Talking Technically

Putting rotary drilling

into perspective

Atlas Copcos largest drill, the Pit Viper 351E, operates on a blast pattern at an open pit copper mine. Rotary blasthole drills are the predominant method of drilling
9 inch (229 mm) diameter holes or greater.

Mining prosperity
Atlas Copco offers a complete range
of rotary as well as DTH and tophammer drill rigs for most types
of open pit mining and quarrying
applications. But how do these
technologies complement each
other and how do drillers know
which method to choose, and
when?

A complete range
With the acquisition of IngersollRands Drilling Solutions, Baker Hughes
Mining Tools (BHMT) and Thiessen
Team businesses, Atlas Copco has a
complete range of products to offer to
large quarries and open pit mines. Much
of the worlds mining output begins
through drilling of holes with rotary
Blasthole Drilling in Open Pit Mining

drills. Ingersoll-Rand built air-powered

rotary drills for many years prior to the
introduction of their first fully hydraulic unit, the T4, in 1968.

About rotary drills

It is important to note that rotary drills
are capable of two methods of drilling.
The majority of the units operate as
pure rotary drills, driving tricone or
fixed-type bits. The fixed-type bits,
such as claw or drag bits, have no moving parts and cut through rock by shearing it. Thus, these bits are limited to
the softest material. The other method
utilized by rotary drill rigs is down-thehole (DTH) drilling. High-pressure air
compressors are used to provide compressed air through the drillstring to
drive the DTH hammer (see illustration
page 20). The primary difference between

rotary drilling and other methods is the

absence of percussion. In most rotary
applications, the preferred bit is the
tricone bit. Tricone bits rely on crushing and spalling the rock. This is
accomplished through transferring
downforce, known as pulldown, to the
bit while rotating in order to drive the
carbides into the rock as the three cones
rotate around their respective axis.
Rotation is provided by a hydraulic or
electric motor-driven gearbox (called a
rotary head) that moves up and down
the tower via a feed system. Feed systems utilize cables, chains or rack-andpinion mechanisms driven by hydraulic
cylinders, hydraulic motors or electric
motors. The preference at Atlas Copco
is to use cables for pulldown, as they
are lightweight and inexpensive, and
allow easier detection of wear to help
avoid catastrophic failures.
19

Talking Technically

Pulldown
Pulldown is the force generated by the
feed system. The actual weight on bit,
or bit load, is the pulldown plus any
dead weight such as the rotary head,
drill rods and cables.

More weight with rotary

The tower supports the drill string during drilling as well as the rotation head and feed system.

Down-The-Hole method

Rotary drilling method

TONS

Principle:

The hammer is situated

down the hole in direct
contact with the drill
bit. The hammer piston
strikes the drill bit,
resulting in an efficient
transmission of the
impact energy and
insignificant power
losses with the hole
depth. The method is
widely used for drilling
long holes, not only for
blasting, but also for
water wells, shallow
gas and oil wells,
and for geo-thermal
wells. In mining it is
also developed for
sampling using the
reverse circulation
technique (RC drilling).

20

Principle:

Rotation is provided
by a hydraulic or
electric motor
driven gearbox,
called a rotary head,
that moves up and
down the tower
via a feed system,
generating the
pulldown required
to give sufficient
weight on the bit.
Flushing of drill
cuttings between
the wall of the hole
and the drill rods is
normally done with
compressed air.

It only takes one look to see that the

biggest DTH and tophammer drill rigs
are very different than the biggest rotary
blasthole rigs. In fact, the Pit Viper 351
rotary drill rig weighs in excess of nine
times that of Atlas Copco's largest DTH
hammer drill rig, the ROC L8. Yet the
Pit Viper 351 is drilling a hole that is
generally only twice the diameter. Take
a typical medium formation tricone bit
with a recommended maximum loading of 900 kg/cm of bit diameter
(5000 lb per inch of diameter). With a
200 mm (7-7/8 in) bit, you could run
about 18,000 kg (40,000 lb) of weight
on the bit. The laws of physics dictate
that for every action, there is an equal
and opposite reaction, meaning that if
you push on the ground with 18,000 kg
(40,000 lb), the same force will push
back on the unit. There-fore, the weight
of the machine must be over 18,000 kg
(40,000 lb) at the location of the drill
string to avoid the machine lifting off
the jacks. To achieve a stable platform
through proper placement of the tracks
and levelling jacks, the distribution of
weight results in an overall machine
weight that approaches or exceeds twice
the bit load rating. This weight does add
cost to the machine, but the size of the
components also translates to long life.
Even smaller rotary blasthole drills are
built to run 30,000 hours of operation,
and some of the large blasthole drills
have clocked over 100,000 hours of use.

