Cuttings Sampling Policy

1. All samples must be identified by the customer while at the CRC. If a customer wishes to sample from the cuttings they are viewing, they will consult with the CRC staff member at the front desk. The CRC staff member will determine if there is sufficient sample available.

    1.1. Sampling is allowed if the cuttings envelope contains more than 15 milliliters (ml) of material.

    1.2. If there is insufficient material in an envelope to sample, CRC staff will determine if there is a duplicate cuttings set available.

    1.3. An individual or group may take a maximum of 100 samples per visit. The total number of samples pending return for an individual, or for an entire company, agency or institution, is limited to 200 samples. The limits for international researchers are 25 and 50, respectively.

2. The CRC contains a wealth of analog and digital data on cuttings/wells previously sampled. Prior to taking new samples, it is highly recommended that the customer check the Well Catalog to see if data and/or thin sections already exist for the sample(s) requested. The CRC makes all data and thin section images available on the CRC Website shortly after they are received. All legacy paper files have been scanned and can be downloaded from the CRC Website. Please check to see if data on the samples requested are already available.

3. Cuttings sampling:

    3.1. If an envelope contains more than 15 ml of material, up to 5 ml of the remaining material may be sampled.

    3.2. No high-grading (picking out specific grains) of samples; all samples taken must be representative of the cuttings depth interval. If customer is observed high-grading samples, they may lose the privilege of sampling additional cuttings.

    3.3. CRC staff has the right to verify the amount of sample collected. If it is found that sampling protocols are not being followed, the customer will be required to correct the sample size of those samples out of compliance, and may lose additional sampling privileges.

    3.4. Due to the large amount of material required to produce results, sampling for scarce mineral grains such as zircon, apatite, etc., is not allowed.

    3.5. Non-destructive analysis performed during a visit using a testing instrument brought in by the researcher is allowed with CRC approval. The raw data produced from these analyses must be submitted to the CRC within six months.

    3.6. The CRC expects to receive results (data, thin section, etc.) for each sample taken. Samples should not be collected in excess of the number that can be analyzed within the allotted six month time period. Funding for analyzing every sample should be secured before samples are collected.

4. Any unused portion(s) of collected sample material (along with appropriate labeling), must be returned to the CRC within six months of sampling unless prior arrangements have been made with the CRC staff.

5. Prior to removing samples from the CRC, a completed sampling form must be signed by the individual taking the samples and approved by a CRC staff member. The name of the individual’s supervisor, company/organization name, business address, e-mail address, telephone number, and date must be legibly written on the form. Students must provide name and contact information for primary professor/advisor. Sampling forms are available at the CRC front desk.

6. Generated data/acknowledgement:

    6.1. Copies of any analytical results (i.e. chemical, paleontological, petrophysical, and petrographic reports, etc.) and/or any thin sections made from sampled cuttings must be submitted to the U.S. Geological Survey’s CRC within six months of sampling. The data will be made publically available via the CRC website. Customers will not be allowed to view or sample additional material(s) until overdue results or thin sections are returned. Analytical data must be in specified digital format for analysis described in the Data Return Policy. Thin sections must be clearly labeled with the CRC library number, operator, well name, and depth.

    6.2. The data will be made publicly available at the CRC and via the CRC website and will become part of the public domain, even if the processing and/or analyses were paid for with private funds. Any interpretations based on the data need not be submitted.

    6.3. We request that the USGS Core Research Center be acknowledged as the source of the sample material and/or provider of related analytical data in any publication that contains results from studies of the CRC collections. We encourage including detailed information such as library number, API number, well name, location and sample depths which will enable future researchers to locate materials for additional investigations.