TTM005 Resolve Logging Chip Samples Training Module v2.0

Document No: TTM005 Release Date: Version No: 02 Authorised By:
Technical Training Module: Logging Chips

1. Purpose and Scope The purpose of this module is to provide training in logging chip samples. This module forms part of the resource/training material designed to ensure a professional level of competence in all aspects of these tasks. This procedure is applicable to geologists who are required to log chips. 2. Task References Resolve Safety Manual; Policies, JSAs, Work instructions Work Instruction: W1006 Logging Chip Samples Job Safety Analysis: JSA006 Logging Chip Samples RA001 Risk Analysis SP012 Personal Protective Equipment SP024 Personal Protective Equipment SPO27 Noise SPO28 Dust BM Alliance Business Improvement and Optimisation Geological Services Document No. CQO-P-DBM-001 (P-EFO-010) Drill hole data collection, data management and validation using Logcheck. Work Instruction:CQO-WI-001 Field Data Logging Procedure (under review 06/4/2005) 3. Definitions 3.1 Pedogenic Pedogenic means pertaining to processes that add, transfer, transform, or remove soil constituents. 4. Materials Required This section outlines activity specific equipment required for the Geologist to correctly log chip samples in the field. Equipment includes; A sieve, A water bucket A hand lens, Multiple field lithology sheets specific to your project, A geological field logging dictionary specific to your project, Pliers or LeathermanTM.
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For further specifications on required equipment, please refer to the table below. Sieve The sieve is used in conjunction with a water bucket to wash chip samples for analysis and logging. It serves to separate the finer material, which passes through the sieve and into the water bucket, from the coarse chips, leaving the latter visible for logging.
It is important to check your sieves condition regularly. Sieves commonly break at the rim, which causes discriminate loss of sample (less dense material tends to disappear into the water bucket, creating a bias in the material that is logged). An ordinary kitchen sieve is more than adequate for washing chips. It can be an advantage to carry a spare in your kit. This will minimize the chance of poor logging in the field if your sieve breaks. Water Bucket A reasonable water bucket is any deep container/ bucket that carries a water depth allowing the user to ergonomically agitate their sieve in the water to remove fine clays (important factors include the diameter and depth of your chosen sieve to that of your chosen bucket). The bucket fabric must also be robust and ideally UV resistant to some degree, as it will be used in direct sunlight and will get physically abused over time. Other factors to take into account include the total weight of the bucket when full of water (i.e. whether you are comfortable to carry a full bucket from the water truck to the chips and along the length of the chips multiple times). A bucket can be cut down lower to carry less water for those individuals who cannot comfortably carry a full bucket.
In the above diagram, A. shows 2 different types of bucket that can be used for logging chips. The left example was a drillers mud container, which has been altered for use as a chip logging bucket. The right example is a common plastic household bucket. Note that the latter does not last long in the field, thus is not particularly dependable, as shown
in figure B, where the base is cracked. A third example of bucket, which is recommended above all of the examples, is a round drillers Hi-Pol bucket, which has a re-sealable lid that will retain water during transport. This is particularly ideal for logging chips if you are logging after the rig has left the site. Hand Lens When choosing a hand lens, consider the diameter of the lens, the durability of the lens (remember, you are working in a hot, dusty and muddy environment), that there is not too much distortion of the image at the edges of the lens, that the lens is protected and hard to damage, and that your eyesight is good enough to effectively utilize the magnification that you have chosen. Typically, when logging chips, you will need to wear the hand lens around your neck all day, so also ensure that it is not too heavy. A 10 x jewellers loupe is usually adequate, although many geologists prefer a 20x achromatic lens. Lithological Field Logging Sheets or Tough Book Ensure that you use those specific to your client. Laminated Geological Services Field Logging Dictionary Ensure that you use that specific to your client. Pliers, Leatherman or a reasonable and safe substitute of. Defects can be inferred from chips, and a defect log can be created. Please contact the relevant site or project geologist to find out what your requirement is with respect to producing a defect log. 5. Sampling Chips The metre by metre samples that represent down-hole lithology are taken by one or both drillers offsiders, dependent on the drilling speed and the enthusiasm of the offsiders in question. As a geologist, it is important to ensure that these samples are as accurate as possible, and contamination is minimised. Ideally, ensure the chip samples are positioned so that you can observe the drilling process whilst you are logging your chips and that you face the rig. This allows you to react more quickly if there is an incident or the driller requires information from you. For the safety of the geologist, the chips should be located at least 8 metres from the drill platform and away from No-Go Zones, compressed air hoses and rod handling work areas. Also, although it is important for you to focus on the job at hand, always remain aware of what is going on around you. For example, whether you have visitors to your site, or there is any heavy machinery working in or around your work area (eg backhoe, bulldozer etc.). Also, remain aware of your proximity to the main access to your site. There are 3 important scientific (not ergonomic, or safety related) factors to consider when observing an offsider sampling chips. 1) Encourage the driller to mark his/her pull down chains in metre lengths so that the offsider has a visual prompt for when they need to deposit the chips into the designated chip area (shown in the image below). Occasionally offsiders may
