scholarly journals Deep ice-core drilling performance and experience at NEEM, Greenland

2014 ◽  
Vol 55 (68) ◽  
pp. 53-64 ◽  
Author(s):  
Trevor J. Popp ◽  
Steffen B. Hansen ◽  
Simon G. Sheldon ◽  
Christian Panton
Keyword(s):  
Drilling Fluid ◽  
Ice Core ◽  
Borehole Diameter ◽  
Extended Version ◽  
Core Drilling ◽  
Drilling Operation ◽  
Design And Implementation ◽  
Drilling Performance ◽  
Drill Fluid ◽  
Drilling Operations

AbstractThe NEEM deep ice-core drilling in northwest Greenland was completed in summer 2010 after three seasons, which included establishing all drilling infrastructure. Normal drilling operations in the main borehole were declared terminated at 2537.36 m below the surface, when further penetration was stopped by a stone embedded in the ice in the path of the drill head. The design and implementation of the drilling operation strongly resembled the NGRIP drilling program. The NEEM drill was an extended version of the Hans Tausen (HT) drill, with specific modifications to optimize its use with the highly viscous Estisol-240/Coasol drill fluid used at NEEM. Modification to the drill and its performance in the new drilling fluid was largely satisfactory and successful. Throughout the drilling, special consideration was given to the way chips were transported and collected in a new chip chamber, including the consequences of drilling a larger borehole diameter than with previous drill operations that used the HT family of drills. The problems normally associated with warm ice drilling near the base of an ice sheet were largely absent at NEEM.

scholarly journals Production drilling at WAIS Divide

2014 ◽  
Vol 55 (68) ◽  
pp. 147-155 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kristina R. Slawny ◽  
Jay A. Johnson ◽  
Nicolai B. Mortensen ◽  
Christopher J. Gibson ◽  
Joshua J. Goetz ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Ice Core ◽  
Ice Sheet ◽  
Austral Summer ◽  
Snow Surface ◽  
Scientific Interest ◽  
High Quality ◽  
Core Drilling ◽  
Core Samples ◽  
Drill Fluid ◽  
Drilling Operations

AbstractThe deep ice-sheet coring (DISC) drill was used for production ice-core drilling at WAIS Divide in Antarctica for six field seasons between 2007 and 2013. Continuous ice-core samples were obtained between the snow surface and 3405 m depth. During the 2012/13 austral summer, the DISC drill’s newly designed replicate ice-coring system was utilized to collect nearly 285m of additional high-quality core samples at depths of high scientific interest. Annual progress graphs are described, as well as milestones achieved over the course of the project. Drilling operations, challenges encountered, drill fluid usage, drilling results, and the drill crew’s experiences with the DISC drill and replicate coring system during production drilling are described and discussed in detail. Core-processing operations are described briefly, as well as the logistical undertaking of the DISC drill’s deployment to Antarctica.

scholarly journals Technical innovations and optimizations for intermediate ice-core drilling operations

2014 ◽  
Vol 55 (68) ◽  
pp. 243-252 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jack Triest ◽  
Robert Mulvaney ◽  
Olivier Alemany
Keyword(s):  
Ice Core ◽  
Working Environment ◽  
Column Height ◽  
Drill Fluid ◽  
Drilling Operations ◽  
Remote Sites ◽  
James Ross Island ◽  
Technical Innovations ◽  
Set Up ◽  
Core Storage

AbstractThe British Antarctic Survey, in collaboration with Laboratoire de Glaciologie et Géophysique de l’Environnement, has in recent years successfully drilled to bedrock on three remote sites around the Antarctic Peninsula. Based on the experience from the multi-season project at Berkner Island (948m depth, 2002–05) we optimized the drill set-up to better suit two subsequent single-season projects at James Ross Island (363m depth, 2008) and Fletcher Promontory (654m depth, 2012). The adaptations, as well as the reasons for them, are discussed in detail and include a drill tent set-up without a trench; drilling without a borehole casing with a relatively low fluid column height; and using a shorter drill. These optimizations were aimed at reducing cargo loads and installation time while maintaining good core quality, productivity and a safe working environment. In addition, we introduce a number of innovations, ranging from a new lightweight cable tensioning device and drill-head design to core storage and protection trays. To minimize the environmental impact, all the drill fluid was successfully recovered at both sites and we describe and evaluate this operation.

