Sonic Legion
Legion is Australia's leading sonic drilling company and has completed projects in every state of Australia. Our powerful crawler-mounted machines are operating from our Brisbane, Townsville and Sydney depots. Our sonic drillers are fully qualified (Certificate III in Drilling Operations) and hold a minimum Class 1 Water-Well licence.
We conduct sonic drilling works on mine sites, tailings facilities, dams, defence, landfill sites and major infrastructure projects. Legion Drilling has 5 sonic rigs ready to tackle the most challenging scenarios, including waste rock drilling, mining spoil and tailings. As a leading sonic drilling contractor, we have multiple drilling crews and rigs compliant for mining sites including BMA, Rio Tinto, QAL and Glencore.
MAXIMISE SAMPLE RECOVERY
Sonic drill rigs advance a concentric hollow drill pipe using rotation in conjunction with axial vibration of the drill stem. The inner string (with a core of drill cuttings) is removed after each drill stem advancement stage, while the temporary ‘casing’ string remains in place to hold the borehole open. The cuttings can be removed nearly intact from the inner casing, enabling effective examination of the stratigraphy prior to sampling or disposal.
In flowing sands, the drill casings can be filled and/or pressurised with potable water to prevent excess entry of formation materials into the drill string. As a rock drilling solution, the sonic system works similar to a diamond core or PDC mud rotary system.
Sonic drill bit with 100mm siltstone core sample. We can collect soil samples up to 230mm in diameter.
MAXIMISE SAMPLE VOLUME AND MINIMISE WASTE
Without auger flights or winged drill bits, sonic borehole diameters can be kept to a minimum. The quantity of cuttings (waste) removed from the hole is minimal as most formation is captured in the sample. The ratio between bore diameter and sample size is higher with sonic drilling than most other sampling methods which makes it ideal for soil investigation.
FAST AND EFFICIENT PERCHED/SECONDARY AQUIFER ISOLATION
Sonic drilling allows larger diameter temporary casings (which are removed during grouting) to be set into confining layers while drilling continues into deeper aquifers. Extremely effective as an aquifer isolation technique, Legion Drilling sonic drilling contractors can push through the unconsolidated zones and into more competent layers, providing accurate samples of the interface between the two zones and enabling casings to be set with confidence.
EFFECTIVE MINERAL EXPLORATION IN CHALLENGING CONDITIONS
Sonic drilling is a highly effective mineral exploration technique in conditions where traditional diamond coring struggles with core recovery and sample loss. In our experience, in almost all scenarios we can ensure close to 100% sample recovery—even in conditions where traditional coring methods fail to provide the required core recovery.
LEADING METHOD FOR LEACHATE AND GAS EXTRACTION WELL INSTALLATION
Sonic drilling is the best method for the installation of leachate injection/extraction bores and gas monitoring wells through landfill and won’t struggle in such conditions like conventional Geoprobe® and geotechnical drilling rigs. Sonic sampling provides the most accurate vertical profile classification and ensures 100% continuous recovery, even in landfill. This ensures you know exactly when you encounter landfill linings and confining layers.
OVERWATER SONIC DRILLING
Overwater geotechnical barge drilling with the Numac R21 Sonic drill rig on the spectacular Sydney harbour. A high complexity drilling project undertaken in one of Australia's busiest shipping lanes.
Using sonic machines off barges delivers a range of efficiencies over other drilling methods. Unlike most geotechnical drilling rigs which are unable to gather representative samples in the sea/river floor, the sonic sampling method provides excellent recovery among the soft sediments of these ‘soft zones’. The sample system is comparable with a vibro-core, but unlike a vibro-core system, the sonic is able to penetrate into the more competent formations. When using diamond coring for rock sampling, the sonic casing is left in place, holding the bore open and acting as a fluid control return system.
235mm (9.25") Sonic soil sampling for an archaeological investigation using the Geoprobe® 8140LS drilling rig.
SONIC SOIL SAMPLING
The sonic soil sampling method allows for the collection of larger soil samples, with sample tubes as large as 230mm in diameter. Leading Australian sonic drilling companies in the collection of soil samples from a range of challenging environments, Legion Drilling has achieved our largest sample diameter yet with the Comacchio Sonic MC900.
SONIC DRILLING FOR GEOTHERMAL INSTALLATIONS
For geothermal applications, sonic drilling with a full face bit provides a fast cost-effective drilling technique in all terrains due to its ability to drill, case, loop and grout in a single step. Faster than other drill rig types, sonic drill rigs excel in multiple formations, reduce waste and provide a great sonic drilling service option when speed is the driver rather than sample recovery.
Recently captured a couple of great shots with crews undertaking drilling works on the Sydney “Metro” project in New South Wales (NSW). The image above shows one of our Boart Longyear DB520 Multipurpose rigs completing an 50m HQ3 geotechnical core location in the shadow of the HMS Endeavour replica.