collect multiple metres of chips in one sieve and put these out into the number of piles for the metres drilled. This is not an acceptable practice.
2) Explain to the offsiders and driller that if there are very few chips to sample, due to drilling method or rock-type, to continue to sample on a metre by metre basis. Try repositioning the sieve or using multiple sieves which are combined into one sample for the metre drilled. The more material that you have, the easier it is to log, and more accurate the log will be, however it is better to have no or very little sample at all (and therefore determine rock type from the geophysical logs), than to have an incorrect representation of what is in the hole that does not conform with the geophysical log at all (i.e. samples taken from other depths). 3) As the hole is drilled deeper, the lag between the chips arriving at the surface and the chips being drilled increases. Therefore, at 300 m the first chips up may lag up to 3m behind the drill bit. This is exacerbated when drilling on mud. Make the offsiders aware of this issue. 4) Encourage offsiders to place chips in a neat and ordered manner. As shown below, chips are normally represented in 1st order groups of 6 metres (1 rod length), and 2nd order groups of 30 metres. When logging a hole >180m, it is beneficial to the geologist for the offsider to use a 3rd order grouping of 90 metres. This facilitates easy recognition of the current depth and provides a walk space every third row. Chips should also be placed from left (shallower) to right (deeper) and logged as if reading a book. Each sample represents one metre and is logged to the base of the sample (See Section 6, Step 4).
2nd order group of 30m 1st order group of 6m 3rd order group of 90m : One chip sample representing a depth of 1 metre : Direction of logging from the 1st sample (depth 1 metre) 2nd order group of 30m 1st order group of 6m 3rd order group of 90m
6. Steps for Logging Chip Samples Before you commence logging chip samples, it is important to consider the positioning of your work area to the rig, and the environment (upwind of dust sources etc.) It is also important to know the state of your equipment and the rig (safety clips on compressed air hoses and fittings etc) to ensure your safety. As illustrated below, chips need to be located 8 to10 metres away from the rig mast (the fall radius of a rod) and to minimise noise and dust exposure to the field geologist.
Offsider Sampling chips
Chips Distance of chips from rig 8 to 10m
Drill Step Chips
Drill Rig
Rod Trailer
Note that the geologist can keep a better eye on the drilling step and chip sampling if their chips are placed out from behind the rod trailer.
Drill Rig
Rod Trailer Chips
When the chips are placed behind the rod trailer, the geologist is exposed to less rig noise, however cannot keep an eye on the drill step and sampling, because the rod trailer obstructs their view.
STEP 1 Fill up your water bucket. If a rig is not on site at the time, the bucket can be filled by using a water container that you carry with you. If you choose to fill your bucket at the back of the rig whilst the rig is operating, ensure (1) that you do this between rod changes (adding and removing rods) and (2) that the bull hose is not pressurised. This will minimise your exposure to these risks and any distraction to the offsiders and/or the driller whilst they are performing hazardous tasks. Preferably, ask a drillers offsider to fill the water bucket. This will remove this risk from you. Check the state of the water. It will need to be used to wash chip samples so should not be carrying excessive fine sediments. STEP 2 Collect chip sample Place yourself at the shallowest sample depth. When starting from surface, this depth is the first meter of sample (S1). Collect a good representation of this sample by scooping your sieve through the sediment. The image below is chips labeled with associated sample numbers. Samples are indicated by the prefix S followed by the sample number e.g.: S1 is Sample 1. Each sample represents 1 vertical metre. S1 S2 S3 S31 S61 S4 S5 S6 S7
STEP 3 Wash sample The size, shape and percentage of fines of your chip samples will vary dependent on how they were drilled. Some factors to consider include (1) bit type (hammer, blade, polycrystalline diamond bit (PCD)) and (2) fluid type (air, air and water, mud (chemically thickened water) or foam (commonly used when drilling loose sands)). Samples will also vary dependent on rock type. When drilling through mudstone, or sandstones with a weak matrix, by the time the chips reach the top of the hole, they can be so fine that they fall straight through the offsiders sieve, leaving either a poor representation of the down-hole lithology or no sample at all. It is important to remember that washing can occasionally bias your sample, if for example you are drilling a siltstone and interbedded, weak-matrix sandstone. Below is a picture showing the difference between shovel-lain, dry (left) and sieve-lain, wet (right) chips. Note that on some rigs, the offsiders will wash the chip samples before placing them out. This will facilitate your further removal of fines when you are logging your chips. The above wet and dry samples have not been washed by the offsider, thus contain high levels of fines or clays, which is what holds them together in a patty type structure.
