This invention relates to devices used in the oil and gas well drilling industry to grip tubular members, such as oil well piping and casing, in order to rotate the tubular member, hold the tubular member fixed against rotation, or to hold the tubular member against vertical movement. In particular, this invention relates to gripping devices that can securely grip an oil field tubular member while not leaving damaging gouges or marks on the surface of the tubular member.
There presently exist numerous devices that may be used to grip tubular members while torque is being applied to the tubular member. Such devices include by way of illustration “power tongs,” “backups,” and “chrome tools” and various other devices for gripping tubular members. Examples of power tongs are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,649,777 and 5,291,808 to David Buck. Typically power tongs will have a set of jaws which are the actual components of the power tongs which grip the tubular member. One example of these jaws is set forth in U.S. Pat. No. 4,576,067 to David Buck. The jaws disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,576,067 include a die member which is the sub-component of the jaw that actually contacts the tubular member. In U.S. Pat. No. 4,576,067, the face of the die that contacts the tubular member has ridges or teeth cut therein. Typically, the teeth are sized such that 5 to 8 teeth per linear inch are formed across the gripping surface of the die. When the jaws close upon the tubular member, these teeth firmly bite into the tubular member and prevent slippage between the tubular member and jaws when large torque loads are applied to the power tongs or the tubular member.
Another class of devices to which the invention pertains grips the tubular in order to hold the tubular against vertical movement. Typically, the tubular is part of a tubing, casing or drill string formed from a long series of tubulars and the drill string is suspended above and/or in the well bore. This class of devices includes conventional slips, elevators and safety clamps. Slips and safety clamps utilize the weight of the tubular and/or drill string, and, in some cases, an external preload, to force the gripping surfaces into contact with the tubular being gripped. By way of example, the gripping member of the slip will have a gripping surface or gripping die on one face and an inclined plane on an opposite face. A slip bowl or similar device having a second and supplementary inclined surface will be positioned around the tubular with sufficient space between the tubular and slip bowl for the gripping member to be partially inserted between the slip bowl and tubular. As described in more detail below, the movement of the gripping member's inclined surface along the slip bowl's inclined surface causes the gripping surface to move toward and engage the tubular. The die or gripping surface of prior art slips is similar to the above described power tong jaw dies in that the gripping surface generally comprises a series of steel teeth which bite into the tubular to grip it.
While the above described methods for gripping pipe has been successful in many applications, there are certain disadvantages. One disadvantage is that after gripping tubular members, the teeth from the die will leave deep indentations or gouges in the surface of the tubular member. These “bite marks” left by the teeth may effect the structural integrity of the tubular member by causing a weak point in the metal which may render the tubular member unsuitable for further use or may lead to premature failure of the tubular at a future date.
A second disadvantage is encountered when using the dies with corrosion resistant alloy (CRA) tubular members. Exotic Stainless Steel with large percentages of Chromium, Nickle, etc., are typical CRA materials used in the oil and gas drilling industry. Oil and gas production frequently occurs in high temperature, corrosive environments. Because the above described die teeth are normally constructed of standard carbon steel, the bite mark made by the die teeth tend to introduce iron onto the surface of the CRA tubular. In such environments, the iron in the bite mark can act as a catalyst, causing a premature, rapid corrosion failure in the CRA tubular.
A further problem is encounter in that many CRA materials such as stainless steel are work hardened materials. This means that the malleability of the material decreases after the material is mechanically stressed. In the case of stainless steel tubulars, the bite marks or indentations caused by the prior art die teeth produce localized “cold working.” The points at which the teeth marks have been made are then less malleable than the other sections of the tubular and therefore may create inherent weak points in the tubular's structural integrity. Additionally, prior art steel teeth are formed in a uniform pattern. A series of uniformly sharp teeth bite marks may manifest themselves as a major stress riser with an adverse impact significantly more detrimental than a few individual random marks of similar depth. Thus, an uniform pattern of indentations or bite marks will create more damaging internal stresses in the tubular than a non-uniform pattern of bite marks.