scholarly journals The Berkner Island (Antarctica) ice-core drilling project

2007 ◽  
Vol 47 ◽  
pp. 115-124 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert Mulvaney ◽  
Olivier Alemany ◽  
Philippe Possenti
Keyword(s):  
Melting Point ◽  
Ice Core ◽  
Ice Sheet ◽  
Austral Summer ◽  
Core Drilling ◽  
Drilling Operation ◽  
Drilling Technology ◽  
Pressure Melting ◽  
Small Team ◽  
Drilling Project

AbstractWe describe a project to retrieve a 948m deep ice core from Berkner Island, Antarctica. Using relatively lightweight logistics and a small team, the drilling operation over three austral summer seasons used electromechanical drilling technology, described in detail, from a covered shallow pit and a fluid-filled borehole. A basal temperature well below pressure-melting point meant that no drilling problems were encountered when approaching the bed and the borehole penetrated through to the base of the ice sheet, and sediment was retrieved from beneath the ice.

Wellbore Shielding Technique Increases Operative Window, Avoiding Formation Instability and Losses, Minimizing NPT, and Optimizing Drilling Operations in the Unconventional Plays

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gaston Lopez ◽  
Gonzalo Vidal ◽  
Claus Hedegaard ◽  
Reinaldo Maldonado
Keyword(s):  
Drilling Fluid ◽  
Drilling Fluids ◽  
Wellbore Instability ◽  
Lost Circulation ◽  
Drilling Performance ◽  
Drilling Parameters ◽  
Vaca Muerta ◽  
Drilling Operations ◽  
Fracture Gradient ◽  
Vaca Muerta Formation

Abstract Losses, wellbore instability, and influxes during drillings operations in unconventional fields result from continuous reactivity to the drilling fluid causing instability in the microfractured limestone of the Quintuco Formation in Argentina. This volatile situation becomes more critical when drilling operations are navigating horizontally through the Vaca Muerta Formation, a bituminous marlstone with a higher density than the Quintuco Formation. Controlling drilling fluids invasion between the communicating microfractures and connecting pores helps to minimize seepage losses, total losses, wellbore fluid influxes, and instabilities, reducing the non-productive time (NPT) caused by these problems during drilling operations. The use of conventional sealants – like calcium carbonate, graphite, asphalt, and other bridging materials – does not guarantee problem-free drilling operations. Also, lost circulation material (LCM) is restricted because the MWD-LWD tools clearances are very narrow in these slim holes. The challenge is to generate a strong and resistant seal separating the drilling fluid and the formation. Using an ultra-low-invasion technology will increase the operative fracture gradient window, avoid fluid invasion to the formation, minimize losses, and stop the cycle of fluid invasion and instability, allowing operations to maintain the designed drilling parameters and objectives safely. The ultra-low-invasion wellbore shielding technology has been applied in various fields, resulting in significantly improved drilling efficiencies compared to offset wells. The operator has benefited from the minimization of drilling fluids costs and optimization in drilling operations, including reducing the volume of oil-based drilling fluids used per well, fewer casing sections, and fewer requirements for cementing intervals to solve lost circulation problems. This paper will discuss the design of the ultra-low-invasion technology in an oil-based drilling fluid, the strategy for determining the technical limits for application, the evaluation of the operative window with an increase in the fracture gradient, the optimized drilling performance, and reduction in costs, including the elimination of NPT caused by wellbore instability.

Widening Drilling Operation: Performance Analysis on the Application of Fixed Cutter Drill Bits in Hard Rock Formation

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeronimo De Moura ◽  
Yingjian Xiao ◽  
Daiyah Ahmed ◽  
James Yang ◽  
Stephen D. Butt
Keyword(s):  
Hard Rock ◽  
Empirical Models ◽  
Operation Performance ◽  
Rock Interaction ◽  
Pilot Hole ◽  
Drilling Operation ◽  
Rock Formation ◽  
Drilling Performance ◽  
Weight On Bit ◽  
Drilling Operations

Abstract This study is an evaluation of drilling mechanisms for widening drilling operations, which are also called hole opening or enlarge drilling operations, in hard rock formations during drilling operation with fixed cutter bits. This paper focuses on correlating drilling performance, or Rate of Penetration (ROP), with drilling parameters such as Weight on Bit (WOB), rotary speed, Torque on Bit (TOB) and bit type. Laboratory Drill-Off Tests (DOT) were conducted using a drilling simulator. Natural granite specimens were penetrated using different types of fixed cutter bits with different diameters. Various magnitudes of WOB were applied during these drilling experiments in order to study drilling performance in this type of formation. A well-organized drilling experimental plan was proposed to cover both procedures of pilot holes and widening drilling operations. Comparison were made between performance conditions obtained during the drilling operations of pilot holes and similar conditions during widening drilling operations. Furthermore, bit-rock interaction was studied by comparing experimental data with that obtained from empirical models. The focus of this paper was to analyze the ROP during each stage of the widening drilling operations of a pilot hole and its correlation with other parameters. The applicability of current empirical models and their limitations in widening drilling operations in hard rock formation was analyzed. In this way, this drilling model is applied in widening drilling operations of hard rock formation with fixed cutter bits.