Dry Chips For dry chips (those drilled solely on air), ensure that you agitate the sample to remove all dry fines before washing the sample. This helps to ensure that when you place the sample in the water, your sieve does not clog up with clays. In the figure below, image A shows the method of retrieving dry sample from a pile of chips. Image B shows the appearance of the sample after agitating the sieve to remove the fines.
Dry Chips
Wet Chips
A.
B.
Chips should always be as clean as possible before washing them in water to minimize the time spent trying to remove wet clay from the samples, your sieve and your bucket. This is particularly important when dealing with highly weathered material, where there is abundant clay, and very clay rich coal measures (for example, the Fort Cooper Coal Measures, which are characterized by interbedded coal and tuff, with minor feldspathic, medium-grained sandstones). The below image shows A dry Chips taken from the weathered zone after agitating the sieve and B the same sample after agitating in water, which washes the chips by removing further dust fines. Note that in B, the 2 different lithologies can clearly be seen in the sample including coal (black) and 2 clays (1.light orange brown 2.light grey). A. B.
Wet Chips For wet chips, you will not be able to move the fine clays and sands by agitation of the sieve in the air. Letting them dry does not help, as the clay stays stuck to the chips. These will need to be washed solely in the water bucket. 1) Place your sieve and sample in the water bucket so that the sieve remains horizontal in the bucket. This ensures no chips are lost in the bucket whilst cleaning the sample. 2) Gently agitate the sample in a circular motion. This encourages chips to roll about in the base of the sieve, and releases the fixed clays from the chips. 3) Check sample cleanliness by removing the sieve from the bucket and visually inspecting the chips. The chips are adequately clean once the majority of clays are removed and you can see the chip composition in the sieve
In the image below, A is a standard wet chip sample and B the same sample cleaned inadequately. It can be hard to pick the lithologies due to clay contamination. C is a clean sample. Note the difference in colour, allowing simple visual lithology identification. Note also that this allows the geologist to observe the grain size and any minor mineral contents. A. B. C.
Note that the water in your water bucket can become too contaminated with clays to clean your samples. When this happens, empty your bucket, wash it out and then refill it with clean water. 7. LOGGING THE CHIPS 7.1 Why Log Chips when there are Geophysics Available? Down-hole geophysical logging is used for the correlation of bulk lithological changes (for example the change from a fine siltstone to a coarser sandstone) as well as the accurate positioning of coal seams, location of stone bands within seams and other features, based on changes in gamma response, density and sonic velocity. These are related to differences in lithology, petrology, grain size and strength in some cases. However geophysical logging does not conclusively indicate petrology or more subtle changes or minor occurrences of different mineralogies. For example, in the case of calcite veining, unless the vein is of considerable thickness, it will not be recorded in a geophysical log. Calcite veining is crucially important, however, as it indicates faulting or abundant jointing, and therefore weaknesses in the rock structure. Other examples of important occurrences include minor clays, sideritic bands and pyrite occurrences, the latter particularly within a coal seam. Abundance of pyrite, calcite and quartz can also indicate the presence of a fault or shear zone. 7.2 Some General Principles for Logging Chips When logging chips, it is important to remember that you are logging a mixed representation of the down-hole geology. Thus you must use your geological knowledge, and knowledge of the local lithology to create a representational picture of the borehole stratigraphy. If contamination is present (as opposed to a combination of in-situ lithologies), the source should be identified and the predominant, non-contaminant lithology logged as representative of that interval. Many important lithologies and
cements are not identifiable from the geophysics. Hence, there is no alternative to detailed logging of chip with respect to data accuracy and completeness. Use your hand lens to determine grainsize and mineral composition. Often the texture or grain size of a chip is smeared or obscured by the cutting action of the bit on the surface of the chip. For this reason, always break a chip open (using fingers or pliers) to obtain a fresh surface. Each sample represents 1 metre of stratigraphy. Therefore, dependent on bedding thickness, the chips will often show numerous lithologies in a single metre sample. Commonly, a single sample may contain sandstone, siltstone and claystone. These may be logged as percentages using your knowledge and section 7.3.2 of this document. However, the use of percentages should be avoided when describing a single facies unit of interbedded lithologies which spans many metres. In this case, an attempt should be made to log the more significant occurrences of a single lithology as single units. Coal should also not be logged