1 PAPER 2007-082 Cutting Efficiency of a Single PDC Cutter on

filed in writing with the technical program chairman prior to the conclusion of the meeting. This paper and any discussion filed will be considered for publication in Petroleum Society journals. Publication rights are reserved. This is a pre-print and subject to correction. Polycrystalline diamond compact (PDC) bits have gained wide popularity in the petroleum industry for drilling soft and moderate-strength formations. However, in hard-formation applications the PDC bit still has limitations even though continuing developments in PDC cutter designs and materials have steadily improved drilling performance. Resolution of the limitations of PDC bits for drilling hard formations will contribute significantly to the price competitiveness of (i) oil and gas recovered from deep, hot, hard-rock formations, and (ii) electricity generated from enhanced geothermal energy reservoirs