Chilean Miners: home for Xmas?
26 August 2010, 10:07 AM
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Chilean Miners: home for Xmas?
I am sure there must be a thread on this topic somewhere, but I couldn't find it.
Just imagine being stuck down in that hell-hole with 32 other blokes for 5 months.
What are the chances of them all getting out alive? What about the risk of spreading illness? Problems with bodily functions, boredom, heat, hunger, thirst, darkness, fear, the list goes on. Must be everybody's worst nightmare.
Fingers crossed it really does end as a miracle, but I doubt that any survivors will ever get over it mentally.
Just imagine being stuck down in that hell-hole with 32 other blokes for 5 months.
What are the chances of them all getting out alive? What about the risk of spreading illness? Problems with bodily functions, boredom, heat, hunger, thirst, darkness, fear, the list goes on. Must be everybody's worst nightmare.
Fingers crossed it really does end as a miracle, but I doubt that any survivors will ever get over it mentally.
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26 August 2010, 11:27 AM
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They did well to get a bore hole down to them. That is some feat of engineering to be able to guess where to drill to achieve that...unless for some reason there was already something there to begin with.
They should be OK, they are drilling more bore holes so more supplies can be sent down. I wonder if they are going to be paid overtime.
They should be OK, they are drilling more bore holes so more supplies can be sent down. I wonder if they are going to be paid overtime.
26 August 2010, 11:28 AM
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They did well to get a bore hole down to them. That is some feat of engineering to be able to guess where to drill to achieve that...unless for some reason there was already something there to begin with.
They should be OK, they are drilling more bore holes so more supplies can be sent down. I wonder if they are going to be paid overtime.
They should be OK, they are drilling more bore holes so more supplies can be sent down. I wonder if they are going to be paid overtime.
26 August 2010, 11:47 AM
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08 October 2010, 10:06 PM
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Wahoo!
Nearly out thank God for that ! (or Dawkins for some people!) Was getting my claustaphobia playing up!
Nearly out thank God for that ! (or Dawkins for some people!) Was getting my claustaphobia playing up!
09 October 2010, 09:03 AM
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=whSYTSXm8wo
09 October 2010, 10:17 AM
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Does anyone know how they managed to drill that hole so accurately? Quite some feat.
Just hope there are no last minute hitches.
I wonder if they will ever want to go down a mine again?
dl
Just hope there are no last minute hitches.
I wonder if they will ever want to go down a mine again?
dl
09 October 2010, 11:02 AM
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Great achievement to drill down so far by now. I hope they don't run into unforeseen problems and that the sides of the hole are stable enough to make the steel lining unnecessary.
I wish them all the luck.
Les
I wish them all the luck.
Les
09 October 2010, 12:28 PM
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OK thanks. Too many "bends" won't make it any easier if they are going to line the borehole of course.
I can see it's easier for them with some pilot holes in place but even so it's very. very fine tuning and linked to a homing signal? Still if the yanks can guide a bomb through someone's upstairs window a mile away perhaps the technology exists. dl
I can see it's easier for them with some pilot holes in place but even so it's very. very fine tuning and linked to a homing signal? Still if the yanks can guide a bomb through someone's upstairs window a mile away perhaps the technology exists. dl
09 October 2010, 02:02 PM
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Well they originally drilled a number of pilot holes with percussive equipement which they used to give comms and food to the miners trapped in the chamber.
The mine would have been mapped and so they would have had a good idea where the miners were and where the chamber is. So they would have aimed for that general area (there is still lots of uncertainty) with the original holes using directional drilling methods and surveying as they go.
Once they intercepted, this enables them to 'zero' in on the chamber - discounting the error of the survey tools - now this gives them a smaller target (more statistical confidence) to aim for with the 'main bore' which is a bigger hole they will use to winch the men out.
I'm guessing they just set up the big rig up over the spot they want to hit and have done there best to retain verticality. I heard there is a 'kink' in the well which probably means they made at least one 'correction run' to retain verticality, after the hole presumably wandered on its own a little. The correction run probably involved going in with a motor with a bend on it and making a short slide, although it is possible they drilled with a rotary steerable tool, but I don't know exactly.
I do this Directional Drilling stuff for a living but in the oilfield.
The mine would have been mapped and so they would have had a good idea where the miners were and where the chamber is. So they would have aimed for that general area (there is still lots of uncertainty) with the original holes using directional drilling methods and surveying as they go.
Once they intercepted, this enables them to 'zero' in on the chamber - discounting the error of the survey tools - now this gives them a smaller target (more statistical confidence) to aim for with the 'main bore' which is a bigger hole they will use to winch the men out.
I'm guessing they just set up the big rig up over the spot they want to hit and have done there best to retain verticality. I heard there is a 'kink' in the well which probably means they made at least one 'correction run' to retain verticality, after the hole presumably wandered on its own a little. The correction run probably involved going in with a motor with a bend on it and making a short slide, although it is possible they drilled with a rotary steerable tool, but I don't know exactly.
I do this Directional Drilling stuff for a living but in the oilfield.
Les
?
09 October 2010, 02:17 PM
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To retain verticality in this scenario you would probably drill with a rotary assembly, take surveys every say 30 ft, then if it builds angle on its own, you would go in with a motor for a 'correction run', point the toolface 'lowside' and slide a few feet until you feel it is back to vertical, then go back in with a rotary assembly.
Of course they may have drilled with a motor all the way down and rotated and slid accordingly.
09 October 2010, 02:29 PM
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OK thanks. Too many "bends" won't make it any easier if they are going to line the borehole of course.
I can see it's easier for them with some pilot holes in place but even so it's very. very fine tuning and linked to a homing signal? Still if the yanks can guide a bomb through someone's upstairs window a mile away perhaps the technology exists. dl
I can see it's easier for them with some pilot holes in place but even so it's very. very fine tuning and linked to a homing signal? Still if the yanks can guide a bomb through someone's upstairs window a mile away perhaps the technology exists. dl
My feeling is in this scenario it is unnecessary, a mine tunnel is surely 10's meters big and this is only 700m (sounds like a lot but it is not). If they had 'missed' they may have thought about using this technology possibly.
09 October 2010, 03:01 PM
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The BP skills in the Gulf where I think they were trying to intercept a 7 inch hole from a floating rig was even more amazing perhaps. dl
10 October 2010, 12:35 PM
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There are a number of methods but most likely they ran a motor with a bent housing. With this assembly you slide the assembly (no surface rotation). The motor spins the bit and drills a curve at the azimuth you point the 'toolface'.
To retain verticality in this scenario you would probably drill with a rotary assembly, take surveys every say 30 ft, then if it builds angle on its own, you would go in with a motor for a 'correction run', point the toolface 'lowside' and slide a few feet until you feel it is back to vertical, then go back in with a rotary assembly.
Of course they may have drilled with a motor all the way down and rotated and slid accordingly.
To retain verticality in this scenario you would probably drill with a rotary assembly, take surveys every say 30 ft, then if it builds angle on its own, you would go in with a motor for a 'correction run', point the toolface 'lowside' and slide a few feet until you feel it is back to vertical, then go back in with a rotary assembly.
Of course they may have drilled with a motor all the way down and rotated and slid accordingly.
Les