as a percentage lithology, when stone bands are also present. A coal seam in chips should be logged as coal only and the stone contents described in the qualifiers. When geophysically correcting claystone and siltstone bands within coal, over a specified thickness (normally a minimum of 10cm thick), they should be inserted as separate lithologies and at the correct depth. For further information see the Training Module titled Geophysical Interpretation and Correction of Field Data using Geophysical Logs. Rock strength estimation is important to both open cut and underground mining operations and affects (1) how easy it will be to remove overburden and interburden to access coal seams, (2) whether the floor below a coal seam will support heavy machinery, roof and pillar weights, and in the case of an underground mine, (3) how the roof will react to the removal of coal from beneath it. 7.3 Logging Unconsolidated Sediments
7.3.1 Choosing a Lithotype You will need to choose a lithotype based on the options provided in the field logging dictionary as specified by your client. A good general dictionary (which is currently most commonly used by Resolve) is the BMA Geological Dictionary. It has 13 Lithotypes to choose from. These can be defined using the U.S Standard sieve mesh particle size determination method. The below table outlines each of these: Well Sorted Material Soil Any definition of what soil is can be disputed, however the definition used here is of a pedological nature1 ; An arrangement of natural mineral and organic materials formed at the surface of the earth from originally geological and biological materials by surface and near-surface alteration and translocation processes through time.
1
The Edaphological definition would be Soil is the natural medium for the growth of land plants"
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Typically, soil is a dark brown in colour, and contains abundant organic material.
Clay Any grain size between 0.00006mm and 0.0038mm. It is difficult to visually distinguish silt from clay, and both will fall through your sieve. Instead, ensure that the rock or sediment is free from driller contaminants and place a small sample of the material in your mouth. If it is clay, it will dissolve in your saliva and disappear. Silt, on the other hand, will be a little crunchy (i.e. you will be able to feel it between your teeth). If you prefer not to chew on rocks (note that dental problems can develop from chewing on rocks), clay will smear between your fingers, leaving a streak behind, whereas silt tends to fall off when smeared.
Silt Any grainsize between 0.0039 mm and 0.0624mm. Again, as an unconsolidated material, this will fall through your sieve. See description of a clay for how to distinguish clay from silt in the field (feel for the crunch). Sand Any grain size between 0.0625 mm and 1.99mm. Sands will also need to be broken up into grainsize. See section 7.3.4. It is OK to log a very fine sand as a silt and vice-versa, however ensure that if you come across similar sediment, you log it in the same manner to ensure consistency. If placed between your teeth, sand feels extremely abrasive and uncomfortable. If possible, ensure that you log the composition of your sand in the qualifiers (Section 7.3.5).
Gravel Gravel is any sediment with a grain size between greater than 2.00 mm. Gravel can be anything from a Granule (2.00 mm 3.99 mm) to a pebble (4.00 mm 15.99 mm) to a cobble (16.00 mm 255.99mm) to a boulder (>256mm). It is therefore important to define any gravel that you see in your qualifiers (Section 7.3.5)
Mixed Lithologies Clayey Sand Any bulk material that is abundantly sand but has a clay fill. Note that when squeezed, each cluster turns into fine sand, with minor clays. When rolled between the fingers, it remains friable.
Sandy Clay Any bulk material that is abundantly clay but has a sandy element. When rolled between the fingers, small cigar-shaped forms can be created, which do not fall apart like clayey
sands.
Gravelly Sand Loose material that is abundantly sand, but has a gravel element.
Clayey Gravel Loose material that is abundantly gravel but has clay fill.
Sandy Gravel Loose material that is abundantly gravel but has a sand fill. S DURICRUSTS Calcrete An indurated surface formed by weathering processes involving cementation of the surface soils and weathered rock by calcite (calcrete) (i.e. any cemented terrestrial carbonate accumulation).
It typically comes in the form of a moderately, strongly or very strongly cemented layer which is either continuous, or if discontinuous or broken, consists of at least 90% of hard (moderately cemented or stronger) calcrete fragments, most of which are greater than 200mm in smallest dimension. Unfortunately, it may vary significantly in morphology and degree of cementation. Calcrete does not encompass the common soft segregations of finely divided carbonate, nor accumulations of pedogenic carbonate in the form of discrete nodules or concretions (contrary to popular usage). Calcrete in the tertiary horizon will appear as hard white or creamy chips. Ferricrete An indurated surface formed by weathering processes involving cementation of the surface soils and weathered rock by iron oxides (ferricrete, sometimes known as laterite). Ferricretes a typically red or browny-red in colour. Ferricrete in the tertiary horizon will appear as hard chips of opaque browny-red (orangey) glassy material. Ferruginous nodules are not ferricrete. These can be mentioned in the qualifiers section of your log.
