Submersible pneumatic drilling unit

Abstract: This heavy duty equipment comprises a working cylinder (1), a striking piston (2), an upper lid (4) and a holder of drill bit. An anterior side duct (17) in the wall of an upper working space (18) of the working cylinder, communicating via an upper filling duct (16) and a posterior side duct (19,20) with a storage space (21) provided in the upper lid, and an anterior bypass duct communicating via an axial duct in an axial pin (22) and a posterior bypass duct with said storage space, axially define in said upper working space (18) of the working cylinder a compression space confined by the inner wall of said working cylinder (1), further an anterior face (26) of said upper lid and by the external surface of said axial pin (22). The upper lid together with the axial pin and the in-built storage space form an assembly group in which a water valve (8) is received.

Description: The invention relates to a heavy-duty downhole pneumatic drilling unit according to the first portion of claim 1. With submersible or downhole drilling units and other types of pneumatic impact equipments, the intensity of the installed capacity is determined by the product of the piston impact energy and the piston motion frequency. Such parameters are given above all by the pressure of supplied air, the size of active piston surfaces alternately engaged by compressed air both in the upper and the lower working chamber of the working cylinder, by the weight and stroke of the striking piston, the applying system of filling and exhausting the working cylinder spaces and, finally, the detailed shape design of the individual equipment parts. With the given air pressure, the size of active piston surfaces cannot be enhanced by enlarging the working cylinder diameter as it is usual with other types of pneumatic impact equipments. The limitation is given here by the drill hole diameter and the external diameter of the drilling unit, since between the hole wall and the unit an annular space has to be left for raising drillings by exhaust air. Under these circumstances, practically only one real possibility for enlarging the active surfaces of the striking piston lies in the so-called tandem arrangement of the piston, consisting in that the working cylinder spaces adjacent the two axially arranged piston heads are doubled. With the installed capacity in view, such an arrangement is effective but technologically rather complicated and expensive. Owing to a plurality of cross-sectional changes along the tandem piston axis, a tension concentration occurs in some piston portions, if it is exposed to an impact stress. Proportionally to the piston impact speed also the stress in its critical portions rises up to such a value that at a particular impact speed the stress may exceed the fatigue strength of piston material so that a fatigue fracture may occur. It is why in case of relatively high supply air pressures and consequently high impact speeds, the tandem piston arrangement cannot be availed of. Other limits in raising the installed capacity of submersible equipments are given by the use of a particular system of compressed air distribution, which means the system of filling and exhaust ducts for feeding compressed air into and withdrawing it out of working spaces of the cylinder, respectively. In practice, there are used many systems of distributing systems, such as plate, ring, slide and flap valve distributors. Apart from it, some systems without any of separate distributing means are known, wherein the working spaces are supplied with compressed air along the surface of or through a bore in the piston. Filling, exhaust and bypass duct are provided in the wall of the cylinder, or in its liner, in the piston or in a pin passing there through, or by combining the above modes. The filling and exhausting function is partially assumed by drilling bits or parts anyhow connected or associated with them, said parts being specifically shaped for this purpose. Needless to say that all of the embodiments as hereinabove referred to have their advantages and drawbacks which manifest themselves in technical parameters, technology, structure, price, lifetime, etc. It is an object of all of them to optimalize the piston stroke cycle, which means to obtain the backward stroke within a desired range, to stop the piston in the upper dead centre without shock, and to give it for the next impact stroke the necessary impact speed, all of this within an as short time interval as possible and at a minimum air demand. During its backward motion, the piston makes no work, and the energy it has been given at the start gets wasted in the final phase by counterpressure. Thus in endeavour to raise the unit output it is advisable to shorten the time interval of the backward stroke motion as most as possible and, consequently, to enhance the piston frequency. This is attainable by intensively braking the piston in its upper dead centre as e.g. by compression. High air compression values prevailing in the dead centre region after the filling ducts have been closed by the piston head, will not only shorten the piston braking period but give the piston at the same time a high acceleration while starting the impact stroke motion. The compression space created in the upper dead centre makes it thus possible to impart to the piston during the backward stroke a higher kinetic energy, to