Hydro-Tech Sonic and Environmental Drilling

Sonic Drilling A sonic drilling machine uses high frequency mechanical oscillations in order to achieve exceptional drilling rates. In earth drilling, the vibratory action causes the surrounding soil particles to fluidize at the tip of the drill bit, and along the sides of the drill pipe. This unique method of operation gives the machine the ability to perform tasks which cannot be accomplished by any other equipment. One of the main advantages of sonic drilling is the outstanding ability to take truly representative, continuous core samples. We case the hole, which ensures that there is no sample contamination from up-hole material. Then the core is gently extruded into plastic sleeves for onsite analysis, or for shipping. The core samples can be subjected to inch by inch analysis, in order to provide a precise and detailed stratigraphic profile of any overburden condition including: wet sand, gravel, clay, silt, boulder, permafrost and most rock. The sonic drill is environmentally friendly; monitoring wells can be easily installed through the cased hole before withdrawing the casing.

Sonic Technology The sonic system has many advantages, but the one that seems to be the most unique is its ability to obtain four inch continuous, relatively undisturbed, and very accurate core samples. These samples can be obtained for almost any overburden formation, with minimal use of air, water or mud. It also drills and samples through boulders, wood, concrete and other construction debris, which with conventional rigs usually causes refusal and necessitates moving and redrilling. The sonic system can also drill and sample most of the softer bedrock formations such as sandstone, limestone, shale and slate with excellent results, which is a specialty of Traut Hydro-Tech. The sonic rig has been used to depths of more than 500 feet and is also much faster than using other boring methods. Depending on soil conditions, it can be as much as three times faster than hollow-stem auger rig operations. Other very important aspects are the smooth rod and casing drill strings along with the hydraulic breakout assembly of our sonic rig. These virtually eliminate the need for hand tools, making the operation of this rig much safer than most conventional rigs. Since all of us at Traut Hydro-Tech are committed to safety, just as your company undoubtedly is, improved safety is another advantage of the sonic rig.

Sonic Drill Applications Traut Hydro-Tech Specialties: Environmental Monitoring Exploration Drilling Geochemical Drilling Geological Research Geotechnical Studies of Hazardous Waste Sites Geotechnical Drilling Glacial Drift Exploration in Till and Sand Glacial Sediments: Clay, Sand, Gravel and Boulder Tills Hazardous Waste Site Sampling Landfill Sites, Sub-Surface Investigations Mining Exploration Overburden Drilling Sandstone and Limestone Sampling Test Boring for Municipal Wells Ground Source Heat Loops Anchors Earth and Most Bedrock Blast Holes Boulder Clay Drilling Construction Drilling De-Watering Projects Explosives Placement Glacial Deposits Hydro Tower Anchors Mineral Exploration Old Riverbeds with Boulders Pipeline Soil Sampling Pipeline Piles Seismic Shot Hole Drilling Tunneling

Sonic Advantages Sampling and well installations are faster compared to drilling with cable tool, hollow-stem augers, or rotary methods. True continuous sampling with larger volume as compared to split-spoon sampling. Very accurate depiction of the stratigraphy and lithology of any overburden and most bedrock formations. The ability to drill through most bedrock, cobble, boulder, sand, hard till, frost, sandstone, limestone, shale and other obstructions without compromising sample volume or integrity and without redrilling because of refusal. This is a specialty of Traut Hydro-Tech. Reduction or elimination of sloughing or difficulties with heaving sand conditions. Well installations are quick, controlled and positive because of the ability to vibrate the outer casing during removal which eliminates the bridging of the annulus well construction materials. Elimination of direct contact with the sample by field personnel and reduction of the possibility of external contamination by work surfaces because samples are contained within the core barrel and extruded into plastic sleeves at the surface. Temporary screens, hydro punches or soil probes can be advanced and set with the sonic drill rig to sample soil, soil gas or groundwater. Full environmental insurance coverage is maintained. When questions arise regarding the soil borings being drilled, the samples make it is a lot easier to understand the soils in the boring, enabling your field personnel to relate to the soil and answer important questions. Containerization of all drilling fluids and cuttings Full mud systems / shaker to recycle drilling fluid while removing cuttings

