Designation: D 6032 02 (Reapproved 2006)

Standard Test Method for

Determining Rock Quality Designation (RQD) of Rock Core1
This standard is issued under the fixed designation D 6032; the number immediately following the designation indicates the year of
original adoption or, in the case of revision, the year of last revision. A number in parentheses indicates the year of last reapproval. A
superscript epsilon (e) indicates an editorial change since the last revision or reapproval.

1. Scope* E 691 Practice for Conducting an Interlaboratory Study to

1.1 This test method covers the determination of the rock Determine the Precision of a Test Method
quality designation (RQD) as a standard parameter in drill core 3. Terminology
logging.
1.2 All observed and calculated values shall conform to the 3.1 For terminology used in this test method, refer to
guidelines for significant digits and rounding established in Terminology D 653.
Practice D 6026. 3.2 Definitions of Terms Specific to This Standard:
1.2.1 The method used to specify how data are collected, 3.2.1 core runin the most basic usage, the length of the
calculated, or recorded in this standard is not directly related to interval measured from the depth each core sample was started
the accuracy to which the data can be applied in design or other to the depth at which drilling stopped and the sample was
uses, or both. How one applies the results obtained using this recovered from the core barrel. If required, the core run can
standard is beyond its scope. also be defined to cover a specific length or lithology in the
1.3 The values stated in SI units are to be regarded as the core samples.
standard. The values stated in inch-pound units are approxi- 3.2.2 drill breakany mechanical or man-made break in
mate. the core that is not natural occurring.
1.4 This standard does not purport to address all of the 3.2.3 intact coreany segment of core between two open,
safety concerns, if any, associated with its use. It is the natural discontinuities.
3.2.4 rock quality designation (RQD)a modified core
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responsibility of the user of this standard to establish appro-

priate safety and health practices and determine the applica- recovery percentage in which all pieces of sound core over 100
bility of regulatory limitations prior to use. mm are counted as recovery.
3.2.5 sound coreany core which is fresh to moderately
2. Referenced Documents weather and which has sufficient strength to resist hand
2.1 ASTM Standards: 2 breakage.
D 653 Terminology Relating to Soil, Rock, and Contained
4. Summary of Test Method
Fluids
D 2113 Practice for Rock Core Drilling and Sampling of 4.1 The RQD denotes the percentage of intact and sound
Rock for Site Investigation rock retrieved from a borehole of any orientation. All pieces of
D 3740 Practice for Minimum Requirements for Agencies intact and sound rock core equal to or greater than 100 mm (4
Engaged in the Testing and/or Inspection of Soil and Rock in.) long are summed and divided by the total length of the core
as Used in Engineering Design and Construction run, as shown in Fig. 1. Rock mechanics judgement may be
D 5079 Practices for Preserving and Transporting Rock necessary to determine if a piece of core qualifies as being
Core Samples intact and sound.
D 6026 Practice for Using Significant Digits in Geotechni- 5. Significance and Use
cal Data
5.1 The RQD was first introduced in the mid 1960s to
provide a simple and inexpensive general indication of rock
mass quality to predict tunneling conditions and support
1
This test method is under the jurisdiction of ASTM Committee D18 on Soil and requirements. The recording of RQD has since become virtu-
Rock and is the direct responsibility of Subcommittee D18.21 on Ground Water and
Vadose Zone Investigations. ally standard practice in drill core logging for a wide variety of
Current edition approved May 1, 2006. Published June 2006. Originally geotechnical investigations.
approved in 1996. Last previous edition approved in 2002 as D 603202.
2
5.2 The RQD values provide a basis for making preliminary
For referenced ASTM standards, visit the ASTM website, www.astm.org, or
contact ASTM Customer Service at service@astm.org. For Annual Book of ASTM
design decisions involving estimation of required depths of
Standards volume information, refer to the standards Document Summary page on excavation for foundations of structures. The RQD values also
the ASTM website. can serve to identify potential problems related to bearing

*A Summary of Changes section appears at the end of this standard.

Copyright ASTM International, 100 Barr Harbor Drive, PO Box C700, West Conshohocken, PA 19428-2959, United States.

