beds, the
hole may be plungged with cement up to a point above the beds concerned and a drill-
deflecting wedge (or shipstock) inserted to enable a new hole, approximately parallel to
the original hole, to be bored by means of a coring tool. This method secures the
advantages of rapid drilling through possibly thundereds of meter of strata, whilst giving
precise information at vital points.
6. Schlumberger methods
– These make use of the physical properties of the rocks passed through and of the
conductivity of the water of fluid enclosed in the rocks or flowing through them. To give the
desired information it is usual to combine the results from resistivity, self-potential, micro-
cored hole is available as a basis of comparison, it becomes possible to identify the beds in
succession and to correlate the strata from borehole to borehole.