Textural characterisation of rocks

Textural characteristics are a major factor in determining the mechanical behaviour of rocks and in the prediction of performance of rock cutting and drilling equipment. The principal textural characteristics of rocks are grain size, grain shape, grain orientation, relative proportion of grains and matrix material which were herein quantitatively measured using a modern image analysis system. These features resulted in a texture coefficient represented by a single number for each rock specimen. In this study a range of both textural and mechanical data for a range of rock types are given with some of the textural determination methodology. Correlation between textural and physical properties are also highlighted. The results of drilling tests using polycrystalline diamond compact (pin and hybrid) and impregnated diamond core bits in the rocks are presented which demonstrate the influence of rock texture on drillability. The rock texture can be used as a predictive factor for assessing the drillability and cuttability, mechanical and wear performance of rocks.

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