Boart Longyear will present the advantages of sonic drilling over conventional surface drilling during MINExpo International 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada, from September 26 to 28. It says its drillers “are the industry’s most experienced in sonic drilling”, which dates back to the 1990s. Its LS™250 MiniSonic™ rig, which is proving to be the ideal solution for a wide range of applications, will be on display.

Sonic drilling utilizes high-frequency, resonant energy to advance a core barrel or casing into subsurface formations. During drilling, the resonant energy is transferred down the drill string to the bit face at various sonic frequencies. Simultaneously rotating the drill string evenly distributes the energy and impact at the bit face.

“Although adoption of sonic drilling technology has been gradual, drilling contractors and other professionals are now seeing it as the solution for a variety of needs, including geotechnical, environmental, water and mining applications,” said Shayne Drivdahl, Vice President, Global Engineering for Boart Longyear. “They recognize that sonic offers many benefits that traditional core drills simply cannot provide.”

Drivdahl, an expert on the advantages of sonic drilling over conventional surface drilling methods, will discuss those advantages during MINExpo. His presentation, How Sonic Drilling Can Increase Your Rate of Return, will be on Tuesday, September 27, in the North Building, Upper Concourse, Room N257.

Among the benefits of sonic drilling over conventional technologies in appropriate applications is the superior information provided by the continuous, relatively undisturbed core sample of unparalleled quality and accuracy through any type of soil – clay, till, loose or heaving sand, gravel, boulders or cobbles.

Sonic drilling also reduces drill spoils and waste by up to 80 percent relative to conventional drilling methods, causes minimal disturbance to the surrounding borehole wall and is up to two to three times faster than conventional overburden drilling methods.

“Sonic drilling is certainly still within its adoption phase,” said Drivdahl. “However, these and other advantages are becoming more and more apparent to clients in real-world situations.”