Estimating the maximum allowable annular pressure at ground limit in horizontal directional drilling is a complex, yet vital operation. During an HDD procedure, the annular pressure must remain within the maximum allowable pressure envelope. Doing so minimizes the risk of hydraulic fracturing, thus preventing drilling fluid release and keeping overall project risks under control.

Explaining how to do this was the task of a University of Alberta team at the 2024 North American Society for Trenchless Technology No-Dig Show in Providence, Rhode Island — and they succeeded. 

Their poster titled “Framework to Establish the Maximum Allowable Annular Pressure in HDD” won second place at the show. The poster was created by Mikaela Rocha Velasco (UAlberta MSc student), Inshik Park, (UAlberta Ph.D. candidate) and Dr. Alireza Bayat (UAlberta professor of civil and environmental engineering). All three belong to the NASTT University of Alberta Student Chapter. 

“Our poster is about the decision-making for selecting an appropriate analytical model [mathematical equation] to estimate the maximum allowable annular pressure [ground limit] in horizontal directional drilling,” says Rocha Velasco. “By presenting the deviations between the estimates of maximum allowable annular pressure made based on the existing analytical models, our poster emphasizes the importance of decision-making in the design of HDD projects.”

THE PROJECT PLAN

The UAlberta team designed their poster based on a number of factors. They included various audiences and their level of understanding HDD operations; provided a clear statement of the problem and objectives covered by the poster; refined figures and tables within the poster to improve impact; and concluded by outlining the future direction of this research project. 

The poster’s design goal was to rely more on visual representations rather than text to explain its subject matter while incorporating feedback to their poster entry at the 2023 No-Dig Show.

For UAlberta’s Inshik Park, “this achievement at the NASTT 2024 Trenchless Research Competition is meaningful as it demonstrates my capability to guide a graduate student,” he says. “Based on my previous year’s experience of winning first place at the NASTT 2023 Trenchless Competition, I tried to guide Mikaela to be able to present her research work in the most effective way for the competition. Despite the challenges with multiple revisions and practices, Mikaela followed all the guidance successfully and performed beyond my expectations at the competition.”

“In the future, as the senior student of the research group, I wish to guide more students in the poster competition,” Park continued. “Furthermore, I also wish to guide more students to deliver the technical presentations of their research projects. As well, I am looking forward to publishing my research outcomes in academic journals and presenting them at the NASTT No-Dig Conferences.”

Making her mark at the 2024 No-Dig was an exhilarating experience for Mikaela Rocha Velasco. 

“The accomplishment at the NASTT 2024 Trenchless Research Competition is highly motivating and encouraging,” she says. “It reflects the exceptional guidance I am receiving from my supervisor, Dr. Bayat, and our senior student, Inshik. Furthermore, the most significant reward was the feedback I received from both the judging panel and various attendees who approached me during the conference. 

VALUED PROGRAM

For the record, the NASTT University of Alberta Student Chapter currently has 13 members including three Ph.D. students, six Master of Sciences students and four Master of Engineering students. It is a cross-disciplinary group that includes students at the University of Alberta pursuing various engineering majors such as underground trenchless construction, pavement engineering, geotechnical and geoenvironmental engineering, construction engineering and management, and others that are interested in trenchless technologies.

For his part, Bayat, who is NASTT UAlberta Student Chapter’s faculty adviser, is grateful for the recognition of his students’ efforts. 

“Such achievements by Mikaela and Inshik provide clear evidence that their research outcomes are highly valued by the trenchless industry,” he says. “Since the research outcomes are of interest to many trenchless practitioners, the students or myself are often contacted by various organizations to work together on their research projects. Through such recognitions at the No-Dig conferences, students also gain opportunities to closely connect to both academic/industry experts, which could be greatly beneficial for preparing for the next chapter of their careers.”

The benefits of winning at the 2024 No-Dig Show don’t end there. 

“Although trenchless technologies are relatively new compared to the other disciplines of civil engineering (e.g., structural engineering, foundation engineering, and others) and remain less familiar to many students, such achievements demonstrate great potential for them to participate in the research in this field,” Dr. Bayat says. “Furthermore, the achievements allow the award-winning students to become great role models to the other students and help to attract more students to the NASTT Student Chapter and the Underground Trenchless Construction Program at the University of Alberta.”