As an alternative to using dies with teeth on CRA tubulars, the industry has employed dies which have smooth aluminum surfaces engaging the tubular. However, because these smooth faced aluminum dies rely purely on a frictional grip of the tubular, these dies must employ significantly greater clamping forces than dies with steel teeth. This greater clamping force in turn increases the risk that the clamping forces themselves will cause damage to the tubular. Furthermore, even with high clamping forces, the aluminum surfaces often do not have a sufficiently high coefficient of friction to prevent slippage between the dies and the tubular at high torque loads or high vertical loads.
To overcome the problem of slippage between the aluminum surfaced dies and a CRA tubular, the industry has developed a method of using a silicon carbide coated fabric or screen in combination with the aluminum surfaced dies. This method consists of placing the silicon carbide screen between the tubular and the dies before the dies close upon the tubular. The dies are then closed on the tubular with the silicon carbide screen positioned in between. The silicon carbide screen thereby allows a substantially higher coefficient of friction to be developed between the dies and the tubular. However, this method also has serious disadvantages. First, the silicon carbide screen must be re-position between the tubular and die surface each time the dies grip and then release a tubular. Thus for example, when a drilling crew is making up or breaking down a long string of drill pipe, several pieces (typically 5 to 6) of the silicon carbide screen must be placed in position for each successive section of pipe being made up or broken out. This repeated operation can be extremely inefficient and costly in terms of lost time. Secondly, this process requires a member of the drilling crew to repeatedly place his hands in a position where they could possible be crushed or amputated. Thirdly, while providing greater resistance to torque than a smooth surfaced aluminum die, there may nevertheless be situations where such high torque forces are being applied to the tubular that the silicon carbide screen method does not prevent slippage between the die and the tubular.
Therefore it is an object of this invention to provide, in an apparatus for gripping tubular members, a gripping surface which does not leave excessively deep or aligned bite marks, yet has a higher coefficient of friction than found in the present state of the art.
It is another object of this invention to provide a gripping surface that has greater longevity than hereto known in the art.
It is a further object of this invention to provide a high coefficient of friction gripping surface that is safer to employ than hereto known in the art.
An additional objective of this invention is to provide a gripping means which protects tubulars from metallic contamination and resulting corrosion failures.
It is a further object of this invention to provide an improved gripping means with is less damaging to the tubular.
Therefore the present invention provides an improved apparatus for gripping oil field tubular members. The apparatus has a gripping surface which comprises a backing surface adapted to contact an oil field tubular member where the gripping surface is attachable to the apparatus for gripping oil field tubular members. The apparatus further has a granulated particle coating formed on this gripping surface. In a preferred embodiment, the gripping surface will include a refractory metal carbide selected from the group consisting of the carbides of silicon, tungsten, molybdenum, chromium, tantalum, niobium, vanadium, titanium, zirconium, and boron.
The present invention also provides a novel die insert having a die body shaped for insertion into a tubular gripping system. The die has a gripping surface formed on a surface of the die body and this gripping surface includes a series of raised teeth. A granular particle coating is applied to and covers at least the portion of the raised teeth which engage the tubular member.
Finally, the present invention includes a method of gripping oilfield tubular members with a slip system. The method includes providing a slip system which translates the weight of a tubular into a gripping force. The method will position a die insert within the slip system and this die insert will have a gripping surface with a granular particle coating applied thereto. A lifting force will be applied to the tubular in order to place the tubular in a position to be gripped by the gripping surface on the die insert. Then the lifting force will be removed in order to allow the gripping surface of the die insert to engage the tubular.
a is a perspective view of a conventional jaw member showing a die insert with conventional tooth pattern gripping surface.
b is a top view of a conventional jaw member showing the die insert separated from the jaw member.
a is a perspective view of a conventional slip assembly which employs the die insert of the present invention.
b is a side sectional view of the slip assembly seen in
c is a top view of the slip assembly seen in
d is a perspective view of a die insert having the granular particle coating of the present invention.
