D ee P H o L e DR i LL e R 1 2013 19 M a R k E t PL a c E Atlas Copco says new method for directional drilling can cut deep hole time cost by more than half A tlas Copco Secoroc has patented a revo lutionary method for directional pneu matic drilling The new method has the po tential to cut directional deep hole drilling time by half and to cut costs by more than 50 perce nt by increasing penetra tion rates r e d u c i n g v i b r a t i o n s e l i m i n a t i n g e q u i p m e n t damage and enhancing bit performance Jef f White an Atlas Copco downthe hole oil and gas product specialist said The solution is beautiful for its simplicity G enerally speaking the method s trategical l y p l a c e s a j e t su b i n t he d r i l l st r i n g a n d u se s specifcally modifed hammer components to control fow White said Previous to using a jet sub the fow required to ef fectively clean the hole had to pass through the hammermotor assembly That caused the motor to over rotate resulting in ineffcient drilling with excessive wear and damage to the bit W ith the new method excess fow is re l e ase d t hrough one or more j et subs a bove t he b ot t om hol e a sse m b l y T hi s m a na ge s airfow through the motor when the ham mer is in operation and allows the bit to turn at the correct speed The result is a bet ter penetration rate with reduced vibration levels Modifcations incorporated into the At las Copco Secoroc TD 90 DT QL 120 DT and QL 60 HF HC hammers keep the ham mer fowpressure profle the same on bot tom as they do of f bottom which main tains constant rotation speed This prevents whipping of the bottom hole assembly caused by the sudden increase in motor ro tation due to high airfow rates while of f bottom which can lead to motor damage V ibration levels caused by whipping could also destroy expensive tools such as an elec t r o m a g n e t i c m e a su r e m e n t wh i l e d r i l l i n g EMMWD system Atlas Copco s EDGE drill monitor plays a part in the new method as well Mount ed on the rotary head the EDGE sensor can detect and translate hammer percus sion through vibration signals into data and easytoread graphics on its display screen The driller sees changes in operating char acteristics of the hammer in real time mak ing instantaneou s adjustments in operating p a r a m e t e r s t o o p t i m i z e r a t e o f p e n e t r a tion and avoid damage to the bottom hole assembly Some contractor companies have plans to use this new method for vertical drilling as well as horizontal Atlas Copco Secoroc has designed a very simple and reliable drillin g system White said It s a gamechanger In 12 months I expect every operator in the Ap palachian Basin will be using this method Bit faces on Atlas Copco oil and gas line are standardized A tlas Copco has a standard assortment in its oil and gas bit line All bits are available with the R4 one piec e retriev al system or standard head with fshing threads There are three face designs to choose from Standard Face XHG Face and XAG Face T h e St a nd a r d Fa c e u se s a l l 19 m m inserts with two blow holes An XHG Face is designed for more robust rock conditions and uses 78 22 mm inserts on the gage and second row with 22 mm in the face These bits are a threewing blow hole design The toughest rock conditions and the newest de sign to Atlas Cop co s of fering is the XAG Assi st e d Gage face design This design uses 78 22 mm inserts on the gage and gage assist row with 19 mm on the second row and face This is also a threewing blow hole designed bit All three bits are available in Q8 T9 and Q12 shanks The most common insert confgurations on oil and gas bits are dia mond gage row inserts or fullface diamond inserts but other insert confgurations are available These confgurations also come with or without gage protection inserts