TECHNICAL GUIDELINES

Borehole Preparation for Geophysical Testing

Prepared By

ACES Dubai

Guideline No.

TG02

Revision No.

Status

Final

TECHNICAL GUIDELINES
TG02. Borehole Preparation for Geophysical
Testing

Issue No.
Rev. No.
Rev. Date
Page No.
Approved By

7
0
20/01/2011
2/9
Eng.Emad Sharif

Grouting the annulus space around PVC pipes and borehole sides
1. INTRODUCTION
Geophysical testing in boreholes requires to remove the temporary steel casing used to support the
borehole sides and install PVC casing instead. The resulting space between the PVC casing and
borehole sides is required to be filled with grout material having properties as much close as possible to
original formation material and to close any voids in order to carry out the borehole geophysical
testing.
Grouting is the placement of a sealing material such as neat cement or bentonite into the annular space
between a PVC casing and the borehole wall.

2. PURPOSE OF GROUTING
The purpose of grouting in borehole is to provide structural support for PVC casing to provide
appropriate connection between the PVC casing and the surrounding formation material.

3. GROUTING RULES
The following general rules and guidelines are important considerations:

No devices to suspend grout.

No inducing collapse of the borehole wall.
Grout from bottom to top in a continuous operation.
Density of grout shall be consistent.
Borehole shall be at least 2 inches larger in diameter than the PVC casing size.
An annular space between a permanent casing and temporary casing shall be grouted by
pumping neat cement or bentonite grout, or by pouring bentonite chips, bentonite pellets, or
granular bentonite, into the annular space. Granular bentonite shall not be poured into an
annular space that contains drilling fluid or water.
Neat cement shall be allowed to set a minimum of 24 hours. If bentonite is added, the grout
shall set a minimum of 48 hours.

4. OVERDRILLING THE BOREHOLE

It may be necessary to over drill the borehole if it is anticipated that material from the augers/bits
during removal or the bottom plug will remain in the borehole. Normally, 3 to 5 feet is sufficient. If
the borehole is drilled deeper than desired, it can be backfilled to the design depth with bentonite
pellets, bentonite chips, or filter pack sand.

5. GROUTING METHODS
Grout slurries must be placed into the annular space from the bottom of the zone to be sealed, upward
to the surface in one continuous operation. Pouring grout directly into the annulus from the surface is
not appropriate since it may result in bridging and prevent the grout from reaching the bottom. Prior to
placement of the grout, the annular space should be checked to make sure that bridging or caving of
material from the borehole wall has not occurred. When cement is used as a grouting material,
adequate time must be allowed for cement curing prior to other activities in the borehole. Placement of
grout in the annular space can be achieved with several methods as discussed below.

TECHNICAL GUIDELINES
TG02. Borehole Preparation for Geophysical
Testing

Issue No.
Rev. No.
Rev. Date
Page No.
Approved By

7
0
20/01/2011
3/9
Eng.Emad Sharif

1. Displacement Method.
2. Grout Pipe/External Placement Method (Surface Pumping)
3. Grout Valve Method (One Way Valve) Bottom / Up Grouting
4. Bottom / Up Grouting using Single Packer

1. Displacement Method
In this method the borehole shall be at least 2 inches larger than the nominal PVC casing size. In
caving formations, a temporary conductor casing (or surface casing) is installed to keep the borehole
open during the grouting operation. The estimated volume of grout required is placed directly into the
bottom of the borehole by shoveling, pouring or the use of a dump bailer after the temporary surface
casing is in place. The permanent casing with a bottom plug is used and is lowered into the borehole to
displace the grout. The plug also prevents grout from entering the inside of the permanent casing. In
some cases the weight of the casing alone is not sufficient to displace the grout and the casing must be
filled with water and forced into the hole by the pull-down mechanism. As the casing is lowered, the
grout moves up the annular space from the bottom of the borehole toward the surface. The surface
casing is removed promptly to expose the grout to the borehole wall. This is one of the simplest
grouting methods and is suitable for situations where the bottom of the borehole can be visually
inspected prior to grouting and where little or no water is present in the borehole. Experience has
shown that this method is very adequate for borehole <10m in depth, but can be used for
boreholes up to 20m depth. For larger depths, the uplift pressure on the PVC casing would be
high and safety risk becomes a great concern.