scholarly journals Chinese First Deep Ice-Core Drilling Project DK-1 at Dome A, Antarctica (2011-2013): progress and performance

2014 ◽  
Vol 55 (68) ◽  
pp. 88-98 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nan Zhang ◽  
Chunlei An ◽  
Xiaopeng Fan ◽  
Guitao Shi ◽  
Chuanjin Li ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Drilling Fluid ◽  
Ice Core ◽  
Dome A ◽  
Auxiliary Equipment ◽  
Core Drilling ◽  
Pilot Hole ◽  
Four Seasons ◽  
The Status ◽  
And Performance ◽  
Drilling Project

AbstractThe Chinese First Deep Ice-Core Drilling Project DK-1 has commenced at Kunlun station in the Dome A region, the highest plateau in Antarctica. During the first season, within the 28th Chinese National Antarctic Research Expedition (CHINARE) 2011/12 the pilot hole was drilled and reamed in order to install a 100 m deep fiberglass casing. In the next season, 29th CHINARE 2012/13, the deep ice-core drilling system was installed, and all the auxiliary equipment was connected and commissioned. After filling the hole with drilling fluid (n-butyl acetate), three runs of ‘wet’ ice-core drilling were carried out and a depth of 131.24 m was reached. Drilling to the bedrock at the target depth of ∼3100 m is planned to be completed during a further four seasons. We describe the work in progress and the status of equipment for the Dome A drilling project.

Analytical and Numerical Modeling of Soil Cutting and Transportation During Auger Drilling Operation

2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohamed A. A. Abdeldayem ◽  
Mohamed H. Mabrouk ◽  
Mootaz Abo-Elnor
Keyword(s):  
Numerical Model ◽  
Nonlinear Behavior ◽  
Experimental Results ◽  
Measuring System ◽  
Dominant Factor ◽  
Drilling Process ◽  
Foundation Engineering ◽  
Drilling Operation ◽  
Drilling Performance ◽  
Drilling Operations

Abstract Soil drilling operation has become one of the most important interests to researchers due to its many applications in engineering systems. Auger drilling is one of the ideal methods in many applications such as pile foundation engineering, sampling test for geological, and space sciences. However, the dominant factor in determination of drilling parameters drilling operations experience. Therefore, soil-drilling process using auger drilling is studied to obtain the controlling parameters and to optimize these parameters to improve drilling performance which enables proper selection of machine for a required job. One of the main challenges that faces researchers during using of modeling techniques to define the soil drilling problem is the complex nonlinear behavior of the drilled medium itself due to its discontinuity and heterogeneous formation. This article presents two models that can be used to predict the total resistive forces which affect the auger during soil drilling operations. The first proposed model discusses the problem analytically in a way that depends on empirical data that can be collected from previous experience. The second model discusses the problem numerically with less depending on empirical experienced data. The analytical model is developed using matlab® interface, while the numerical model is developed using discrete element method (DEM) using edem software. A simplified auger drilling machine is built in the soil–tool interaction laboratory, Military Technical College to obtain experimental results that can be used to verify the presented models. Data acquisition measuring system is established to obtain experimental results using a labview® software which enables displaying and recording the measured data collected mainly from transducers planted in the test rig. Both analytical and numerical model results are compared to experimental values to aid in developing the presented parametric study that can be used to define the working parameters during drilling operations in different types of soils. Uncertainty calculations have been applied to ensure the reliability of the models. The combined calculated uncertainty leads to the level of confidence of about 95%.

