CHARACTERIZATION OF WEAR AND PROFILE OF DIAMOND DRILL BIT BY OPTICAL PROFILOMETRY

A new technique to measure wear and profile of impregnated diamond dri ll bit for mineral exploration is presented. A three-dimensional surfa ce mapping of worn diamond drill bit surface is obtained by the laser triangulation method. With adequate algorithms all relevant data can b e obtained. Consequently, the volume loss between two distances cored can easily be measured with a great precision. Moreover, computerized cross sections of the worn surface give relevant information about the profile resulting from the drilling process.