accumulate it and effectively apply it at the impact stroke start. In this way it is theoretically possible to raise together with the impact frequency of the piston also the energy thereof whereby the installed unit capacity increases. In practice, however, a considerable portion of the backward stroke energy accumulated in the compression space is dissipated due to leakage between the piston and the cylinder, and to a heat removal. As the piston starts its impact stroke the compressed air expands, and at the instant of opening the compression space the pressure does not recover, owing to such losses, its original value at the compression beginning but drops to a substantially lower one. After the compression space has been opened during the impact stroke, the piston, due to a high acceleration, has already a considerable speed so that a relatively rapid change in the yolume of upper working space in the cylinder occurs. Under these circumstances, compressed air supplied through blocked profiles of filling ducts does not suffice to refill the upper working space of the cylinder so that during the remaining impact stroke phase this space is imperfectly supplied with compressed air. This impairs the piston velocity increase during the remaining stroke phase and negatively influences the impact speed and energy. The resulting effect of energy accumulation during the backward stroke gets lost and the efficiency of energy transfer from the backward stroke to the impact stroke drops. From FR-A-2 075 250 there is known a downhole drilling unit according to the preamble of claim 1 as closest prior art, comprising a working cylinder for movably receiving a striking piston and a bit holder. Said cylinder is closed on its upper end portion by a closure including air supply channels and control valve means. On the lower end piece of said closure a hollow axial pin is mounted, having an upper and lower port and a broadened middle portion for air-tightly guiding in an inner tube of the striking piston. A compression chamber is defined between the inner wall of the working cylinder, the lower face of the cover-like closure and the outer surface of the inner tube. It is the object of the present invention to eliminate the disadvantages of prior art as hereinabove set forth and to improve the efficiency of energy transfer from the backward stroke to the impact stroke of the striking piston. This object will be solved according to the invention by the features of claim 1. The drilling unit according to the invention enables a part of kinetic energy of the piston backward stroke to be accumulated in said compression space and to be efficiently transmitted to the piston at the impact stroke start thereof without any marked air pressure drop in said upper working space as the impact stroke continues. A potential air pressure drop in the upper working space resulting from the untightness of the compression space, heat removal and the insufficient profile of the upper filling duct is compensated for by adding pressurized air from the storage space via bypass ducts whereas compressed air from the supply duct is conveyed to said upper working space as well as to said storage space in a usual way through the upper filling duct. Due to high compression values the time interval of the piston stop and start, respectively, is very short, which together with the proper filling of the upper working space during the impact stroke means an increase of piston frequency as well as a higher impact speed and power. Thus the invention makes it possible to substantially raise the installed capacity of the downhole pneumatic drilling unit. The unit is compact, not complicated, inexpensive in manufacture and insensitive to work conditions, attendance and maintenance. Apart from this, the unit is operable under any air pressure supplies available. With regard to the assembly and maintenance it is preferable if the entire upper closure means, from the connecting thread up to the axial pin forms an integer. This, above all, enables the threaded top portion of the working cylinder to variously dimensioned, since the relative position of said upper closure and the working cylinder is axially defined by the outer face of the working cylinder without the necessity of additional shouldering and providing any other inner front face which in case of mounting several parts axially one after the other, would be indispensable. Thus, a beneficial feature of the unit is also a marked increase of lifetime and particularly owing to a higher fatigue strength of the critical portion and consequently of the complete unit. Therefore, it can be stated that the invention enables both the installed capacity of the submersible pneumatic drilling unit and the lifetime thereof to be increased simultaneously. Into the upper closure provided according to the present invention, a water valve can preferably be installed, in order to prevent water from penetrating into the unit when operating in water-bearing beds. Such valve is of a simple structure, and easily removable in cases that the unit is not endangered by water infiltration. In these cases the unit needs not disassembled. In the following a preferred embodiment of the invention will be described with reference to the accompanying schematic drawing showing the unit in an axial section. As can be seen in the drawing, a striking piston 2 is mounted for reciprocation