a is a perspective view of a link body from which the safety clamp is constructed.
b is a perspective sectional view of the link body seen in
c is a side sectional view of the link body seen in
a is a sectional representation of conventional steel teeth used in die inserts.
b is a detailed view of a single steel tooth seen in
a is a section representation of coated die teeth of the present invention.
b is a detailed view of a single coated die tooth of the present invention.
a illustrates a conventional coil tubing injector apparatus.
b illustrates the present invention used in conjunction with a coil tubing injector block.
a is a top view of a 20″ pipe section being gripped by two tong jaws carrying the flat die seen in
b is a detailed view of the pipe section illustrating the flat die's imperfect alignment with the sides of the pipe section.
a is a top view of a 20″ pipe section being gripped by two tong jaws with sufficient force to slightly deform the pipe section within the pipe's elastic limits.
b is a detailed view of the pipe section deforming slightly against the flat die.
The present invention will be capable of use in various apparatuses for gripping oil field tubular members. The above mention of power tongs, backup power tongs, chrome tools, slips, elevators and safety clamps is intended to be illustrative only. It is believed the present invention will have application in many other types of devices used for gripping oil field tubular members. As discussed herein, oil field tubular member is intended to describe all types of piping, casing, or other tubular members use in the oil and gas industry. These tubulars will typically have a diameter ranging from 1.66 inches to 20 inches, but may in some instances have larger or small diameters. These tubulars will also generally be comprised of a metal having a hardness ranging from approximately 18 HRC for certain carbon steels to approximately 40 HRC for certain hardened chromium steels. One example of such an apparatus for gripping tubulars is the power tongs disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,291,808.
Another apparatus which could employ die inserts of the present invention is a conventional slip system 110 such as shown in
To arrest the downward movement of tubular 102, slip assemblies 118 will be inserted in the space between slip bowl 117 and tubular 102. While only two slip assemblies 118 are shown, it will be understood that additional slip assemblies could be spaced around the entire perimeter of tubular 102. Slip assemblies 118 are generally wedge shaped with a first inclined surface 122 which is designed to have an angle which is the supplement of the angle of a second inclined surface 123 formed on slip bowl 117. As best seen in
a illustrate how die inserts 115 will be installed in slip assemblies 118 during use. Once the slip assemblies 118 are in position between slip bowl 117 and tubular 102 as seen in
Shown also in
The slip assembly 118 and elevator slip assembly 113 will be employed in an alternating grip and release sequence in order to raise or lower tubular 102 and its attached drill string. When it is desired to raise tubular 102, slip bowl 117 will be positioned around tubular 102 and slip assemblies 118 positioned to grip tubular 102. The drilling machinery or the like which is suspending tubular 102 and its attached drill string, will then be relaxed. When tubular 102 is allowed to move downward, slip assembly 118 will firmly grip tubular 102. Elevator bowl 112 will then be positioned around tubular 102 and elevator slip assemblies 113 positioned between tubular 102 and elevator bowl 112. When lifting bail 104 applies a lifting force to elevator bowl 112, elevator slip assemblies 113 will become securely wedged against and grip tubular 102. As the lifting force on elevator bowl 112 continues and raises tubular 102, slip assemblies 118 will slide upward and cease to grip tubular 102. This is referred to as “releasing” slip assemblies 118 and will allow workers to manually remove slip assemblies 118 from slip bowl 117 or, where a hydraulic system is employed, allow the hydraulic cylinder assemblies to raise the slip assemblies 118 high enough along inclined surface 123 so as to prevent interference between slip assemblies 118 and the rising tubular 102. This is the stage of operation which is illustrated in
Typically, slips and elevators described above are used in conjunction with tubulars which have a coupling or upset connection 105 as seen in
In general terms, coating 7 comprises a granulated particle substance which has been firmly attached to backing surface 5 to form the granular particle coating 7. The granular particle coating 7 produces a high friction gripping surface on the face 4 of die 1. In use, the dies 1 are inserted into jaw members which in turn are the component of power tongs that grip the tubular member as described above. When the jaws of the power tongs close on a tubular member as suggested by
A similar coating will be applied to the slip die inserts 115 and safety clamp die inserts 140.