Silcrete An indurated surface formed by weathering processes involving cementation of the surface soils and weathered rock by silica (silcrete). Generally found within the Tertiary units, it is also often found within older sediments proximally below the base Tertiary boundary. Silcrete can range from silica-cemented sand and gravel to an amorphous matrix enriched with small silica particles. A minimum silica (SiO2) content of 85% weight has been proposed by Summerfield (1983)2 to distinguish silcretes from other duricrusts.
Summerfield, M.A. 1983a. Silcrete. In Chemical sediments and geomorphology, edited by A.S. Goudie and K. Pye. San Diego: Academic Press, pp. 59-92
Fill Mined material (overburden etc.). You will specify this if you are drilling through a spoil pile (or similar altered terrain) in order to access the unaltered rock beneath.
7.3.2 Estimating Percentage When logging chips with multiple lithologies, it is sometimes beneficial to log using percentage, in particular if you want to illustrate other important minor occurrences. For Example, when logging a Siltstone with abundant sandstone, minor clay and rare pyrite, it could be logged as: Siltstone, medium grey, Abundant Sandstone, minor clay bands, rare pyrite. However, using this definition and the associated number of qualifiers, many of them will not get recognized once your data is processed. Another way to log the same sample is by logging the dominant lithologies as percentages, and then commenting on the minor lithology as a qualifier; 60% siltstone, medium grey, 40% fine-grained sandstone, light grey. Minor clay bands, rare pyrite. Again, this sample could also be logged as; 55% siltstone, medium grey, 35% fine-grained sandstone, 10% claystone, light creamy brown. Rare pyrite There is also no reason why you could not mention the pyrite in the minerals section, thus leaving room in the qualifiers to illustrate what the petrology of the sediment is (for example; lithic and feldspathic grains). In some lithology dictionaries, the mineralogy section is the only place where you can describe the minerals association to the parent material. The best approach is, as ever, to detail the actual occurrence of individual lithotypes in the intervals in which they occur. This can be time consuming in thicker sequences with multiple lithotypes, but best reflects the stratigraphy you are describing. None of the examples shown above are the be all end all solution to logging chips with a combination of lithologies, however, the third example in particular increases the chance that the information that is specified in the qualifiers is considered. The chart below is taken from Terry,R.D.,Chillingar,G.V.,(1955), that can be used in the field to determine what percentage of different lithologies are in your chip samples.
1%
3%
7%
15%
25%
40%
2%
5%
10%
15%
30%
50%
7.3.3 Colouring When logging the colour of a lithotype, you are not only specifying its primary colour but also its shade and hue. Firstly, you will need to establish the shade of the chips. This defines either how light or dark they are (3 options; Light, Medium or Dark) or if they are textured (textured mottled, speckled, variegated). When logging colour, ensure that you maintain consistency when logging. If you call something speckled on first sighting and it reoccurs deeper in the hole, you must still call it speckled. Secondly, you will need to define the hue of the chips. Each lithotype has a primary colour, however sometimes; it also has a secondary colour. For example an unweathered siltstone may be dark grey, but may tend to have a blackish hue, so its colour would be a dark blackish grey. Finally, you must log the primary or dominant colour of the lithotype. When logging tertiary unconsolidated material, due to the weathering processes, colouring isnt always easy to log. As a geologist, you are required to take an average of colour. For example, if you wash sandy clay, that has a mixture of 20% dark ferruginous and 30% light silica grains, within a creamy clay matrix, it will have 2 very different and distinct colours; however it is not speckled, mottled or variegated. Depending on the percentage of grains of different colourings, this could be logged as: Sandy Clay, Light reddish cream
A more detailed description of the ferruginous and silica grains can then be specified in the qualifiers (Section 7.3.5). 7.3.4 Grainsize Grainsize is very important to record in unconsolidated sediments, as the lithotype may not specify this. Options include those for sorted material, and those for unsorted material. Note that if you log a clayey sand, the lithotype picks up the fact that there is clay. Therefore, log the grainsize of the sand, and not the clay. The same applies to sandy clay. Grainsize in gravels may be specified in the qualifiers section (See section 7.3.5), where you will also be required to specify the composition of the gravels. However, it is sometimes useful to assign a grain size which describes the range of grain or particle sizes within the gravel, e.g. extremely coarse to very fine. Pyroclastic Sedimentary Rounded, subrounded, subangular Particle or Lithified Fragment Lithified fragment Product Product Block or Bomb Volcanic Boulder Boulder Breccia or Conglomerate Volcanic <256 Cobble Cobble Agglomerate Conglomerate Lapilli Lapillistone and <64 Pebble Pebble Lapilli Tuff Conglomerate <4 Granule Granule Conglomerate <2 Very Coarse Sandstone Coarse Ash Coarse Tuff Sand <1 Coarse Sand <.5 Medium Sand <.25 Fine Sand <.125 Very Fine Sand <.0625 Silt Siltstone/ Shale Fine Ash Fine Tuff <.00391 Clay Claystone/ Shale For unsorted material, examine the chips and designate a mixed lithology. Most lithology dictionaries will contain mixed definitions. For example Coarse to very fine grained or Medium to very fine grained. Size in mm
7.3.5 Lithological Qualifiers