in a working cylinder 1. In its top portion the cylinder 1 is closed by an upper closure in form of a cover 4 fixed by a thread 3. The bottom portion of said cylinder 1 is closed by a lower closure (not shown) in which a drill bit (not shown) is secured. The top portion of said upper cover 4 is provided with an inner connecting thread 5 for coupling the unit with a drill pipe (not shown). In an inlet duct 6 of the cover 4 there is mounted in a recess an elastic valve seat 7 forming a support for a valve ball 8 forced by a valve spring 9 into said valve seat 7. The space receiving the valve ball 8 and the valve spring 9 communicates via skew conduits 10, a feeding recess 11 and a supply duct 12 with a distributing recess 13 in the striking piston 2. In the axis of the striking piston 2 an axial exhaust channel 14 is provided. The wall of the working cylinder 1 is provided with a lower filling duct 15 communicating with a lower working space (not shown) of the working cylinder 1. Said cylinder wall is provided also with an upper filling duct 16 communicating via an lower side port 17 with an upper working space 18 of the working cylinder and via a upper side port 19 in the cylinder wall with a radial port 20 and a storage space 21 provided in the cover 4. The storage space 21 encloses an axial pin 22 secured in the cover 4. The pin 22 is provided with an axial duct 23 communicating via an lower bypass port 24 with the upper working space 18 of the working cylinder 1 and via a upper bypass port 25 with said storage space 21. An lower face 26 of the cover 4 closes the upper working space 18 of the working cylinder 1. In the top portion of the upper working space 18 there is provided a compression space confined by the anterior face 26 of the cover 4, the inner wall of the working cylinder 1 and the external surface of the axial pin 22. In the direction away from the upper face 27 of the striking piston 2, the compression space is defined by upper edges of the lower side port 17 and the lower bypass port 24. During the motion of the striking piston backwards to the lower face 26 after the lower side port 17 and the lower bypass port 24 have been covered the compression space being closed by the upper face 27 of the striking piston 2. After the unit has been supplied with compressed air, the valve ball 8 will let it flow into the skew conduits 10, the feeding recess 11, the supply duct 12 and the distributing recess 13. Depending upon the instantaneous position of the striking piston 2, compressed air is led from said distributing recess 13 either through the lower filling duct 15 to the not shown lower working space of the working cylinder 1 or through the upper filling duct 16 to the upper working space 18 of the working cylinder 1. In this way the reciprocation of the striking piston 2 is accelerated. After an impact on the drill bit (not shown) in the bottom dead centre of its stroke the striking piston 2 is accelerated by a pressure in the not shown lower working space of the working cylinder 1 in the backward direction to the lower face 26 of the cover 4. At a particular length of backward stroke, the lower end face of the distributing recess 13 of the striking piston 2 will cut off the compressed air supply to the not shown lower working space of the working cylinder 1. As the backward stroke continues after closing the exhaust port 14 by the axial pin 22, the striking piston 2 will let by its distributing recess 13 the compressed air flow in the upper filling duct 16 and from it through the lower side port 17 into the upper working space 18 of the working cylinder 1. Simultaneously, the compressed air is supplied through the upper filling duct 16, the upper side port 19 and the radial port 20 also into the storage space 21. Air pressure in the upper working space 18 and in the storage space 21 is compensated by means of the lower bypass port 24, the axial duct 23 and the upper bypass port 25. During its backward stroke, the striking piston 2 is braked by compressed air which engages its upper face 27 in the upper working space 18. In a particular phase of the backward stroke the-not shown-bottom portion of the striking piston 2 will open the exhaust port leading out of the lower working space of the cylinder. By inertia the striking piston 2 continues in its braked backward stroke till - adjacent the top dead centre - it closes the lower side port 17 as well as the lower by-pass port 24. During the next phase of the backward stroke the striking piston 2 is braked by air compression in the chamber defined by the lower face 26 of the cover 4, the inner surface of upper working space 18 of the working cylinder 1, the outer surface of the axial pin 22 and the upper face 27 of the striking piston 2. In this compression chamber the pressure rises as long as the striking piston 2 stops in the upper dead centre adjacent the anterior face 26. Due to the compression, the striking piston 2 is accelerated since this moment in its forward motion, i.e. up to the impact. During this phase of piston motion, compressed air is supplied through the upper filling duct 16, the upper side port 19 and the radial port 20 into the storage space 21, including the spaces of the upper bypass port 25, the axial duct 23 and the lower bypass port 24. The air pressure in the compression space will impart to the striking piston 2 a high acceleration so that at the instant of opening the