# US 4,391,339 A · Cavitating liquid jet assisted drill bit and method for deep-hole drilling

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- Number: US 4,391,339 A
- Document ID: US4391339A
- Status: Granted
- Kind: A
- Application number: 06/211,662
- Filed: 1980-12-01
- Granted: 1983-07-05
- Earliest claimed: 1978-08-04
- Assignees: Hydronautics, Incorporated
- Inventors: Virgil E. Johnson, Jr.; T. R. Sundaram; Andrew F. Conn
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US4391339A

## CPC

- E21B 10/18: characterised by conduits or nozzles for drilling fluids
- E21B 7/18: Drilling by liquid or gas jets, with or without entrained pellets (E21B7/14 takes precedence)
- E21B 10/60: characterised by conduits or nozzles for drilling fluids (for roller bits E21B10/18; for percussion drill bits E21B10/38)
- E21B: EARTH OR ROCK DRILLING; OBTAINING OIL, GAS, WATER, SOLUBLE OR MELTABLE MATERIALS OR A SLURRY OF MINERALS FROM WELLS

## Abstract

A drill bit and a method for deep-hole drilling in which the drill bit has mechanical cutting means located on its lower cutting face for cutting a solid surface upon rotation of the bit and a plurality of cavitating liquid jet nozzles spaced around the face of the bit to assist in the drilling action, the nozzles being located so as to discharge a plurality of downwardly directed and concentric liquid jets that cavitate to fracture the surface to be drilled in a series of non-overlapping slots as the bit is rotated.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A cavitating liquid jet nozzle for causing cavitational errosion of a solid surface comprising a housing for receiving a liquid and having an inlet end and an outlet end, said housing having an interior chamber tapering from the inlet end toward a narrower orifice at the outlet end and being shaped in accordance with the following formula: ##EQU2## wherein D.sub.O is the initial diameter of the chamber; D.sub.E is the diameter of the outlet orifice; L is the distance between D.sub.O and D.sub.E ; and D is the diameter of the chamber at any point between D.sub.O and D.sub.E at a distance X from D.sub.O and wherein D.sub.O /L is 2 or greater; D.sub.O /D.sub.E is 3 or greater; and n is 2 or greater.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The nozzle of claim 1, including a center body located in the outlet of the nozzle to form an annular orifice for the nozzle.

### Claim 3 (depends on 2)

The nozzle of claim 2, in which the center body is a blunt based cylinder.

### Claim 4 (depends on 2)

The nozzle of claim 2, in which the center body is a sharp-edged disk.