TECHNICAL GUIDELINES
TG02. Borehole Preparation for Geophysical
Testing

Issue No.
Rev. No.
Rev. Date
Page No.
Approved By

7
0
20/01/2011
4/9
Eng.Emad Sharif

Installation Procedure:
1. Clear debris from the borehole. Check the borehole depth and Fill the borehole with grout.
2. Attach the bottom cap to the bottom section of casing.
3. Install casing to the specified depth. Keep casing filled with water to counteract buoyancy and
grout Pressure. Continue until the full depth of the borehole is cased. It is advised to have
appropriate connection with the rig head to assist in lowering the casing slowly into the borehole.
Safety precautions are a must.
4. Allow the grout to set. Later, top off the borehole with grout and install a protective cover.

2. Grout Pipe/External Placement Method (Pumping)

This is one of the most commonly used grouting method. The same procedure as described above is
followed except that the grouting material is placed in the annulus with the aid of a grout pump rather
than by gravity flow alone. Screening the cement before it is placed into the mixing hopper will help
to prevent clogs and interruption of the grout pumping procedure. The grouting procedure begins with
the tremie pipe being lowered to the bottom of the annulus. As the grout material is placed by
pumping, the tremie pipe should be sequentially raised to prevent it from becoming stuck in the
annulus. Typically, thin cement grout appears initially at the surface. Grouting may stop when
consistently thick cement grout is observed. A grout scale is useful in determining adequacy of the
grout weight.

TECHNICAL GUIDELINES
TG02. Borehole Preparation for Geophysical
Testing

Issue No.
Rev. No.
Rev. Date
Page No.
Approved By

7
0
20/01/2011
5/9
Eng.Emad Sharif

Installation Procedure:
This method is used when a grout pipe or hose will fit between the casing and the borehole wall.
1. Clear debris from the borehole. Check the borehole depth. Attach bottom cap. Attach grout hose, if
Used.
2. Install casing to the specified depth.
3. Lower the grout pipe to the bottom of the borehole. Then pump in grout.
4. During grouting, you must keep a balance between the hydraulic pressures inside and outside the
Casing. If the casing is already full of water, no further action is needed. If the borehole is dry, raise
the water level within the casing to match the level of the grout.
5. Take measures to counter buoyancy, and then allow the grout to set. Later install a protective cover.

3. Grout Valve Method (One Way Valve)- Bottom/Up Method

Grout valves are used when casing is installed in small diameter boreholes that do not allow use of an
external grout pipe. The grout valve is a one-way valve installed in the bottom cap of the casing. A
grout pipe is fixed on the top of the casing to join with the grout valve and deliver grout.
Grout valves add about two feet to the effective length of the casing, so the borehole should be about
two feet deeper to compensate. This method involves pumping the grout through a grout pipe inside the
casing. The grout valve has a backpressure valve, which prevents grout from backing up into the casing
when the grout pipe is removed. The grout is forced around the bottom of the casing and upward in the
annular space until it appears at the surface. The grout pipe is then detached from the cementing shoe
and raised to the surface.

TECHNICAL GUIDELINES
TG02. Borehole Preparation for Geophysical
Testing

Issue No.
Rev. No.
Rev. Date
Page No.
Approved By

7
0
20/01/2011
6/9
Eng.Emad Sharif

Installation Procedure:
1. Install grout valve on bottom section of casing. Install casing to the required depth.
2. Connect the grout pipe into the casing until it contacts the grout valve. Successful coupling can be
tested by pumping water through the grout pipe. If the water level inside the casing rises, reposition
the pipe and test again.
3. Pump in grout until it spills out at the surface. The weight of the grout pipe will keep the casing from
floating.
4. When you retrieve the grout pipe, the casing will float upwards, so you must be prepared to hold the
casing down as you retrieve the pipe.
5. Finally, top off the borehole with grout and install a protective cover.
6. It is important to flush clean the casing by injecting clean water using pressure water line to be
lowered into the casing to remove the grout from the casing.