Second, the granular particles will be distributed across a given size range as disclosed below. This results in the force of the initial bite being born by the larger particles which make up only a fraction of the total granular gripping surface. With only a comparatively few large particles bearing the entire radial force developed by the weight of the slip assemblies (or the force of the hydraulic cylinders) during the initial bite, these larger particles have a much greater likelihood of penetrating the outer surface and properly gripping tubular 102 before the full weight of the drill string is allowed to act on the slip assemblies. This is distinguished from the prior art steel tooth gripping surfaces which engage a tubular with all teeth simultaneously. The distribution of initial bite force equally across all the steel teeth make it less likely that the teeth will be able to obtain a secure initial bite. Lack of such a secure initial bite will result in slippage and significant damage to the tubular as mentioned above.
One embodiment of the granular particle coating and the process used to apply it to the backing surface of the die is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,094,128 to Dawson, which is incorporated by reference herein. However, other granular particles and methods of application are considered to be within the scope of this invention. The granular particles will be graded to include a wide range of sizes such as from approximately 100 microns to 420 microns in diameter. One embodiment of the invention will use granular particles in the range of approximately 300 to 400 microns. Of course these size ranges are only approximate and sizes of particles greater than 420 microns and smaller than 100 microns may be used in particular applications.
The material from which the granular particles are formed can also vary widely. In one embodiment, carbides of refractory metals were found to be suitable. Such refractory metal carbides include carbides selected from the group consisting of the carbides of silicon, tungsten, molybdenum, chromium, tantalum, niobium, vanadium, titanium, zirconium, and boron. It is envisioned that in place of carbides, borides, nitrides, silicides, and the like may be used singly or in mixtures. However, other refractory metals and metalloids may form a suitable granular particle material. There are generally two requirements for a granular particle material to be suitable for the gripping surface of the present invention. First the material must be capable of being firmly adhered to the backing surface of the die such that the large torque the die faces resist will not dislodge the particles from the backing surface. Second, the material must be sufficiently hard that the granules of the material will penetrate the outermost surface of a tubular member rather than simply being crushed between the backing surface and the tubular member. Third, the granules should not contaminate the tubulars.
As mentioned, it is necessary to adhere the granular particle material to the backing surface firmly enough that the high torque forces do not dislodged the particles from the backing surface. A preferred embodiment of the invention accomplishes this by utilizing a metal matrix or brazing alloy to fuse the granular particle material to the backing surface. The metal matrix preferably has a melting or fusing point lower than the melting or fusing point of the granular particle material or the backing surface. Typical brazing alloys could include cobalt-based and nickel-based alloys, notably those containing significant proportions of chromium. Alternatively, copper, copper oxide or a copper alloy such as bronze can be used. However, when dealing with tungsten-carbide grit particles, copper alloys are not the preferred brazing material. The brazing alloy may also contain boron, silicon, and phosphorus. Suitable brazing materials are available commercially and can be used in their commercially available forms.