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 D 6032 02 (2006)

FIG. 1 RQD Logging Center Line Method1

capacity, settlement, erosion, or sliding in rock foundations. suitability of the equipment and facilities used. Agencies that meet the
The RQD can provide an indication of rock quality in quarries criteria of Practice D 3740 are generally considered capable of competent
for concrete aggregate, rockfill, or large riprap. and objective testing/sampling/inspection/etc. Users of this standard are
cautioned that compliance with Practice D 3740 does not in itself assure
5.3 The RQD has been widely used as a warning indicator reliable results. Reliable results depend on many factors; Practice D 3740
of low-quality rock zones that may need greater scrutiny or provides a means of evaluating some of those factors.
require additional borings or other investigational work.
5.4 The RQD is a basic component of many rock mass 6. Procedure
classification systems for engineering purposes.
5.5 Used alone, RQD is not sufficient to provide an adequate 6.1 Drilling of the rock core should be done in accordance
description of rock mass quality. The RQD does not account with Practice D 2113. It is important that proper drilling

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for joint orientation, tightness, continuity, and gouge material. techniques and equipment are used to minimize core breakage
The RQD must be used in combination with other geological or poor core recovery, or both.
and geotechnical input. 6.2 There are several ways to define a core run for calcu-
5.6 The RQD is sensitive to the orientation of joint sets with lating RQD. Three of these are: (1) a core run is equal to a drill
respect to the orientation of the core. That is, a joint set parallel run; (2) a change in formation or rock type could constitute an
to the core axis will not intersect the core, unless the drill hole end of a core run; and (3) a core run can be a selected zone of
happens to run along the joint. A joint set perpendicular to the concern. In determining a core run it is important to be
core axis will intersect the core axis at intervals equal to the consistent throughout a drill hole and to document how the
joint spacing. For intermediate orientations, the spacing of joint core run was defined.
intersections with the core will be a cosine function of angle 6.3 Retrieval, preservation, transportation, storage, and
between joints and the core axis. cataloging of the rock core should be done in accordance with
5.7 Core sizes from BQ to PQ with core diameters of 36.5 Practices D 5079. The RQD should be logged on site when the
mm (1.44 in.) and 85 mm (3.35 in.), respectively, are normally core is retrieved because some rocks can disintegrate, due to
acceptable for measuring RQD as long as proper drilling poor curatorial handling, slaking, desiccation, stress relief, or
techniques are used that do not cause excess core breakage or swelling, with time. For these rocks it is recommended that the
poor recovery, or both. The NX-size (54.7 mm [2.16 in.]) and RQD be measured again after 24 h to assist in determining
NQ-size (47.5 mm [1.87 in.]) are the optimal core sizes for durability.
measuring RQD. The RQD is also useful for large core 6.4 Close visual examination of core pieces is required for
diameters provided the core diameter is clearly stated. The assessing the type of fracture (that is, natural or drill break).
RQD calculated for core smaller than BQ may not be repre- Pieces of core that are moderately or intensely weathered,
sentative of the true quality of the rock mass. contain numerous pores, or are friable, or combination thereof,
NOTE 1The quality of the result produced by this standard is should not be included in the summation of pieces greater than
dependent on the competence of the personnel performing it, and the 100 mm (4 in.) for the determination of the RQD. Any rejected

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 D 6032 02 (2006)
piece of core is still included as part of the total length of core 8.1.1 Source of sample including project name, location,
run and should be noted in the report. and, if known, storage environment. The location may be
6.5 Measure all core piece lengths that are intact and greater specified in terms of borehole number and depth of core runs
than 100 mm (4 in.) to the nearest 1 mm (0.04 in.) and record from the collar of the hole.
on a RQD data sheet (Fig. 2). Measure such pieces along the 8.1.2 Description of drilling equipment, method, personnel,
centerline of the core as illustrated in Fig. 13 and hole orientation.
NOTE 2Centerline measurements ensure that the RQD value resulting 8.1.3 Physical description of core runs including diameter,
from the measurements is not dependent on the core diameter. Centerline
rock type and location and orientation of discontinuities, such
measurements also avoid unduly penalizing resulting RQD values for
cases where fractures parallel the core axis. Any other method used for as, apparent weakness planes, bedding planes, schistosity, and
accounting for fractures parallel to the core axis, while not advocated by large inclusions or inhomogeneities, if any.
this test method and in the literature, must be clearly stated.4,5 8.1.4 Date of RQD calculations and sketches and/or photo-
6.6 Only those pieces of rock formed by natural fractures graphs of core runs.
(that is, joints, shear zones, bedding planes, or cleavage planes 8.1.5 General indication of any conditions, observations,
that result in surfaces of separation) shall be considered for and assumptions relevant to the RQD values or calculations.
RQD purposes. The core pieces on either side of core breaks
8.1.6 Include a table of RQD values and/or copies of any
caused by the drilling process shall be fitted together and
RQD data forms or sketches.
counted as one piece. Drilling breaks are usually evident by
rough fresh surfaces. In some cases it may be difficult to 8.1.7 Report the rock quality classification for the core run
differentiate between natural fractures and drilling breaks. using the table in Fig. 1.
When in doubt, count a fracture as a natural fracture. If for
some reason there is not 100 % core recovery for a drill run, the 9. Precision and Bias
length of core left in the borehole should be taken into account 9.1 PrecisionA round-robin study of the RQD index of
by adding it to the run in which it was cored rather than the run
cores of four selected types of sedimentary rock (anhydrite/
in which it was retrieved.
calcite, calcareous shale, limestone, and anhydrite) with four
6.7 Record the top and bottom depths of each core run.
6.8 Sketch core features such as natural fractures, drilling replications per rock type was conducted in accordance with
breaks, lost core, highly weathered pieces, and so forth (see Practice E 691 by eight experienced participants.6 The repeat-
Fig. 1). ability and reproducibility statistics reported in Table 1 refer to
6.9 Include remarks concerning judgement decisions such within-participant and between-participant precision, respec-
as whether a break in a core is a natural fracture or a drilling tively. The probability is approximately 95 % that two results
break or why a piece of core longer than 100 mm (4 in.) was obtained by the same participant on the same material will not
not considered to be intact. differ by more than the repeatability limit r. Likewise, the
6.10 Record the sum of intact core pieces longer than 100 probability is approximately 95 % that two results obtained by
mm (4 in.) long, and calculate the RQD value for the core run different participants on the same material will not differ by
being evaluated. more than the reproducibility limit R. The precision statistics
6.11 Indicate the rock quality description for the core run are calculated from the following equation:
using the rock quality table in Fig. 1.
r 5 2~=2!s r (2)
7. Calculation where sr = repeatability standard deviation, and
7.1 Calculate as a percentage, the RQD of a core run as
R 5 2~=2!sR (3)
follows:
@(length of intact and sound pieces . 100 mm ~4 in.!#3 100 % where sR = reproducibility standard deviation.
RQD 5 total core run length, mm
(1) NOTE 3Some combinations of the means and r and K can result in
KQD limits that exceed 100 % because the RQD values have been
In accordance with Practice D 6026, record the result to the assumed to be normally distributed which may not reflect the actual
nearest one percent. underlying distribution of the RQD values.
8. Report 9.2 BiasThere is no accepted reference value for this test
8.1 A typical report may include the following: method; therefore, bias cannot be determined.