7.3.5.a) General
Specifying lithological qualifiers when logging chips ensures that petrological and mineralogical details are recorded within the lithology. In some lithological dictionaries and applications, the number of qualifiers is limited, so firstly input the qualifiers that you believe to be the most important. Base your decisions on your clients specifications. For example, BMA only uses the first 3 qualifiers for modeling purposes, and Anglo will only use the first 2. This does not mean that any other qualifiers that you log are unimportant, in fact the more detail that a geologist can gather from a chip sample, the more useful the data will be in the future. Specifically, if you are logging a quartzose sand, which has a lateritic (ferruginous) band, you would note that the sediment has ferruginous bands before noting that grains are siliceous, or quartzose; as shown below. This is because the ferruginous band results in a hard layer that will affect overburden removal. Sand. Light reddish cream. Medium Grained. Rare ferruginous bands. Siliceous grains.
7.3.5.b) Logging the Grainsize of Gravel
The grainsize of gravel will affect ground removal. Therefore is important to record grainsize in your lithological log. It was previously noted that this cannot be recorded in lithology. It can be recorded in the grain size field but it is best recorded in the qualifiers. The benefit of having this detail here is that the composition of the gravel can be recorded in association with the grainsize. There are 3 different gravel sizes, as shown in the diagram below. Note that each gravel definition excludes the area of the smaller gravel definitions.
Granule (2.00 - 3.99mm) Pebble (4.00 63.99mm) Cobble (64.00 255.99mm)
For example, when logging gravel made of 20% quartz and 80% ferruginous pebbles, you may log this as; Gravel. Medium ceramic orange. Ferruginous and quartz pebbles You may also like to give an indication of the dominant type of pebble;
Gravel. Medium creamish orange. Common ferruginous pebbles. Occasional quartz pebbles The latter does not give an exact idea of composition however it does indicate that the sediment is more ferruginous than quartzose and is medium gravel (pebble). 7.3.6 Estimated Strength The table below shows the different strength tests for unconsolidated material. This is also available on your BMA Geological Services Field Logging Dictionary sheet. Strength very soft soft firm stiff very stiff hard loose unconsolidated Test Guide Exudes between fingers when squeezed in hand Can be moulded by light finger pressure Can be moulded by strong finger pressure Can not be moulded by fingers, can be indented by thumb Can be indented by thumb nail Can be indented with difficulty with thumb nail Falls apart easily No material holding the sediments together (eg. Sand, gravel etc.)
7.3.7 Weathering The level of weathering in different rock or sediment types is assessed by looking the oxidation level of the material. This is indicated by colour change through the depth profile. All unconsolidated material at the surface is extremely weathered, as it is the unconsolidated top of the weathering profile. It is an acceptable practice to only indicate weathering below the Tertiary (i.e. above the Tertiary, the weathering field can be left blank), although some clients will require it. Weathering is discussed in further detail in Section 7.4.4. 7.3.8 Picking Base of Tertiary In the more northerly regions of Resolves sphere of operations, the Base of Tertiary is often where unconsolidated sediments unconformably lie atop consolidated Permian rocks. But this is not always the case and occasionally the horizon is hard to pick. In other areas, Triassic and/or Jurassic strata also occur. Thick lateritic weathering often occurs at the top of the Permian sequence, and can extend for many metres down through the Permian. It is important to log the Tertiary unconformity at the top of lateritic sequences. The top of the Permian is sometimes unconsolidated material, particularly in flood plains or in highly reworked regions. A part of the logging process is to pick the base of the Tertiary as accurately as possible. This can be difficult, as both may be highly rich in clays and have a sandy component. Note that both the Tertiary and Permian can be unconsolidated. In some areas, Tertiary tends to have a reddish colour, whereas the Permian is a more brownish or yellowish
colour. This is illustrated in the image below. In other areas, the Permian has a mica component whereas the overlying units have none. Ensure that you ask your Project or Supervising Geologist for the local indicators.
The Tertiary-Permian Boundary
7.4
Logging Consolidated Material
7.4.1 Introduction This section looks specifically at what lithologies you may encounter when logging consolidated material. For details on estimating percentage and strength and details on colouring, grainsize, lithological qualifiers and weathering, please refer to the relevant sections in Section 7.3. 7.4.2 The Common Lithologies that you will Encounter in our Region When logging lithology for consolidated material, the grainsize is not important as it is specified in the lithotype. For example, very fine grained sandstone is logged as an S1, which by definition is a very fine grained sandstone. The following are examples of the most common lithologies found in this region and their properties. Note that the latter are not necessarily the properties of each lithology in all areas.
7.4.2.a) Major Lithologies