Several preferred processes for applying the granular particle coating to the die face are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,024,128 and 4,643,740, which is also incorporated by reference herein. Generally the metal matrix or brazing alloy and the refractory particles are applied to the backing surface of the die and the die is heated to a temperature sufficient to cause the metal matrix to reach a liquid or semi-solid state. When the metal matrix cools from the liquid or semi-solid state, the granular particles will be firmly bonded or fused to the backing surface. In practical application, the process begins by cleaning the die backing surface to remove grease or scale from the backing surface. Next a temporary adhesive or binder material is applied to the backing surface to which the metal matrix and the refractory particles will adhere until heating of the die takes place. The temporary adhesive may be a volatile liquid vehicle, such as water, alcohol, or mixtures thereof, or the like which can be volitized and dried readily. This allows the temporary adhesive to be applied by a spray on process, roller type applicators, or by any other conventional manner. “Shellac” as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,024,128 is one such temporary adhesive. After application of the temporary adhesive, the metal matrix and refractory particles will applied be to the backing surface. The metal matrix and refractory particles are will typically be in a powder form and generally sprinkled in a thin layer onto the backing surface. The sprinkling process can be carried out by any number of machines such as the electro-magnetically vibrated feeder as disclosed in column 5 of U.S. Pat. No. 3,024,128. Generally, some conventional method is used to insure any excess powder is not retained on the backing surface. For example, the backing surface may be positioned at an angle during the sprinkling process such that only the thin layer of powder actually contacting the adhesive remains on the backing surface and any excess powder falls from the backing surface. In this manner, the thickness of the final granular coating may be no greater than the diameter of the largest granular particles.
Prior to the die being heated, a flux agent is also added to the backing surface or premixed with the brazing compound. The flux agent tends to give fluidity to the heated materials, tends to lower the melting point of the high melting oxides, and provides protection against unwanted oxidation. The flux covers or envelops the backing surface to protect it from oxidation by the atmosphere while heating. It also dissolves any oxides formed on the metallic surfaces, lowers the surface tension of the molten or plasticize matrix to allow it to flow or spread sufficiently to coat all adjacent parts or particles to form a fusion bond between the particles and the backing surface. Those skilled in the art will recognize a wide variety of commercially available flux agents may be used. In a preferred embodiment, fluoride based fluxes and borax/boric acid mixtures were found suitable. The flux may be applied to the backing surface after application of the refractory particle/metallic matrix powder or it may be mixed with the powder before its application to the backing surface.
After the refractory particle/metallic matrix powder and the flux have been applied to the backing surface, the die will be subject to a heating process. There are numerous heating processes that may be used fuse the refractory particles to the backing surface. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,024,128 discloses heat could be applied by a welding torch for small production runs. For larger production, gas fired or electric furnaces could be used. In these heating methods, a protective atmosphere such as a reducing or carburizing atmosphere is typically used. However, with rapid heating methods such as induction furnace heating, it may not be necessary to utilize a protective atmosphere. Another alternative heating method is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,643,740. This patent describes a heating method wherein a source of electric current is connected to the article to be heated and a current sufficient to heat the article to the required temperature is then passed through the article. The temperature required to melt the brazing matrix will vary depending on the material employed, but a temperature range of approximately 600° C. to approximately 1400° C. is appropriate for many conventional brazing materials. While the preceding disclosure described certain preferred methods of applying the granular particle coating to the backing surface of the die, those skilled in the art may recognize other suitable methods. However, other brazing materials such as lead and tin based brazing alloys may melt at temperatures as low as about 150° C. These are intended to be included within the scope of the present invention.
After heating of the brazing material and subsequently allowing to cool, the dies may be considered ready for use with no further treatment. In other words, the dies may be used while the backing surface is in the annealed state. Alternatively, in certain applications, it may be desirable to subject the dies to conventional heat treating techniques to achieve a backing surface somewhat harder than the annealed state. These heat treating techniques could include quenching in a water or oil bath. Still further, the dies could be cooled and then reheating in a conventional tempering process. All such variations are intended to come within the scope of the present invention.
Applicant has discovered that the present invention produces a significantly higher coefficient of friction between the tubular and the die face. This higher coefficient of friction allows the present invention to firmly grasp the tubular member under substantially higher torque loads than prior art methods. For example, the die of the present invention can obtain without slippage approximately double the torque obtained in the silicon carbide screen method described above. It is believe that this superior gripping ability is at least partially a result of the heating process the die inserts undergo during application of the granular particle coating to the underlying steel face 5. The heating process causes the underlying metal face of the die insert to “anneal,” or become somewhat softer, to a hardness value in the range of approximately 70 HRB. Thus, when the die insert is pressed against a harder tubular under large radial forces during use, the granular particles tend to become partially embedded in the underlying metal on the face of the die insert. Therefore, the shear forces imparted to the granular particles when torque or vertical load is applied to the tubular is resisted not only by the brazing alloy, but also by the portion of the particle embedded in the die insert surface.
