Hydraulic fluid pump and retainer assembly for same
AssigneeGd Energy Products, LLC
InventorsRobert James Dyer, Chance Ray Mullins, Peter Ross Ehlers
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A fluid end assembly of a hydraulic fluid pump includes a housing having a bore, a removable valve cover closing the bore, and a retainer engaging the bore. The retainer includes a set screw bore that extends from a first side of the retainer to a second side of the retainer, opposite the first side. The fluid end assembly further includes a set screw. The set screw is threaded into the set screw bore from the first side of the retainer. The set screw is not removable from the second side of the retainer. The first side of the retainer is positioned adjacent to the valve cover.
Claims19
A method of assembling and preloading a removable valve cover within a fluid end assembly of a hydraulic fracturing fluid pump, the method comprising:
- inserting the removable valve cover into a first bore of a monolithic housing of the fluid end assembly, the monolithic housing defining a plurality of pairs of intersecting bores, wherein each pair of intersecting bores defines an internal volume, so that the monolithic housing includes a plurality of laterally spaced internal volumes configured to receive fluid from an inlet manifold of the hydraulic fracturing fluid pump;
- threading a set screw into a set screw bore via a first side of a retainer, the set screw bore extending from the first side of the retainer to a second side of the retainer, opposite the first side, and the set screw bore including a threaded portion extending from the first side and a non-threaded portion extending from the second side;
- inserting the retainer into the first bore of the monolithic housing such that the first side of the retainer is adjacent to the removable valve cover;
- and
- adjusting an axial position of the set screw within the set screw bore to extend through a plane defined by the first side and to concurrently apply a preload to the removable valve cover by inserting an adjustment tool through the non-threaded portion of the set screw bore and into the threaded portion of the set screw bore.
A fluid end assembly of a hydraulic fracturing fluid pump comprising:
- a monolithic housing defining a plurality of pairs of intersecting bores, wherein each pair of intersecting bores defines an internal volume, so that the monolithic housing includes a plurality of laterally spaced internal volumes configured to receive fluid from an inlet manifold of the hydraulic fracturing fluid pump;
- a removable valve cover closing a first bore of the plurality of pairs of intersecting bores defined by the monolithic housing, the removable valve cover being positioned within the first bore of the monolithic housing;
- a retainer positioned within the first bore of the monolithic housing and engaging the first bore of the monolithic housing, the retainer comprising a set screw bore that extends from a first side of the retainer to a second side of the retainer, opposite the first side;
- and
- a set screw threaded into the set screw bore from the first side of the retainer, wherein the set screw is not removable from the second side of the retainer, and wherein the first side of the retainer is positioned adjacent to the removable valve cover.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.