This presentation chronicles the construction of a water main crossing of the Ohio River. The project is
historic in the use of horizontal directional drilling to install the pipe in that it provides for the
interstate sale of drinking water. The greatest technological challenge to the project was the installation of
a 36-inch main across the river. Horizontal directional drilling is a trenchless construction technology
with increasing use in the water supply industry. This project demonstrates the application of the
technology for installing large diameter pipes over long distances. Route selection involved not only consideration of the final pipeline alignment but also the staging
area where the pipe was to be welded to prepare the string to be pulled into the bore. At the crossing
location, the river is 1,800 feet wide. The total bore length was nearly 3,000 feet. The end locations were
selected to permit the angular bores down to and back up from the crossing elevation and to provide setup
areas on either side of the river for the drilling equipment and the drilling mud handling systems. The
route crossed beneath a bridge and required precise steering of the drilling head to pass between the pile
supports for the bridge.
Photographs show the pipe staging and drilling operations. Challenges encountered during the operation
are discussed, and observations on the application of directional drilling in the water industry are
provided. Includes figures.
| Edition : | Vol. - No. |
| File Size : | 1
file
, 2.3 MB |
| Note : | This product is unavailable in Ukraine, Russia, Belarus |
| Number of Pages : | 15 |
| Published : | 06/16/2002 |