Positioned between expansion cones 76 and 77 are a series of slips 60. Unlike expansion cones 76 and 77 and packing element 74, slips 60 do not form a continuous annular element around plug body 71. Rather slips 60 are a series of separate arcuate segments which are positioned around plug body 71. An opposing pair of such arcuate segments is seen in the slips 60 illustrated in
Directly above upper cone section 77, a setting piston 80 is formed by another arcuate element which extends continuously around plug body 71. In the illustrated embodiment, setting piston 80 is integrally formed on upper cone section 77. A variable volume fluid cavity 83 is formed between setting piston 80 and plug body 71. Fluid cavity 83 will communicate with fluid a channel 82 which runs through upper section 73 of plug body 71 and allows fluid to be transmitted from the work string, through plug body 71, to fluid cavity 83. Conventional seals such as O-rings 84 will form a fluid tight seal between setting piston 83 and plug body 71.
In operation, bridge plug 70 is positioned on a work string and lowered down the well bore to the depth at which it is desired to plug the tubing or casing. While bridge plug 70 is being lowered down the well bore, it is in the unactivated position as seen in
While not illustrated in the figures, slips 60 may be used in conjunction with devices similar to bridge plugs, such as packers used for production, isolation, testing and stimulation. Packers are structurally similar to bridge plugs except that packers contain one or more internal passages to allow a regulated flow of fluid through the packer or to accommodate instrument wires or control lines which must pass through the packer. Those skilled in the art will recognize that there are also bridge plugs and packers that are activated by means other than the hydraulic mechanism described above. Slips 60 are equally suitable for use in bridge plugs or packers which are activated by mechanical means, wirelines, electric wirelines or other conventional methods used to operate the downhole tools typically found in the drilling industry.
Another embodiment of the present invention does not replace the steel teeth on conventional die inserts with the above described granular particle coating, but rather uses the coating in combination with conventional steel teeth.
The application of a granular particle coating over the steel toothed die insert provides a number of advantages over a die insert having only naked steel teeth. Where the granular particle coating 147 comprises a non-ferrous (e.g. nickel-based) brazing alloy in combination with non-ferrous particles (e.g. tungsten carbide), a CRA tubular will be protected from the iron in the steel teeth coming into contact with and contaminating (or inducing iron based oxidation) in the CRA tubular. Additionally, as discussed above, the granular particle coating reduces the sharpness of the steel teeth. This reduces the penetration of the teeth into the tubular surface and tubular damage which may be associated therewith. Experimentation has shown that the die insert teeth covered with the granular particle coating have a 30% lesser penetration depth into the tubular surface than do naked steel teeth. This lesser penetration results in shallower “bite marks” on the tubular and correspondingly less damage to the tubular. Moreover, the granular particle coating protects the underlying teeth and these teeth retain their initial sharpness far longer than naked steel teeth. While naked steel teeth on newly formed dies are sharper than the coated teeth of the present invention, the naked steel teeth eventually become so worn through use that the teeth actually become too blunt to effectively grip the tubular. Therefore, a naked steel toothed die insert has a life cycle starting out with the teeth being too sharp and then degrades to a point where the teeth are too blunt. The granular particle coated teeth begin their life cycle with a desirable degree of sharpness and maintain that sharpness for a far greater time period than a naked steel tooth. It has been found that the granular particle coated teeth 148 are particularly effective when gripping tubulars which have a heavy coating of paint, scale or other material. When such conditions exist and a smooth face die insert with granular particle coating (such as seen in
Another alternate embodiment of the present invention includes employing the granular particle coating in conjunction with a coil tubing injector.
