Development of New PDC Bits for Drilling of Geothermal Wells—Part 1: Laboratory Testing

Rock cutting, drilling and durability tests were conducted in order to obtain data to design polycrystalline diamond compact (PDC) bits for geothermal well drilling. Both conventional and new PDC bits with different rake angles were tested. The rock cutting tests revealed that cutting forces were minimized at −10 deg rake angle independent of rock type. In drilling and durability tests, a bit with backrake and siderake angles of −10 or −15 deg showed better performance concerning the penetration rate and the cutter strength. The new PDC bit exhibited better performance as compared to the conventional one, especially in hard rock drilling. Furthermore, a new PDC core bit (98.4 mm o. d., 66 mm i. d.) with eight cutters could be successfully applied to granite drilling equally as well as a bit with twelve cutters.