Geotechnical Drilling Fayetteville What is Vibracore Sampling in Geotechnical Drilling?
Fayetteville, Georgia natives may have heard the term “Vibracore sampling” or simply “Vibracoring.” This is a very unique type of geotechnical drilling. Fayetteville geotechnical drilling projects are less likely to involve this type of drilling, which is used for wetlands and various marine drilling sites. But a number of our Fayetteville clients are developers who oversee projects in other regions of the state, including coastal projects and projects involving wetlands, which often utilize Vibracore sampling.
What is Vibracore Geotechnical Drilling?
Fayetteville geotechnical drilling technicians from Amdrill use a special type of drilling rig called a Rossfelder P-3 to collect sediment samples using Vibracore sampling techniques in areas with highly saturated soil, including underwater drilling sites, swamps, wetlands and even areas that are flooded.
Also called Vibracoring, this unique and efficient type of drilling is designed to extract long core samples of saturated sediment and the underlying earth. A core sample is a vertical column of earth that is extracted inside a tube. The tube is then sent out for testing and analysis. Core samples are preferred for many types of testing because the distinct sediment and other earth layers remain distinct and the degree of compaction and water content are largely preserved.
Vibracore sampling is a great alternative to other methods, like auguring, rotary drilling and traditional coring techniques, which either disturb the sediment and soil layers or are just impractical in highly saturated soil. Vibracore sampling also allows you to achieve deep penetration in a single deployment, whereas other drilling techniques may not allow you to reach the desired depth in one go.
Vibracoring is useful for many different projects. Core sample analysis can be used to evaluate the environmental conditions in a wetlands environment, a man-made water body like a canal, a river or in another marine environment. The core samples can even be used to identify the extent of contamination in these areas.
Core samples can also provide some useful information for developers and engineers who are seeking to construct some sort of structure in a water-saturated region. Vibracoring can provide insight into the depth and degree of the water saturation and when paired with other geotechnical drilling measures, you can determine the integrity of the underlying bedrock. The integrity of the underlying bedrock can be relevant if the area is deeply saturated, with a high water table. These conditions can make it impossible to achieve sufficient stability without accessing the bedrock.
Vibracoring can be performed from a barge, a boat-mounted drilling rig, or via another type of watercraft.
*Disclaimer: The views expressed here are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent or reflect the views of Amdrill Inc*
