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Lucas Starke

CE 3740

HW #25

An Introduction to Drilling and Sampling in Geotechnical Practice


1. List the four major types of drill rigs, and say their typical usage (depth range or
location info)
a. Highway-level sites and easy to access
b. Off-road -access to a site is difficult
c. Over Water- beneath bodies of water
d. Portable-partially machine operated or manually (depth limit of 25 feet); used
when an off-road rig is impossible or too expensive to use a helicopter
2. List the general conditions/soil types in which each of the following drilling types
might be used:
a. Solid Stem Continuous Flight Auger
Simplest drilling system; Soils where the open bore hole does not collapse
b. Hollow Stem Continuous Flight Auger
Do not need to remove the auger from the bore hole as in a Solid Stem
Continuous Flight Auger. The main advantage is for disturbed, undisturbed, or
core sampling. It can drill in sands below the water table as the hole does not
collapse.
c. Mud Rotary (Rotary Wash)
Sand below the water table possible to be obtained; cohesionless or hightly
erodible soils using an outer casing can be obtained. It is a faster method and
disturbs the soils less than the other drilling types. Mud Rotary may have
difficulty in gravel and cobble layers as drilling fluids may drain freely into
these areas or not able to break up the particles. It is better in gravely deposits
than the hollow stem and hollow stem continuous flight augers.
d. Coring
Uses a diamond bit, which is used to obtain hard to dense soils/rocks; Type of
equipment used determines the material that can be obtained.
3. What are the names of at least four types of drill bits?
a. Finger
b. Fish-Tail
c. Drag
d. Roller

Lucas Starke

CE 3740

HW #25

4. What are two ways to tell when the soil properties are changing as you are
drilling through them?
Color Changes, Drilling effort changes
5. Types of Soil Sampling:
Sampler Type

Comment

Split-Spoon

AKA split tube/split


barrel; most common;
only obtains disturbed
samples; thick walled
Sample obtained is
considered undisturbed;
high quality and
expensive

Shelby Tube

Approx. Level
of Disturbance
High

Relatively
undisturbed

Piston

Good for cohesive soils


(soft and sensitive), not
for stiff or compact soils

Low
disturbance if
Shelby Tube is
used

Pitcher

Good for stiff or compact


soilsadapts to stiffness
of soil

Low
disturbance

Appropriate Soil
Lab Tests
Visual
Classification,Grain
Size, Atterburg
Limits, W/C
Shear,
Consolidation,
Permeability, All
tests listed under
Split-Spoon
Shear,
Consolidation,
Permeability, All
tests listed under
Split-Spoon
Shear,
Consolidation,
Permeability, All
tests listed under
Split-Spoon

6. List two of the causes of sample disturbance:


1. Unavoidable transportation stressed
2. Disturbance from handling and mounting for testing
7. List two of the effects of sample disturbance:
1. Increasing levels of sample disturbance make it more difficult to evaluate the
insitu compressibility of clayey soils
2. Inaccurate Testing Results

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