About 30 years ago Sandia Labs developed polycrystalline diamond compact (PDC) bits for geothermal drilling. Today nearly two-thirds of the oil we use comes from wells drilled using the (PDC) bits.

Howard Hughes Sr. revolutionized the drill bit more than 100 years ago to accelerate the oil boom that made Houston and Texas the nation's energy capital. Today, his legacy company is aiming to make ...

The University of Texas Permian Basin College of Engineering has been gifted a Hughes drill bit by a local Permian Basin family. This original twin-cone rotary rock drill bit has been used to drill ...

Longer life, higher penetration rates and cleaner holes are among the benefits of a new generation of Sandvik GT60 button bits called RT300. Thanks to a new super-grade of cemented-carbide called XT48 ...

Tungsten carbide drill bits will grind through miles of ultra-hard igneous seafloor rock in hopes of reaching the mantle. Image via IODP One of the strangest facets of modern exploration is that we ...

Houston-based Particle Drilling Technologies Inc. has successfully tested a new drilling system, designed to enhance the rate of penetration through hard rock. Particle-impact drilling (PID) is a ...

Scientists in the United States are preparing to drill into one of the country’s most closely watched volcanoes in a bid to ...