Claystone (CY) (Tuffaceous) Colour: Light or medium Brown or Grey, with an orange, or red hue. Sometimes creamy. In the case of the three samples in CY1 below, the first is a creamy grey, the second a grey brown and the third a brown-grey. Strength: Very low strength low strength Grainsize: Not visible to the naked eye. Claystone tends to absorb water and expand, thus will tend to be greasy between your fingers (like soap) and leave a clayey streak behind (CY2).
Permian
Tertiary
CY1
CY2
Other: Many claystones in this area were originally tuffs (volcanic ash deposits). The tuffaceous origin of the claystone should be specified in the qualifiers. The example below is a claystone within a coal seam.
CY3
Coal Claystone
Carbonaceous Claystone Colour: Dark Brownish Black or Dark Greyish Black Strength: Very low strength low strength Grainsize: Not visible to the naked eye. Identify in the same manner as claystone.
Mudstone Colour: Typically dark grey (C G), however they can also be medium or light grey, depending on carbonate content and can have a brown hue if sideritic. Strength: Low strength moderate strength. High strength if sideritic. Grainsize: Not visible to the naked eye. A mudstone is typically a dirty siltstone, ie one that has an abundant clay matrix. To check whether a chip sample is mudstone, if you place a piece between your teeth, you will feel some very fine grains, but the sample will tend to be clay dominated. Siltstone (ST) Colour: Typically medium grey (B G), however they can also be dark or light grey, depending on carbonate content and can have a brown hue if sideritic. Strength: Low strength moderate strength. High strength if sideritic. Grainsize: Not visible to the naked eye. To check whether a chip sample is silt or clay, wet the sample and see whether a single chip feels slippery (soapy) between your fingers. If not, it is probably silt. A second check is to place a tiny piece between your teeth, silt grains are recognisable as grains, but are not particularly uncomfortable, sands are very uncomfortable. Some siltstones will have a clayey matrix (CL MA). Specify this in the qualifiers, or alternatively, rename as a mudstone. In the below example, note that to the naked eye, no grain is visible in the siltstone, whereas there is a grainy texture in the sandstone.
Siltstone
VS
Very Fine Sandstone
ST
Carbonaceous Siltstone (XT) Colour: Dark Brownish Black or Dark Greyish Black. Strength: Low strength moderate strength. Grainsize: Not visible to the naked eye. The same check applies as with a Siltstone.
Sandstone Colour: Light to Dark Grey. Sometimes speckled. The sandstones in this region are both lithic (containing detrital rock fragments), felsic (contain white calcium rich feldspar) and in some cases are micaceous (muscovite). Common quartz grains may be seen, but rarely comprise more than 20% of the total grains. The abundance of mica and organic material can be logged in the qualifiers as carbonaceous and micaceous laminations (CS MI LM). Strength: Low strength moderate strength. High strength if sideritic. Very Fine Grained
For comparison between Very fine sandstone and Siltstone, see section above on Siltstone. Fine Grained
Medium Grained
S4
Coarse Grained
Note that this sample has some carbonaceous blebs within the sandstone matrix. Very Coarse Grained (Photo required) Carbonaceous Sandstone Colour: Dark Brownish Black or Dark Greyish Black. Strength: Medium strength Sandstone with a rich carbonaceous component, which results in the darkening of the rock. (Photo and description required) Coal Colour: Typically black (K) Strength: Very low strength low strength Grainsize: Not applicable to this lithotype Weathered Coal Colour: Typically medium browny black to black (B B K K), however very weathered coal can be dominantly brown. Note that weathered coal has a brown streak when rubbed in the hands. Strength: Very low strength low strength Grainsize: Not applicable to this lithotype Very weathered coal can appear sooty, and have a graphitic texture. Moderately weathered or slightly weathered coal will often present as slightly coarser fragments than fresh coal.
Note that this example of weathered coal (highly weathered) has abundant tuffaceous clays in it; the lighter material. Coked Coal Colour: Silvery or grey, rather than black. Strength: Very low strength low strength. May be harder that normal coal. Coked coal typically looks vesiculated and shiny on a freshly broken surface. Often, its density is higher than normal coal. It can be predicted from a geophysical log showing a normal coal gamma response, but a higher than normal coal density response. Occasionally, whitish intrusives (fresh or highly altered) can be seen intersecting the coal. (Photo required) Coal Coal is very weak and black, the worst way to have your coffee. When coal appears in
the chips, it typically occurs as a bubbly mass. Frequently, once washed, there are other lithologies within a single chip sample of coal; in particular claystone and/or siltstone. As previously specified, coal seams should not be logged as a percentage lithology. Clay and silt or sandstone bands will be extracted and depths specified using the geophysical log (See the Training Module titled Geophysical Interpretation and Correction of Field Data using Geophysical Logs).
Basalt Colour: The basalt that you will find in our section of the Bowen Basin is typically green or greenish grey in hue, and is crystalline. Strength: Moderate strength high strength The basalt that you will find in our section of the Bowen Basin is typically green or greenish grey in hue, and is crystalline.
Felsic Intrusion (Photo and description required)