A still further embodiment of the present invention is seen in
However, prior art pipe spinners normally use drive rollers with smooth surfaces which are not able to apply adequate make-up or break-out torque to tubular 193 without slipping. An improved and novel pipe spinner 180 may be constructed by forming a granular particle coating 194 on drive roller 195. Granular particle coating 194 significantly increases the ability of drive roller 195 to impart sufficient torque to tubular 193 to make-up or break-out at least some tubular connections.
The above embodiments disclose adhering the granular particle coating to the die backing surface through the use of a metal brazing matrix which melts at a temperature above the transformation range of the metal. The transformation range is the temperature range in which metals undergo internal atomic changes which affect properties of the metal such as hardness. For example, the transformation range of steel begins at around 700° C. and will vary based upon factors such as the percent carbon in the steel. The beginning of the transformation range will be referred to as the transformation starting temperature. Naturally, the transformation range and thus the transformation starting temperature will vary for different metals.
The present invention also includes employing metal brazing matrices which melt near or below the transformation starting temperature of the particular metal be utilized to form the die backing surface. These lower melting point brazing matrices include alloys formed from lead, tin, antimony, silver, zinc, copper, aluminum or combinations thereof. For example, lead/tin alloys have a melting temperature of approximately of 182° C. to 238° C., tin/zinc alloys have a melting temperature of approximately of 199° C. to 250° C., tin/antimony alloys have a melting temperature of approximately of 182° C. to 238° C., tin/silver alloys have a melting temperature of approximately of 211° C. to 279° C., aluminum alloys have a melting temperature of approximately of 588° C. to 657° C., silver alloys have a melting temperature of approximately of 595° C. to 795° C., and copper/phosphorus alloys have a melting temperature of approximately of 645° C. to 880° C.
When employing a metal brazing matrix with a melting temperature significantly above the transformation starting temperature, the heat required to melt the brazing matrix is often sufficient to soften the metal of the backing surface to a hardness less than the granular particles. For example, one preferred type of particles have a hardness of approximately 96 to 98 hardness on Rockwell “A” scale (HRA). However, when employing a brazing matrix with a melting temperature near or below the transformation starting temperature, it is necessary to employ a metal backing surface with a pre-existing hardness which is less than the approximate hardness of the granular particles. This is because the heat needed to melt the brazing matrix is not expected to soften the metal. Thus, the metal backing surface used in conjunction with low temperature brazing matrices should have a pre-existing hardness which is significantly less than the granular particles. In one embodiment, the hardness of the metal backing surface could be approximately 70 hardness on Rockwell “B” scale (HRB), but could range as low as (or even lower) than approximately HRA 44. As discussed above, the lower hardness of the die backing surface will allow the granular particles to become partially embedded within the backing surface when a tubular is gripped by the dies with sufficient radial force.
The scope of the present invention also includes adhering the granular par ticle coating with either non-melting or non-metal adhesives. Generally, these substances will be considered low temperature curing adhesives. In other words, these adhesives will not need a high melting point in order to rigidly adhere the granular particle coating to the die backing surface. While some such adhesives may experience an exothermic reaction while setting or curing, this temperature will be very low compared to the melting point of most metals. Low temperature curing adhesives as used in the present disclosure will cure or set-up at temperatures of less than about 100° C. Examples of such low temperature curing adhesives include thermoset resins (a.k.a. hot melt glue), catalyst cured resin (a.k.a. epoxy), evaporative solvent elastomeric adhesives (a.k.a. contact cement), catalyst cured elastomeric adhesives (a.k.a. urethanes). As with the lower temperature metal brazing matrices, a low temperature curing adhesive requires the use of a metal backing surface with a pre-existing hardness which is less than the approximate hardness of the granular particles.