Rig design
With the exception of one model, the
rubber-tire mounted T4BH, Atlas Copcos
rotary blasthole drills are mounted on
excavator-style undercarriages. Powerful hydraulic-drive systems allow the
machine to tram over a variety of ground
conditions, though rotary blasthole
drills should always operate on firm,
flat benches.
Blasthole Drilling in Open Pit Mining

Talking Technically

The drilling platform is supported by a crawler undercarriage except during drilling when it is raised up by hydraulic jacks.

The key component of a rotary blasthole drill is the tower, which is sometimes referred to as the derrick or mast.
Atlas Copco towers are four main member, open front structures in which the
rotary head slides up and down via a
guide system. The length and weight
of the tower ultimately dictates the size
of the mainframe and undercarriage.
Most drilling functions are hydraulically driven. Powering these hydraulic
systems, along with the air compressor,
is a diesel engine or electric motor.
Most rotary drills are diesel powered for
good mobility. Electric powered units
offer some advantages such as lower
power cost (in most areas), no diesel
emissions, no refueling requirement
and less maintenance. However, some
operations are not setup with the proper electrical infrastructure or staffing
to run electric units. Even when electric power is available, many customers avoid electric drills as the trailing
cable used to provide power makes it
harder to move the unit between holes
or patterns. Generally, electric power
Blasthole Drilling in Open Pit Mining

is preferred on large single-pass units

used in major open pit metals mines
where electric shovels are employed,
though electric power is now available
on smaller units such as the Atlas Copco
Pit Viper 271, Pit Viper 275 and DML.

The importance of air

A key parameter of rotary drilling is
flushing the cuttings from the hole. In
most rotary blasthole drills, cuttings
are lifted between the wall of the hole
and the drill rods by compressed air.
Sufficient air volume is required to lift
these cuttings. Many types of tricone
bits have been developed to meet various drilling needs. Softer formation
bits are built with long carbides with
wide spacing on the face of the bit.
This design yields large cuttings which
increase drill speed and reduce dust. It
is important to have sufficient clearance
between the wall of the hole and the
drill rods in order for such large cuttings
to pass. If this clearance, known as annular area, is not sufficient, the cuttings

The ability to carry long drill rods up to 70 feet

provides more time for drilling.

21

Talking Technically

will be ground between the wall of the

hole and the rods or by the bit itself
(called regrinding) until they are small
enough to exit the hole. This results in
excess dust and accelerated wear on the
bit and drill rod.

Bailing velocity

Rotary drilling with tricone bits is the most cost efficient method for large hole diameters.

To control the dust, the area around the hole is surrounded by a dust hood.

A traditional rule-of-thumb is a minimum of 1,525 m 3/min (5000 cfm) of

uphole velocity, the speed at which air
exits the hole. The actual amount of air
required will vary widely based on the
density of the material and the size of
the cuttings. Dense cuttings as found in
iron ore mines will settle much quicker
than lightweight overburden in coal
mines and thus need more air coming up
the hole to lift them; 1,525 m3/min (5000
cfm) may not be enough. However, harder material is generally drilled with
hard formation bits that utilize shorter
cutting structures, thus yielding smaller
chips. Conversely, some soft material
can be drilled effectively with only 915
m 3/min (3000 cfm) uphole velocity.
Unfortunately, many operations have
tried to increase uphole velocity by increasing the diameter of the drill rod.
This is obviously much easier than getting a larger air compressor by retrofitting or purchasing a new machine. In
some conditions, this strategy works,
but more often, the reduced annular area
results in increased wear and dust, and
the drill rate may even drop. Whatever
the application, it is critical to have proper bailing air.

