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ARA Drilling

ARA Drilling. ARA Meeting March 15-17, 2010 Madison Terry Benson, Jim Haugen UW-Madison. Drilling Requirements for MRI-R2 Instrument development of the ARA. 10 holes over course of next 3 seasons 4” diameter (or bigger) 200 meter depth (or shallower) Fast and efficient Portable

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ARA Drilling

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  1. ARA Drilling ARA Meeting March 15-17, 2010 Madison Terry Benson, Jim Haugen UW-Madison

  2. Drilling Requirements for MRI-R2 Instrument development of the ARA • 10 holes over course of next 3 seasons • 4” diameter (or bigger) • 200 meter depth (or shallower) • Fast and efficient • Portable • Minimal funding • Develop solution to long-term strategy for follow-up proposal

  3. Drilling Options • Rapid Air Movement (RAM) Drill • Hot Water Drilling • Reverse Circulation Drilling

  4. Option 1:RAM Drill • Operation • Mechanical drilling • Air compressors provide power • Spiral reel + hose delivers air to air motor drillhead • Return air carries ice chips out of hole • DRY HOLE • Advantages • FAST: 90 meter, 4” hole in 20 minutes (200 meters in 60 minutes) • EFFICIENT: 5.5 gallons for 90 meter hole (18 gallons for 200 meters + 1 more compressor) • Experienced crew available • Challenges • Deeper drilling = additional pressure drop • Derating of compressors at altitude • Firn characteristics at SPole are unknown (permeability) • New hose and bigger reel required • 30,000 lbs of cargo (there, back, there, back) • Operational at Pole?

  5. Option 2:Hot Water Drilling • Operation • Maintain reservoir of warm water (snow melter for mobility) • Pump to high pressure and heat with electric and/or oil-fired heaters • Reel + hose delivers pressurized hot water to nozzle • Lost water or recirculating methods • Performance • 200 meter, 4” hole in 3 hours • 36 gallons of fuel per hole (lost water method) • Advantages • 85% of equipment is already at S Pole • High degree of confidence it will work • Experienced crew available • Diameter is flexible • WET or DRY HOLE • Challenges • New hose and bigger reel required • Malfunctions carry higher risk at remote sites (freezing)

  6. Option 3:Reverse Circulation Drill • Operation • Mechanical drilling, used in industry for mineral sampling • Double wall drill pipe segments, automatically stacked • Rotary drive at top turns pipe and drillhead • Compressed air travels to drillhead through outer annulus in pipe, carries out ice chips through center pipe • DRY HOLE • Advantages • FAST: 1 hr(?) • EFFICIENT: Fuel use comparable to RAM drill(?) • 1 single, self-contained unit • Diameter is flexible • Challenges • Expensive to buy • Needs modifications for operation at S Pole • Learning curve • 25,000 lb (est.) of cargo • Difficult to evaluate during this phase (rental?)

  7. 2010-2011 Test Season (current plan) • RAM Drill Field Tests • Finish preliminary analysis, assess value of sending RAM drill South • Ship RAM drill + operator to S Pole late December • Minor modifications to existing configuration • Drill 2+ test holes near testbed and evaluate • Ship back to Madison for necessary modifications • Explore hot water drilling option in parallel • Ship any additional equipment needed to assemble portable hot water drill • If RAM drill doesn’t impress, efforts redirected to hot water drilling • Build and test hot water drilling configuration using experience already on-ice • Ship any equipment needing modifications back to Madison

  8. Summary • 10 holes, 200 meters deep, 4” diameter nominal • Keeping the next proposal in mind • Fast, efficient, and mobile • 3 options being investigated • Experienced team working to find the best solution Discussion • Wet vs. Dry (current plan: Dry) • Hole diameter (current plan: 4”) • Hole depth (current plan: 200 m)

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