3D printing of PDC bits offers opportunity for bolstering hydraulic performance

On 27 August, the IADC Advanced Rig Technology Committee held a Spark Tank at Transocean’s Houston office. The event brought together active and aspiring technology entrepreneurs to pitch products and ideas to a panel of drilling contractors, operators and service company representatives in a format similar to the TV show Shark Tank. The presentations allowed the panel to ask questions and provide both technical and business feedback on each product/idea.

One such presentation, from Justin Jones of Texas A&M University, covered a project for creating PDC bit designs through 3D printing of metals. Mr Jones, a master’s student in petroleum engineering at A&M, described how prototype bits have been 3D printed in plastic or stainless steel and tested with a laboratory -scale drilling rig to verify hydraulic performance. The findings from these tests, he said, support further research and development. In this interview with DC taken from Spark Tank, Mr Jones discussed the genesis of the project and the value that 3D printing of PDC bits can provide to the industry.