Interface identification in weathered granite strata based on a instrumented drilling system

A hydraulic rotary drill instrumented with a drilling process monitoring system (DPM) was used for site investigation in Hong Kong weathered granite foundation engineering. The penetrating parameters such as effective thrust force, rotational speed, flushing pressure, penetrating rate and displacement of the bit were monitored in real time. A varied slope was defined as a significant index for identification of dominative and subsidiary interfaces in the granite site. The result from t-test shows that the confidence of the DPM in identification of the geotechnical interfaces is 99%. Besides, the analysis of variation of the penetrating parameters at the interfaces indicates that there are different fluctuations at the interfaces in the curves of the parameters with borehole depth. The response degree of effective thrust force and penetrating rate to the variation of rock strength at the interfaces is 81.82% alone.