Consolidated Drilling Information by Mark Kerasotes, Unimin Corporation (client of Traut Companies) Recent advancements in sonic rock drilling technology have helped bridge the gap between standard mud rotary core drilling and traditional sonic drilling applications. As a geologist for an industrial mineral mining company, we historically have encountered difficulties in finding the appropriate drilling method to achieve satisfactory sample recovery at our lightly to moderately consolidated deposits. Prior to 10 years ago, a combination of solid-stem auger, hollow-stem auger, hammer split-spoon, and air rotary drilling methods were used for drilling our unconsolidated deposits. The advent and evolution of traditional sonic drilling technology has allowed us to supplant many of the above mentioned drill methods with sonic drilling. Our experience has shown us that traditional sonic drilling typically provides both higher recovery and better drilling production rates when compared to historic unconsolidated drilling methods. In addition, the cost of traditional sonic drilling has been reduced in recent years to levels comparable to core and hammer split-spoon drilling primarily due to increased vendor experience and equipment availability. So what is the problem? Unfortunately the performance of traditional sonic drilling in many of our deposits is not satisfactory. The geology of these deposits typically consists of moderately consolidated rock that is too soft for constant mud rotary core recovery and too hard for traditional sonic. For these deposits, we historically have used a HQ mud rotary core method with limited success. Typical core recoveries ranged from 30 to 90%. To supplement the lost core, washed cutting samples were carefully collected in the missing core intervals. In more recent years, traditional sonic drilling was used at these sites with marginal success. Problems encountered were limited penetration rates and excessive bit wear. The advent of the latest sonic drilling technology, sonic rock drilling, has in our opinion helped fill the drilling application void presented by the moderately consolidated rock deposits. In cooperation with one of our drilling vendors (Traut Hydro-Tech), this new sonic drilling methodology has been refined over the last 6 years and now has proven itself to be the primary drilling solution for these problematic deposits. Due to proprietary reasons, we are not at liberty to discuss the details of the sonic enhancements and defer this part of the discussion to Traut Hydro-Tech. However, we can report that driller experience and an ongoing commitment to provide a quality product are critical elements for successful application of this new sonic drilling method.

Unconsolidated Drilling Information from Nancy Argyle, Director of Marketing and Communications, Sonic Drill Corporation Home to the rarest, coarsest silica sand in the world, drilling in the Mississippi area has more than its share of challenges but, thanks to those unique deposits, the area is also a hotbed of mineral exploration. In addition to establishing a number of successful mining operations, it’s also an area where sonic drilling has established its reputation for being the only method able to accurately core in unconsolidated materials. “The sonic gives the ability to drill all the types of soils in the same hole without a lot of trouble,” says Daryl Karasch, a sonic drilling foreman for Traut Hydro-Tech. With more than six years experience using a drill head manufactured by the Sonic Drill Corporation, Karasch says he’s drilled an average of 17,000 feet per year in 18 different states. “About 70% of our work is mine expansion and the other 30% is in environmental,” he adds. While mineral exploration in unconsolidated material has always been a risky proposition - primarily because there was no economical, versatile or accurate method of determining where to mine – the development of the sonic drill head has changed all that. Only a sonic drill can recover a continuous core including boulders, clays, silt, sand and gravel and lay it on its stratigraphic sequence – from the surface down to bedrock 300 feet (100 m) and beyond. The samples are then extruded into clear plastic sleeves. Neatly laid out, these core samples can be subjected to a detailed visual examination and analysis, followed by sampling, photographing and archiving for a permanent record of the existing mineral conditions. “We have had sands, clays, shale, sandstones and limestone all in the same hole and have had a 99% recovery rate,” says Karasch. “It’s the quality of core samples that makes it so successful,” he adds. While not wanting to mention the competitors’ names, Karasch goes on to explain how his sonic drill rig has often outperformed other rigs on the sites he has worked on. “In many cases, we are doing 3-1 what everyone else is doing,” he says. On one mine expansion site, where a sonic drill was finally called in, seven other companies had already tried and failed to produce the needed results. As it turned out, even the famous silica sand of the Mississippi was no match for a sonic.