3
10. Keywords
Deere, D. U., and Deere, D. W., The Rock Quality Designation (RQD) After
Twenty Years, Rock Classification Systems for Engineering Purposes, ASTM STP 10.1 classification; index; logging; quality; rock; rock core
984, 1988, pp. 91101.
4
Deere, D. U., and Deere, D. W., Rock Quality Designation (RQD) Index in
Practice, Contract Report G1891, Department of the Army Corps of Engineers,
1989.
5 6
Bieniawski, Z.T., Exploration for Rock Engineering Proceeding of the Pincus, H. J., and Clift, S. J., Interlaboratory Testing Program for Rock
Symposium on Exploration for Rock Engineering,November 1976, Johannesburg, Properties: Repeatability and Reproducibility of RQD Values for Selected Sedimen-
A.A., Balkema, Rotterdam. tary Rocks, PCN: 33-000011-38, ASTM Institute of Standards Research, 1994.
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 D 6032 02 (2006)

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FIG. 2 RQD Data Sheet

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 D 6032 02 (2006)
TABLE 1 RQD Index of Cores of Sedimentary Rock
Mean RQD, Repeatability, Reproducibility,
Material (Rock Type)
x, % r, % A R, % A
Anhydrite/calcite 86 28 28
Calcareous shale 60 32 40
Limestone 92 14 14
Anhydrite 86 20 20
A
The numbers in the r and R columns are not to be taken as percentages of the
means, but are applied as plus or minus terms to the respective means.

SUMMARY OF CHANGES

In accordance with Committee D18 policy, this section identifies the location of changes to this standard since
the last edition (1996) that may impact the use of this standard.

(1) Added to Section 1 required statement about significant error in a symbol and the abbreviation for RQD. Took out
figures and Practice D 6026. confusing discussion of vertical fractures since it pertains to
(2) Added Terminology D 653, Practices D 3740, and D 6026 any fracture that parallels the core axis and added references
(3) Added Terminology Section , and renumbered subsequent used to support this section.
sections. (8) In Section 6.1 added words and equipment with proper
(4) Added Note 1 in Significance and Use Section, referencing drilling techniques.
Practice D 3740, and renumbered subsequent notes. (9) In Section 6.3 added the influence of curatorial handling.
(5) In Section 4.1 defined method as applicable to drill holes in
any orientation and added the word sound between intact (10) Added Report Section and renumbered accordingly.
rock. Changed Engineering judgement to Rock mechanics (11) Figure 1 Added Centerline Method to title, added
judgement so that both the engineering and geological con- intact and sound to the formula and changed Description of
siderations were included. Rock Quality to Rock Quality Classification.
(6) In Calculation Section, added the sentence: In accordance (12) Figure 2 Fixed heading to include more relevant
with Practice D 6026, record the result to the nearest one background data, added the words intact and sound to the
percent. formula, changed meters to millimeters, and added place to put
(7) In Calculation Section, Note 2, corrected typographical the rock quality classification.

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