Innovation-Based Development of the Mineral Resources Sector: Challenges and Prospects

Proceedings of the 11th Russian-German Raw Materials Conference, November 7-8, 2018, Potsdam, Germany

Vladimir Litvinenko

• Publisher: CRC Press
• Year: 2018
• Print ISBN: 9780367077266
• eBook ISBN: 9780429663703
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Technology & Engineering
• Subtopic: Civil Engineering
• Index: Technology & Engineering

Innovation-Based Development of the Mineral Resources Sector: Challenges and Prospects contains the contributions presented at the XI Russian-German Raw Materials Conference (Potsdam, Germany, 7-8 November 2018). The Russian-German Raw Materials Conference is held within the framework of the "Permanent Russian-German Forum on the Issues of the Use of Raw Materials", which has as goals to develop new approaches to effectively use energy, mineral and renewable natural resources and to initiate cooperation in the field of sustainability and environmental protection. The contributions cover current trends in the development of raw materials markets and the world economy, the state of the environment and new technologies applied in the sector, effectively responding to modern challenges. The 63 accepted papers are grouped into four main sections:

• Mineral exploration and mining
• Mining services
• Processing of raw materials
• Other

Innovation-Based Development of the Mineral Resources Sector: Challenges and Prospects will be of interest to academics and researchers involved in the mineral resources sector, but also to professionals in the public, foreign trade and education fields, and representatives of major corporations and professional associations.

Mineral exploration and mining

Russian developments of equipment and technology of deep hole drilling in ice

Vladimir Litvinenko

St. Petersburg Mining University, St. Petersburg, Russia

ABSTRACT: This paper presents information about deep hole drilling in ice at Russian station Vostok. Borehole design and technical characteristics of downhole and surface borehole equipment are provided. On the basis of extensive data obtained in the process of 5G deep well drilling at station Vostok, processes running on the bottom of the hole, such as breaking–cutting of ice, bottom hole cleaning and carrying of drill cuttings out of the hole, cuttings collection in the filter are discussed. The factors having the greatest influence on ice drilling efficiency are considered. The process of penetrating to the subglacial lake Vostok is described in Conclusions and preliminary analysis of deep drilling results, ice sheet, ice core, drilling characteristics, the borehole are provided.

1 INTRODUCTION

Study of structure, material composition and dynamics of ice deposits in the polar regions of the Earth is impossible without drilling boreholes with full core sampling, which allows to carry out crystallo-morphological studies of ice from deep depths, geophysical exploration in holes, examination of ice chemical composition, content of oxygen and hydrogen isotopes, various inclusions (earth and space dust, volcanic ash, bacteria, spores of bacteria, etc.). In the long-term, hole drilling in glaciers and subglacial rock has great significance for geological exploration and further development of mineral deposits hidden under ice sheets.

The key objective of this paper is summing up Russian scientists’ experience in developing technology and equipment for deep-hole drilling in ice.

Unique features of conditions in polar regions and in particular the Antarctic such as isolated location, impassable roads, extremely harsh climate bring forward very specific requirements to drilling equipment, technique, organization of operations and personnel training. Special requirements to drilling equipment are low power consumption, weight as low as practicable, high core quality.

Distinctive feature of drilling technology in ice is continuous coring, which is necessary for comprehensive scientific investigation and in this case round-trip operations are time consuming.

Given the demands, core-drilling method with cable-suspended drills has become a frequent practice. Application of flexible drill stem made it possible to reduce weight of surface drilling facilities in comparison to conventional drills due to use of light cable winches and to increase tripping speed.

Research-experimental and design work, aimed at development of technology and equipment for drilling in ice commenced in 1967 in Leningrad Mining Institute by the order of the Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute. By that time a number of countries achieved much progress in this field. A wide range of Russian scientists and polar explorers took part in inventing and introducing into practice technologies and equipment for drilling and borehole surveying in ice sheets. Among them are: S.S. Abyzev, N.I. Barkov, V.N. Bakhtyukov, K.V. Blinov, N.E. Bobin, V.N. Vasiliev, R.N. Vostretsov, L.K. Gorshkov, D.N. Gusev, D.N. Dmitriev, A.N. Dmitriev, E.A. Zagrivniy, V.M. Zubkov, E.S. Korotkevich, B.B. Kudryashov, A.V. Krasilev, V.Y. Lipenkov, N.N. Menshikov, S.V. Mitin, B.I. Slyusarev, G.N. Soloviev, G.K. Stepanov, P.G. Talalay, V.F. Fisenko, V.K. Chistyakov, B.M. Shashkin, A.M. Shkurko and others.