A still further method of applying granular particles to a backing surface is through thermal spraying. Thermal spraying is well known in the art and is commercially used to produce a wide variety of coatings for various applications. Thermal spraying encompasses a group of processes that are capable of rapidly depositing metals, ceramics, plastics, and mixtures of these materials. Thermal spray processes can be grouped into three major categories: plasma-arc spray, flame spray, and electric wire-arc spray. These energy sources are used to heat a coating material (in powder, wire, or rod form) to a molten or semi-molten state. The resultant heated particles are accelerated and propelled toward a prepared surface by either process gases or atomization jets. Upon impact, a bond forms with the surface and subsequent particles cause thickness buildup. The main element that thermal spray processes have in common is that they all use a heat source to convert powders or wires into a spray of molten (or sometimes semi-molten) particles. This heat source is either electrical or chemical (combustion). With all processes, the substrate is usually not heated above (250° F.), and therefore no distortion of the substrate takes place.
A preferred embodiment of the present invention would use a powdered metal matrix in the thermal spraying process. Granular particles would be mixed with the powdered metal matrix. A conventional thermal spray gun is employed which has a nozzle (similar to a welder's heating torch) which burns oxygen and acetylene achieving temperatures above the melting point of the brazing matrix but below that of the granular particles. The combination of brazing matrix powder and granular particles is fed through the center of the nozzle into the flame where the brazing matrix is melted. Compressed, high velocity oxygen or air is concentrated around the flame atomizing the molten material into fine spherical particles and propels the molten brazing particles and the granular particles at high velocity onto a die backing surface. By controlling the rate of feed of the powder through the flame, the melt and atomization of brazing matrices with various melting points may be controlled. While a powder flame spray process is described above, it is anticipated that other forms of thermal spraying such as arc wire spaying, wire or rod flame spraying, plasma spaying, or high velocity oxygen-fuel (HVOF) spraying could also be employed.
It is envisioned that one particularly useful employment of planar die inserts 200 will be when gripping thin walled or large diameter tubular member.
Additionally, the planar die inserts 200 may also be used when trying to grip non-standard diameter tubular members. In such situations, standard sized arcuate die inserts such as seen in
Finally, while many parts of the present invention have been described in terms of specific embodiments, it is anticipated that still further alterations and modifications thereof will no doubt become apparent to those skilled in the art. For example, one alternative could include a method of gripping a tubular with a substantially flat die insert. This method could comprise the steps of: i) providing a tubular member; ii) gripping said tubular member with a set of jaw members which have substantial flat die inserts; and iii) providing sufficient force on said tubular with said jaw members to generate necessary torque. It is therefore intended that the following claims be interpreted as covering all such alterations and modifications as fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention.
This application is a continuation of and claims priority to U.S. application Ser. No. 10/625,441, filed on Jul. 23, 2003, which is a continuation-in-part and claims priority to U.S. application Ser. No. 10/099,045, filed Mar. 14, 2002, which is a continuation-in-part and claims priority to U.S. application Ser. No. 09/267,174, filed Mar. 12, 1999, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,378,399, which is a continuation-in-part and claims priority to U.S. application Ser. No. 08/967,151, filed Nov. 10, 1997, now abandoned, which claims priority to PCT/US97/16443 filed on Sep. 15, 1997, which claims a priority date of Sep. 13, 1996 to U.S. application Ser. No. 08/713,444, filed Sep. 13, 1996, now abandoned, all which are incorporated by reference herein in their entirety.
Number | Date | Country | |
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Parent | 11836486 | Aug 2007 | US |
Child | 12707490 | US | |
Parent | 11374384 | Mar 2006 | US |
Child | 11836486 | US | |
Parent | 10625441 | Jul 2003 | US |
Child | 11374384 | US |
Number | Date | Country | |
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Parent | 10099045 | Mar 2002 | US |
Child | 10625441 | US | |
Parent | 09267174 | Mar 1999 | US |
Child | 10099045 | US | |
Parent | 08967151 | Nov 1997 | US |
Child | 09267174 | US | |
Parent | PCT/US97/16443 | Sep 1997 | US |
Child | 08967151 | US | |
Parent | 08713444 | Sep 1996 | US |
Child | PCT/US97/16443 | US |