Content Summary | Rock - drill bit interaction while drilling has
been modeled for many years but a complete
understanding of the phenomena occurring has
yet to materialize. Successful models will allow
the prediction of rate of penetration in a given
environment and optimal selection of drill bit
and drilling parameters thus minimizing exploration
costs. In most rock-drilling models the
value of the unconfined compressive strength of
the rock (UCS), one of the most important engineering
properties of rocks, is used in the predictive
equations, within the concept of specific
energy, and the value of UCS is the percentage
of the value of the stress applied on the drilling
bit in order for the bit to advance. While the exact
percentage depends on the model used and it
is not known with certainty, good knowledge of
UCS is never-the-less required before any decent
prediction can be made on rate of penetration.
Determination of UCS, normally done via
destructive testing, requires not only availability
of sound core samples, but also performance of
expensive testing and significant time for the
test, which many times is not available for routine
drillability predictions. Hence, a multitude
of methods and techniques has been proposed to
estimate UCS from various indirect and/or notdestructive
measurements, or combination of
measurements using neural networks, such as
point load index, block punch index, unit
weight, apparent porosity, water absorption by
weight, P-wave velocity and Schmidt hardness.
The many proposed approaches are critically reviewed
and the results are compared and what
becomes apparent is that after many years, not
only in mining but also in oil-well drilling, accurate
indirect determination of UCS is still an
elusive property. Various approaches are suggested
to enable better indirect determination of
UCS. | en |