Superabrasive Cutting Elements With Shaped Features For Drilling

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing earth-boring tools face inefficiencies due to formation cuttings sticking to the cutting face, leading to increased normal and tangential forces, which impede the drilling process and result in reduced rate-of-penetration and increased power requirements, especially in formations like horizontal shale.

Innovation Solution

The use of cutting elements with a substrate and a volume of superabrasive material featuring a cutting face with shaped features such as recesses or protrusions, polished to specific surface roughness levels, which generate discrete streams of cuttings and reduce sticking, allowing for smoother chip removal and reduced thermal energy management.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Ease of operation

If conventional cutting faces are used, then the drilling process can proceed, but formation cuttings stick to the cutting face causing increased normal and tangential forces

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvedrilling process smoothnessVSAvoidnormal and tangential forces

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of operationVSForce

Solution Approach 1:

The cutting face is divided into multiple zones with different surface roughness characteristics. A first zone has a first surface roughness while a second zone has a second surface roughness that is different from the first, creating localized differences in cutting behavior to prevent cuttings accumulation and reduce forces

Inventive Principle:

Principle #3Local quality

Solution Approach 2:

The cutting face is segmented into distinct functional zones with varying surface roughness properties, allowing different regions to perform different cutting functions and preventing uniform cuttings buildup that would increase overall forces

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

2Productivity

If conventional cutting faces are used, then drilling can be performed, but the rate-of-penetration is reduced and power requirements increase

Engineering Contradiction:

Improverate-of-penetrationVSAvoidpower requirements

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSUse of energy by moving object

Solution Approach 1:

Different zones on the cutting face have optimized surface roughness values tailored to specific cutting functions, enabling more efficient material removal and higher rate-of-penetration while reducing the overall power requirements for drilling

Inventive Principle:

Principle #3Local quality

Solution Approach 2:

The surface roughness parameter is varied across different zones of the cutting face, optimizing the cutting mechanics to improve rate-of-penetration and reduce the power input required for effective drilling

Inventive Principle:

Principle #35Parameter changes

3Ease of manufacture

If uniform surface roughness is used on the cutting face, then manufacturing is simpler, but cuttings accumulate and stick to the cutting face

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvecutting face manufacturingVSAvoidcuttings sticking and build-up

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of manufactureVSObject-generated harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The cutting face incorporates multiple zones with different surface roughness values, where each zone is optimized to prevent cuttings accumulation in specific areas, thereby reducing overall sticking and build-up problems

Inventive Principle:

Principle #3Local quality

Applied Scientific Principles

This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.

Function Achieved in This Case

This solution enhances drilling efficiency by reducing sticking and build-up, lowering the required forces for drilling, and improving the rate-of-penetration by generating smaller, smoother chips that are easily removed, thus reducing power consumption and maintaining tool effectiveness.

Implementation Method 1

a volume of superabrasive material disposed on the substrate, the volume of superabrasive material having a cutting face

Methodology Applied

Scientific EffectAbrasion: Abrasion

Data Source

PatentUS10066442B2Cutting elements for earth-boring tools, earth-boring tools including such cutting elements, and related methods

Publication Date: 2018.09.04 BAKER HUGHES CO

AI summary

A cutting element for an earth-boring tool includes a volume of superabrasive material having a cutting face and a shaped feature on the cutting face. The shaped feature may include at least one of a recess extending into the volume of superabrasive material from the cutting face and a protrusion extending outward from the cutting face. A first portion of the cutting face may have a first surface roughness, and a second portion of the cutting face may have a second surface roughness greater than the first surface roughness of the first portion of the cutting face. The volume of superabrasive material may be disposed on a substrate. Methods of forming cutting elements may include forming one or more shaped features in a cutting face of the cutting elements. Earth-boring tools may include such cutting elements.