The most significant contribution was made by professor B.B. Kudryashov., who was an irreplaceable scientific coordinator of this research from 1967 till 2002.

Theoretic framework of thermal and mechanical ice crushing, methods of calculations of technological parameters of drilling operations have been developed. Selection of the formula of non-freezable drilling fluid to prevent well narrowing under rock pressure and natural ice temperature increasing with depth, which significantly changes ice viscoplastic properties has been substantiated. Fundamentally new cable-suspended semiautonomous electro-thermal and electro-mechanical drilling assemblies (TELGA, TBZS, KEMS), a complex of permanent and vehicular drilling equipment, automatic drilling control and monitoring systems were developed. Special techniques and geophysical research facilities for borehole surveying in hostile environment of polar glaciers have been worked out and mastered.

Differential characteristic of these operations is their strong practical focus. From after the 13th Soviet Antarctic Expedition (SAE, 1967), team members of the chair of Technology and technique of boreholes drilling, as well as members of other chairs of Saint Petersburg Mining Institute (SPSMI) took part in almost all Soviet and later Russian Antarctic expeditions (RAE) in both wintering and seasonal teams. In total 18 thousand kilometers were drilled with full ice coring in the Antarctic ice sheet (station Vostok, observatory Mirniy, glaciological profile Mirniy-Vostok1) and also in the glacier of Archipelago Severnaya Zemlya.

Giving credit to Boris Borisovich Kudryashobv’s great contribution to the development of deep-hole drilling in ice technique, in summer 2013 a resolution was made at the meeting of the Advisory Council on the Antarctic Treaty to assign a status of a Historic site to the building of drilling complex named after professor Kudryashov at station Vostok in the Antarctic. In the seasonal period 59 RAE a memorial plate on awarding the status of the Historic site to the drilling complex of borehole 5G which was fastened to the wall of the drilling complex was delivered to station Vostok. This event is the recognition of Russian scientists’ achievements in the field of study of Antarctic ice sheet and subglacial water bodies by International scientific community. A unique operation of penetrating to the subglacial lake Vostok, carried out by Russian researchers in February 2012 holds a special place. A new Historical monument will add to Antarctic monuments, which commemorate landmark events in exploration of the sixth continent. This will allow future generations to remember the outstanding researcher’s name, Kudryashov Boris Borisovich, who from 1967 to 2002 was the leader of studies focused on development of technique and equipment for ice drilling.

The most significant are drilling operations at Russian inland station Vostok (78°28′ S., 106°48′ E.), situated 3488 meters above sea level on Antarctic ice sheet, overburden thickness of which is 3760 meters. At the time of the station foundation it was located close by the South geomagnetic pole which is the “pole of cold” of the Earth, it is characterized the by the lowest air temperature on meteorological record (−89,2°C).

Full-scale study including geophysics, glaciology, paleoclimatology, microbiology carried out at station Vostok is international in nature due to the uniqueness of data obtained in this part of the Earth, they specify unquestioned authority of national science in investigation of the Antarctic.

In relation to the discovery of a large subglacial lake in the area of station Vostok, one more exploration trend has been developed, i.e. exploration of this lake, which may become one of the Antarctic most significant projects of the 21 century.

2 DEEP-HOLE DRILLING AT STATION VOSTOK IN THE ANTARCTIC

Since 1970 drilling operations have been carried out at station Vostok. Before 1993 mainly thermo-drills were used. Our scientists (Kudryashov et al 1991; Kudryashov et al 1983; Pashkevich and Chistyakov, 1989) achieved success in their design and implementation. One of the objectives of this type of drilling is subglacial rock coring. That demanded a change—over to mechanical drilling. That is why in 39 SAE season drilling facilities at station Vostok were re-equipped with the aim to continue operations with the electromechanical drilling assembly (Kudryashov et al., 2002; Vasiliev et al., 2007). Mechanical drilling in ice has obvious advantage over thermal drilling in much lesser power consumption, high drilling rate and better core quality. At present only mechanical drills are used for deep-hole drilling in ice (Augustin ...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Table of Contents
• Preface
• Organizers
• Mineral exploration and mining
• Mining services
• Processing of raw materials
• Other
• Author index