Dust control

Large diameter holes produced by rotary drills, such as this Pit Viper 275, yield blast patterns with wider
burden and spacing, resulting in fewer holes drilled.

22

A necessary evil created by the air compressor in drilling operations is the generation of dust. To control the dust,
the area surrounding the hole is enclosed by a dust hood. Dust hoods are
sealed on the sides by dust curtains,
and where the rod comes through the
deck by a rod wiper or dust seal. A dust
control system must be used in conjunction with the dust hood and curtains. The two most popular types of
dust control are dry dust collectors and
water injection. Dust collectors are essentially large vacuum cleaners that
pull the dust away from the dust hood
and run it through a collection of filter
Blasthole Drilling in Open Pit Mining

Talking Technically

Dimension Stone Industry

Construction
Aggregate
Industrial minerals (Cement & Limestone)
Gold

1"
25mm

2"
51mm

3"
76mm

4"
102mm

5"
127mm

Coal
Copper
Iron
6"
152mm

7"
178mm

8"
203mm

9"
229mm

10"
254mm

11"
279mm

12"
305mm

13"
330mm

14"
356mm

15"
381mm

16"
406mm

Pit Viper 351

DM-M3
Pit Viper 275
Pit Viper 271
Pit Viper 235
DML
DML-SP
DM45
T4BH
DM30
DM25-SP
30

ROC L8
ROC L825
CM 785
ROC P65
ROC L7CR
ECM 720

ROC L630
CM 765
25

ROC L6
CM 351
CM 348
ROC P55
ROC 203 DTH
BVB 25 DTH
ROC F6
40

ROC L7
ROC F9CR
ROC F9/F9C
ECM 660
ROC D9/D9RRC/D9C
ROC D7/D7RRC/D7C

Atlas Copco large rotary and

DTH drill rigs are included
in this book. For information about the
range of smaller surface rigs
visit www.surfacedrilling.com
or contact your Atlas Copco
representative

Rotary
Rotary / DTH
DTH
DTH / fully pneumatic

ECM 590/592
ECM 585

COPROD

ECM 580
CM 470

Tophammer

ROC D3
ROC 203

Tophammer / fully pneumatic

BVB 25
ROC T15

Rotary drilling with tricone bits is the most cost efficient method for large hole diameters.

elements. Water injection systems

inject a fine amount of water into the
air stream. Water injection is the more
effective solution for ensuring dust is
minimized, but the introduction of
water into the hole can slow down the
drilling process by increasing the density of the cuttings at the bottom of the
hole that the air compressor must move.
Water injection systems require frequent refilling of the water tanks, and
in freezing conditions, elaborate heating systems must be used. Dust collectors offer a productivity advantage, but
they can become plugged if not turned
off when wet material is encountered.
This is particularly a problem if the wet
material freezes in the system.

When rotary is better

Every drilling application is different,
so we cannot say that there are particular breakpoints where you should
transition between drilling methods.
Blasthole Drilling in Open Pit Mining

Generally, drilling below 152 mm (6 in)

is best accomplished with tophammer
units. Above this diameter, it is typically done with a rotary rig, although
tophammer units are doing some of
this work effectively with the introduction of larger platforms and more powerful rock drills. For harder material,
say above 100 MPa (15,000 psi), unconfined compressive strength (UCS),
DTH is often faster than pure rotary
drilling if provided there is enough air
pressure on board. Simply looking at
our product range (see above) gives an
indication of which methods are commonly used for the different diameters
found in construction and mining.
There are certain limitations imposed on each method of drilling. With
tophammer percussive drills, the power of the rock drill itself limits the
ability to transmit adequate force to
larger diameter bits, especially at deeper depths when percussive energy is
successively reduced with each new rod

connection. Down-the-hole (DTH) tools

solve this energy loss problem, but their
maximum hole diameter is limited by the
volume of air. To build the air pressure
that translates directly to impact energy,
a certain volume of air is required. Take
for example a Secoroc QL80 203 mm
(8 in) DTH hammer that is designed
to operate at 25 bar (350 psi). Even with
our largest high pressure compressor
686 41 m 3/min (1,450 cfm), the pressure will only build to 23 bar (325 psi),
thus providing less impact energy. In
real terms, each blow of the piston is
about 45 kg (100 lb) less than it is designed for. In some cases, this method
will still outperform rotary drilling.
For most large diameter blasthole
drilling, there is simply not enough
air on-board for a DTH to be as cost
effective as rotary drilling with a tricone bit. Rotary drilling is still the predominant method of drilling 230 mm
(9 in) diameter or greater. This is driven
primarily by the current limitations of
23