7.4.2.b) Minor Lithologies (to be specified in qualifiers)
Sideritic (Contains Siderite (FeCO3)) Sideritic rock is a high strength rock and has a distinct brown colour. If you struggle to break a brown coloured siltstone or sandstone, the probability is that it is sideritic.
Sideritic Siltstone
Siltstone
Pyritic (Contains Pyrite (FeS2) Pyrite is a brassy yellow in colour (thus reflects in the sun) and is a high strength rock. It typically occurs within either coal bands or in sand or siltstones within siderite bands, where there is iron available.
PY
Calcite (CaCO3) Calcite will typically occur as veins in joints. Calcite is a low strength rock. In this area, it typically occurs as a pale cream, or yellow rock. Although it looks similar to quartz in chips, it is a lot softer, and will break easily in your fingers.
Quartz (SiO2) Quartz veins have been known to occur around igneous intrusions, however quartz is most commonly found in the unconsolidated sediments as gravel. Quartz in this area is typically white to yellow (Citrine), and is a high strength rock. When placed between the teeth, quartz feels glassy. Do not try to chew on it or you may break your teeth. 7.4.3 Estimating Rock Strength The table below shows the different strength tests for consolidated material. Note that the definition is based on a core sample and your ability to break large samples, which cannot occur in chips. Use your logic, intuition and experience with core to assess the estimated strength of each lithotype. Remember, it is strength estimation and it is subjective, so the most important factor is youre your results remain relative and consistent throughout the hole. Again, please refer to your clients definition. Strength Very low strength Low strength Moderate strength High strength Very high strength Test Guide Scratches easily with thumbnail. Crumbles under sharp geopick blow. Peels easily with knife. <3cm piece can be broken with fingers. Easily scored with knife. Geopick indents 1-3mm and makes a dull sound. 50mm core x 150mm long breaks by hand. Scored with knife. 50mm core x 150mm long breaks by hand. Ringing sound with geopick blow. 50mm core x 150mm long breaks with single firm blow with geopick. Bright ringing sound. Hand specimen breaks with >1 blow of geopick. 50mm core x 150mm long breaks against a solid object with a single geopick blow.
7.4.4 Picking Base of Weathering As mentioned in section 7.3.7, base of weathering is determined by looking at colour change due to oxidation through the depth profile. By this method, what the geologist
picks as the base of weathering is not the TRUE base of weathering, but the visual base of weathering. For example, when chipping for the purpose of determining the Limit of Oxidation (LOX) within a coal seam, the visual base of weathering can be picked up to 6 meters above the true base of weathering. Weathering does not necessarily occur at a constant gradual rate from extremely weathered to fresh, but can move both ways along the scale. For example, some consolidated sediments, particularly coarser more felsic sediments, or fractured lithologies (eg. igneous), can act to channel water and can hence be more oxidised than sediments above and below them. This is particularly apparent in basalts. The below table defines what visual changes you are looking for. Extremely Weathered. Highly Weathered. Moderately Weathered. Slightly Weathered. Fresh. Rock type does not in any way resemble its original form in texture, colour, and composition. Rock will have a brown colour, however is identifiable as a rock type (e.g. Sandstone, siltstone, claystone etc.) Rock will be its original colour; however will have a reddy, browney or yellowey hue (discoloration). Rock will be its original colour; however will have minor weathered grains (reddy, browney or yellowey specks of discoloration). There is no discoloration due to oxidation.
The boundary between Slightly Weathered and Fresh is the Base of Weathering. 7.5 Data Files that need to be Created for Chip Holes
Files that need to be created include; Header, Drilling, Geology; and Water flow files. Ensure that you create these files. On some sites, you will also be required to create a defect file from lithology and strength changes in chips.

TTM005 Resolve Logging Chip Samples Training Module v2.0

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Technical Training Module: Logging Chips

Offsider Sampling chips

Chips Distance of chips from rig 8 to 10m

Drill Step Chips

Rod Trailer Chips

7.3.5 Lithological Qualifiers

Granule (2.00 - 3.99mm) Pebble (4.00 63.99mm) Cobble (64.00 255.99mm)

The Tertiary-Permian Boundary

Logging Consolidated Material

Very Fine Sandstone

Felsic Intrusion (Photo and description required)

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