lower side port 17 and the lower bypass port 24 the striking piston 2 possesses a considerable velocity. During the motion of the striking piston 2, the escape of a certain volume of compressed air out of the compression space occurs, due to a leakage caused by a play between the outer wall of the piston 2 and the inner wall of the working cylinder 1 as well as to a leakage of the exhaust port 14 in the axial pin 22. Apart from a heat removal through the surface of the compression space, such air escapes result in a pressure drop in said space so that the air pressure value therein is to the end of compression substantially lower than at the beginning thereof. This fact, together with the afore-mentioned considerable velocity of the striking piston 2 at the instant of opening the compression space and with a rapid change of capacity of the upper working space 18 resulting therefrom, would lead at the absence of the storage space 21 to an imperfect filling of the upper working space 18 within the entire remaining phase of impact stroke. According to the invention, however, the compressed air is withdrawn out of the storage space 21 filling up during the compression stroke and supplied through the upper bypass port 25, the axial duct 23 and the lower bypass port 24 to the upper working space 18 where it suffices, together with the compressed air being fed into the upper working space 18 via the upper filling duct 16 and the lower side port 17 to perfectly fill up said upper working space 18. As the impact stroke continues the upper working space 18 is being sufficiently filled so that the striking piston 2 is given a desired acceleration, speed and impact energy. Owing to a relatively high compression value, the stopping and starting periods of the striking piston 2 in the upper dead centre are very short whereby the impact frequency rises. Due to the pressure addition by withdrawing compressed air from the storage space 21 it is made possible to generate relatively high energy of the striking piston 2 whereby the installed capacity of the submersible unit is substantially enhanced. Thus, according to the invention, the piston is intentionally given during its backward stroke motion a higher energy than it is usual with well-known units of the kind whereupon the energy accumulated in the compression space is imparted to the striking piston during its impact stroke.

Claims: Downhole pneumatic drilling unit comprising a working cylinder (1), a striking piston (2) axially movable disposed in the working cylinder (1), a holder of a drill tool disposed in the working cylinder (1) below the striking piston (2), a cover (4) as upper closure of the working cylinder (1) including air supplying means (5 to 10) and an axial pin (22) disposed below the cover (4) and provided with an axial duct (23) and an upper and lower port (24, 25); an upper working space (18) in the working cylinder (1) defines a compression chamber between the inner wall of the working cylinder (1) above a lower side port (17), the lower face (26) of the cover (4) and the outer surface of the lower portion of the axial pin (22), characterized in that a storage space (21) provided in the cover (4) is connected with the working space (18) by an upper side duct (19, 20) in the cylinder wall, an upper filling duct (16) disposed in the cylinder wall and the lower side port (17) provided in the wall of the upper working space (18) of the working cylinder (1), for a by-pass communication of the storage space (21) with the working space (18) the upper port (25) of the axial pin (22) is disposed in the portion of said pin located within the storage space (21) and the lower port (24) of the axial pin (22) is disposed in the portion of said pin located in the working space (18). Drilling unit according to claim 1, characterized in that the cover (4) together with the axial pin (22) form an assembly group. Drilling unit according to claims 1 or 2, characterized in that the axial pin (22) is secured with its smaller cylindrical end portion in the upper end wall of the storage space (21) and the intermediate portion of the axial pin (22) is air-tightly fixed in a lower end wall of the storage space (21). Drilling unit according to one of the claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the outer circumferential wall of the striking piston (2) is provided with a distributing recess (13) of a certain axial length for communicating a supply duct (12) disposed in the side wall of the working cylinder (1) with the upper filling duct (16) during the backward stroke of the striking piston (2). Drilling unit according to one of the claims 1 to 4, characterized in that an exhaust channel (14) is centrically disposed in the striking piston (2) and will be closed by the free end portion of the axial pin (22) during the backward stroke of the striking piston (2). Drilling unit according to one of the claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the lower side port (17) and the lower bypass port (24) are so positioned in the wall of the working cylinder (1) and in the axial pin (22), respectively, that these ports (17; 24) will be closed by the striking piston (2) during the braking phase of its backward stroke.

Inventors: KOUDELKA VLADIMIR ING, KOUDELKA, VLADIMIR, ING.
Applicants: PERMON SP, PERMON, STATNI PODNIK
Application year: 1991
Main classification: E21B4
IPC codes: B25D9, E21B1, E21B3, E21B4