4. Grout Pipe/External Placement Method (Pumping) Using Single Packer Grouting

Inflatable packers are frequently used for grout injection in geotechnical applications. The most
commonly used method is single packer grouting, where grout is injected into the ground below a
single inflated packer. The technique is extremely simple, the packer is lowered at the bottom
inside the casing, inflate the packer to the required pressure and grout is pumped in under pressure
below the packer. The grout valve has a backpressure valve, which prevents grout from backing up
into the casing. The grout is forced around the bottom of the casing and upward in the annular space
until it appears at the surface. Throughout the grouting process, the packer inflation pressure should be
monitored to ensure that it is adequate to seal against the grout injection pressure. After finishing the
grouting, deflate the packer and remove it from the casing.

TECHNICAL GUIDELINES
TG02. Borehole Preparation for Geophysical
Testing

Issue No.
Rev. No.
Rev. Date
Page No.
Approved By

7
0
20/01/2011
7/9
Eng.Emad Sharif

Installation Procedure:
1. Install grout valve on bottom section of casing. Install casing to the required depth.
2. Lower the packer inside the casing until it reaches the desired depth.
3. Inflate the packer and monitor the pressure to ensure that it is adequate to seal against the grout
Injection pressure
3. Pump in grout until it spills out at the surface.
4. Once grout will come out on the top surface from the annular space, deflate the packer and remove
it from the casing
5. Finally install a protective cover.
Note: It is also necessary to flush clean the casing by injecting clean water with pressure water line
inserted into the casing to remove any grout material out of the casing.

PVC Casing;
PVC casing 75mm nominal inside diameter with threaded flush joints is recommended to avoid
bending, leakage and breaking of commonly used male/female joint casing. For deep installations,
attention shall be made to the wall thickness and strength of the casing.
PVC casing showing with male/ female threads joints

Typical photo of Non return valve

Typical photo showing the bottom end fixed with non return valve

Typical photo showing the upper end fixed with nipple

adapter.

TECHNICAL GUIDELINES
TG02. Borehole Preparation for Geophysical
Testing

Issue No.
Rev. No.
Rev. Date
Page No.
Approved By

7
0
20/01/2011
8/9
Eng.Emad Sharif

Grout Mix:
Cement bentonite mix is typically used to conduct the grouting around the PVC casing. The grout mix
shall generally have the following characterisics;
-

Flow ability and pump ability

Low bleeding and volume shrinkage
Adequate strength (generally desirable to be compatible with surrounding formation soil/rock)

The following in-house grout mixes has been developed and can be used as guidelines for selecting the
suitable mix. Mix No. 3 has been typically used for general applications against soil and rock
conditions in UAE satisfactorily.

Proportion of Constituents
Mix No.

Water

Cement

1
1.60
2
1.60
3
1.50
4
1.30
5
1.30
6
1
7
1
8
1
9
1
10
1
11
1
Note: * % by weight of Cement

1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1

*Bentonite

Sand

0.50
0.50
0.25
0.45
0.45
0.05
0.05
0.1
0.1
0.1
0.1

1
1
2
2
1.5
1.5

Admixture
(Structuro W
450)(1)
1.5%
1.5%
1.5%
1.5%
1.5%
-

Grout Pump:
The grout pump can be monoblock pump, however a typical grout piston-pump with mixer , agitator is
preferred

TECHNICAL GUIDELINES
TG02. Borehole Preparation for Geophysical
Testing

Issue No.
Rev. No.
Rev. Date
Page No.
Approved By

Grout Pump with typical photograph showing arrangement for field grouting

7
0
20/01/2011
9/9
Eng.Emad Sharif