Talking Technically

Total Drilling Cost (TDC) related to bit life and productivity

12000

$6,00

Footage/24 Hours
Bit Life (ft)
Overall Cost/Ft

$5,00

10000
$4,00
8000
$3,00
6000

4000

299 ft/hour,
1500' bit life
High Production

2000

$2,00
218 ft/hour,
5300' bit life
Lowest Cost

74 ft/hour,
12,000' bit life
Great Bit Life

Productivity versus cost

Studies have shown that pure penetration rate will increase linearly with
increased pulldown. The same has also
24

$1,00

$-

tophammer units and rig air systems.

Tricone bits also become more cost effective as the larger bits are equipped
with larger bearings which in turn can
handle higher loads. These higher loads
translate to improved drill rates. Another advantage of rotary rigs is the
length of the drill rods that can be carried on board. Longer rods mean fewer
connections. Smaller rotary blasthole
machines utilize 9.1 meter (30 ft) length
rods, while larger units are capable of
running 10.7 meter (35 ft) or 12.2 meter
(40 ft) rods. By comparison, tophammer or DTH crawler drills use drill
steel that is generally 6.1 meters (20 ft)
or less in length. Further, some rotary
rigs are large enough to handle a long
tower that enables drilling of the entire
bench height in a single-pass. At the
largest open pit mines, rotary units are
drilling 20 m (65 ft) deep holes in a
single-pass to match the bench heights
dictated by the large electric shovels
that can dig a 17 m (55 ft) bench.

Total Drilling Cost/Foot

Footage/24 Hours & Average Bit Life

14000

been said of rotation speed. So why

doesnt every operation use more of
each? Unfortunately, higher pulldown
and rpm usually results in increased
vibration and lower bit life. The vibration causes increased wear-and-tear on
the rig, but more importantly, it creates
a very unpleasant environment for the
operator. What invariably happens is
that the operator reduces the weight
or rpm until the vibration returns to
a comfortable level. Some operations
limit bit load and rpm even if there is
no vibration in order to improve bit life.
This is often the wrong strategy as the
overall drilling cost per unit, also known
as Total Drilling Cost (TDC), should be
considered. TDC is calculated using the
bit cost per meter/foot and the total rig
cost per hour. The unit cost per hour
includes labor, maintenance and power, and possibly capital cost. The
drilling speed really doesnt impact
this cost-per-hour figure. What it does
impact though is the cost per unit
produced (cost/meter/foot, cost/ton,
etc).
You generally want to push the rig
harder to reduce the cost/foot, but there
will be a point where the rig overloads
the bits (see diagram).

Large versus small

There are some drawbacks to rotary
rigs. Smaller crawler rigs are more
flexible with many advantages such as
articulating and extendable booms and
guides that allow drilling at many different angles. Unlike crawler rigs, the
components on rotary rigs are often not
enclosed. They are mounted onto the
frame in an open layout that makes
them extremely easy to service. Large
electric units normally have a machinery house to protect the electrical drive
components, and newer midrange sized
blasthole units such as the Pit Viper 235
have the option of a machine enclosure.
The general trend for 165 mm (6-1/2 in)
or less is towards the smaller, more flexible units. However, many large scale
quarries and small mines still favor
the durability, life and simplicity of the
larger rotary rigs for these small diameters. For the large scale open pit operations that yield a high percentage of the
total worldwide mineral production, it
is anticipated that rotary drilling will
remain the primary method for years
to come.

Brian Fox
Blasthole Drilling in Open Pit Mining