Proprietary Soil Sampling Technology Makes Light Work of Coarse Alluvial Material

Collecting samples in coarse alluvial gravels isn’t always simple. Often times, when faced with unconsolidated, coarse alluvial material, typical in areas throughout the western United States, traditional split-spoon and Shelby-tube sampling methods are unable to get the job done.

The proprietary BLN Sample Hammer™ was created by, and named after, Cascade’s own Operations Manager, Bryan L. Nydoske, who took the challenge of finding a solution to sampling in coarse alluvial material in his own hands.

The technology offers an alternative sampling method and is compatible with air rotary and air rotary advance casings. It features a specially designed air hammer body and duel tube core barrel which helps reduce sample refusal. The resulting sample this technology can produce is of superior quality often only associated with sonic drilling methodologies.

Already proven successful on complex drilling sites throughout the West, the BLN Sample Hammer™ was first used in a remote mountain-front terrain in Southern Mexico. “That type of complex geology (unconsolidated alluvial material with both loose and tightly bedded gravels) is the formation I had in mind when designing this system.” Explains Nydoske, “The crew was able to significantly increase alluvial soil sample recoveries relative to prior investigation efforts.” In challenging environmental sampling scenarios where water is not an option, the BLN Sampler allows collection of soils samples that would have otherwise been impossible to collect with alternative methods.

Read more about how the sampler works in this article featured in National Driller Magazine.