Well Drilling for Fracking
The process of well drilling is nothing new to the natural gas and oil industries, but these were not the first types of wells that were used. Water was the first resource that mankind drilled into the ground in an attempt bring it to the surface and recover it. These early wells were dug by hand and not very deep. To support the sides many were lined with masonry block.
The modern process of drilling a borehole is much more complicated. The shafts are longer and narrower. Because of the number of wells being drilled and the increased companies performing this process, regulations and regulating agencies have been established to set limits and define the process.
Today, there is the International Association of Drilling Contractors (IADC) that has defined the process to help guide and standardize the industry. The limits on the downhole pressure and hydraulic pressure profiles can be found in the Managed Pressure Drilling (MPD).
Part of this process is the use of the appropriate drill bit. The soil is generally categorized into one of three conditions. There is soft, medium, and hard.
The soft condition is generally made up of sand, clays, shale, and soft limestone. The soil is considered medium when calcites, hard limestone, hard shale, and dolomites are present. Hard soil conditions are when hard shale, mudstones, and cherty limestone are in the ground being drilled.
For the most part when drilling a well for the natural gas and oil industry, one of two types of bits will be used. The drag bit is a polycrystalline diamond compact hammer bit (PDC bit) that is used in the soft soil conditions. The second, used on deep holes, is the roller bit that has teeth on wheels that crush the rock in the path of the borehole.
One little known fact of well drilling is that this is the most widely known use of diamonds in the world. They will never look good on a finger, but they can cut through rock like butter.
You might be wondering what well drilling has to do with Transloading. This blog is sponsored by TranZ a freight handling company that specializes in delivering goods and materials to the Marcellus Shale fracking sites. You may contact TranZ by CLICKING HERE.
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