Byrd Station drilling 1966–69

2007 ◽  
Vol 47 ◽  
pp. 24-27 ◽  
Author(s):  
Herbert T. Ueda
Keyword(s):  
Ethylene Glycol ◽  
Ice Core ◽  
Ice Sheet ◽  
Austral Summer ◽  
Average Diameter ◽  
Diesel Oil ◽  
Core Drilling ◽  
Us Army ◽  
Drilling Operation ◽  
The Us

AbstractAfter completion of the drilling by the US Army Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory (USA-CRREL) at Camp Century, Greenland, in July 1966, the operation was moved to Byrd Station, Antarctica, during the 1966/67 austral summer. The drill employed was an electromechanical cable-suspended drill that used ethylene glycol to dissolve the chips formed, producing a core with an average diameter of 114 mm. A mixture of diesel oil and trichlorethylene was used as a borehole fluid. Ice-core drilling at Byrd Station occurred from 2 to 18 February 1967 and from 12 October 1967 to 2 February 1968 when the ice sheet was penetrated at a depth of 2164 m. During the ensuing 1968/69 season the drill was lost, and ultimately the cable was severed in early 1969/70 at a depth of 1545 m. This brief report reviews the drilling operation and some of the problems encountered primarily during the 1967/68 season, with a focus on the last few days of drilling.

scholarly journals Drill fluid selection for the SUBGLACIOR probe: a review of silicone oil as a drill fluid

2014 ◽  
Vol 55 (68) ◽  
pp. 311-321 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Triest ◽  
O. Alemany
Keyword(s):  
Silicone Oil ◽  
Ice Core ◽  
Environmental Evaluation ◽  
Core Drilling ◽  
Drill Fluid ◽  
Silicone Oils ◽  
Selection For ◽  
Analytical System ◽  
Selection Of

AbstractAs part of the ICE&LASER/SUBGLACIOR projects, an innovative probe called SUBGLACIOR is developed with the aim of perforating the ice sheet down to depths of 3500 m in a single season and continuously measuring in situ the isotopic composition of the meltwater and the methane concentration in trapped gases. Ice chips generated by the electromechanical drilling will be removed from the borehole by circulating a drill fluid. The selection of this drill fluid is important as it will have a major impact on the performance and the environmental evaluation. A literature review of drilling liquids is carried out to select potential fluids for further detailed testing. The selected fluids are varying grades of silicone oils, known as linear polydimethylsiloxanes, and ESTISOL™ 140, an aliphatic ester. The requirements for this project are similar to those for other deep ice-core drilling projects but, due to the embedded analytical system and the speed of drilling, there are some specific considerations. Following extensive testing, we conclude that a silicone fluid with a kinematic viscosity of 3 mm2 s−1 (3 cSt) is ideally suitable and affordable. This evaluation provides new insights into the use of silicone oils as a drill fluid that are of use to the wider ice-core drilling community.

Analytical and Numerical Modeling of Soil Cutting and Transportation During Auger Drilling Operation

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohamed A. A. Abdeldayem ◽  
Mohamed H. Mabrouk ◽  
Mootaz Abo-Elnor
Keyword(s):  
Numerical Models ◽  
Experimental Results ◽  
Measuring System ◽  
Dominant Factor ◽  
Drilling Process ◽  
Foundation Engineering ◽  
Nonlinear Behaviour ◽  
Drilling Operation ◽  
Drilling Performance ◽  
Drilling Operations

Abstract Soil drilling operation has become one of the most important interest to researchers due to its many applications in engineering systems. Auger drilling is one of the ideal methods in many applications such as pile foundation engineering, sampling test for geological sciences and space. However, the dominant factor in determination of drilling parameters is real drilling operations experience, which may cause transportation blocking of chips that leads to accidents. As a result, soil drilling process using auger drilling is studied to obtain the controlling parameters and to optimize these parameters to improve drilling performance which enables proper selection of machine for a required job. One of the main challenges that faces researchers during using of modelling techniques to define the soil drilling problem is the complex nonlinear behaviour of the drilled medium itself due to its discontinuity and heterogeneous formation. This paper presents two models that can be used to predict the total resistive forces which affect the auger during soil drilling operation. The first proposed model discusses the problem analytically in a way that depends on empirical data that can be collected from previous experience while the second model discusses the problem numerically with less depending on empirical experienced data. The analytical model is developed using Matlab® interface while the numerical model is developed using discrete element method via EDEM® software. A simplified auger drilling machine is built in the soil-tool interaction laboratory, Military Technical College to obtain experimental results that can be used to verify the presented models. Data acquisition measuring system is established to obtain experimental results using a Labview® program. This program enables displaying and recording the measured data collected mainly from transducers planted in the test rig. Both Analytical and numerical models results are compared to experimental values to aid in developing the presented parametric study that can be used to define the working parameters during drilling operations in different types of soils.

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