General Electric Company

North Carolina State University

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Bradley E Williams

Thomas R Anthony

David Martin Johnson

Gary Martin Flood

Friedel S Knemeyer

Charles Dominic Iacovangelo

James F Fleischer

Brian Rhys Stoner

Steven William Webb

Clifford L Spiro

Elihu Calvin Jerabek

Jeffrey T Glass

William F Banholzer

William McClure Hooke

Karen M McNamara

The present invention relates to a novel domed polycrystalline diamond cutting element wherein a hemispherical diamond layer is bonded to a tungsten carbide substrate, commonly referred to as a tungsten carbide stud. Broadly, the inventive cutting element includes a metal carbide stud having a proximal end adapted to be placed into a drill bit and a distal end portion. A layer of cutting polycrystalline abrasive material disposed over said distal end portion such that an annulus of metal carbide adjacent and above said drill bit is not covered by said abrasive material layer. The geometry of the diamond cutting element provides control of interfacial stresses and reduces fabrication costs. The diamond cutting element may contain a pattern of ridges or bumps integrally formed in the abrasive layer which ridges are designed to cause high localized stresses in the rock, thus starting a crack. By initiating cracks in localized areas, the crushing action could be performed with less force.

Polycrystalline diamond cutting element

This invention relates to a novel domed polycrystalline diamond cutting element wherein a hemispherical diamond layer is bonded to a tungsten carbide substrate, commonly referred to as a tungsten carbide stud. Broadly, a pattern of ridges or bumps is integrally formed in the abrasive layer which ridges are designed to cause high localized stresses in the rock, thus starting a crack. By initiating cracks in localized areas, the crushing action could be performed with less force.

Polycrystalline diamond cutting element with diamond ridge pattern

An abrasive cutting element comprised of an abrasive cutting layer and a metal substrate wherein the interface therebetween has a tangential chamfer, the plane of which forms an angle of about 5.degree. to about 85.degree. with the plane of the surface of the cylindrical part of the metal substrate. The abrasive cutting layer is preferably diamond or cubic boron nitride and the metal substrate is preferably tungsten carbide.

Abrasive cutting element and drill bit

A method for treating as as-grown chemical vapor deposited (CVD) starting diamond film having stresses and containing voids, comprises the step of subjecting the diamond film to a temperature of above about 1000.degree. C. and a hydrostatic pressure of above about 3 kilobars.

Method for enhancing the toughness of CVD diamond

A multi-surfaced diamond tool having at least two surfaces thereof consisting essentially of fine grained diamonds preferably having an average particle size of about 0.01 .mu.m to about 20 .mu.m and a process for preparing the fine grained diamond surfaces by the vapor deposition method. Also included is a diamond tool insert comprising the above diamond tool bonded to a substrate.

Fine grain diamond tool and method of manufacture

A composite diamond wire die for drawing wire has a single crystal or HTHP diamond substrate and a CVD layer or layers deposited thereon. A wire die bore extends through the substrate and between the CVD layers, with a wire bearing surface being located completely within the substrate. The CVD layers may be deposited so as to develop tensile stress therein, so as to place the substrate in compression.

Composite diamond wire die

A composite diamond wire die for drawing wire has a single crystal or HTHP diamond substrate and a CVD layer or layers deposited thereon. The wire die bore extends through the diamond substrate, and the substrate is surrounded by the diamond CVD layer.

A composite diamond wire die for drawing wire has a single crystal or HTHP diamond substrate and a CVD layer or layers deposited thereon. The wire die bore extends through both the substrate and the CVD layers, with the wire bearing surface being located within the substrate.

An annular body, which may be a die for drawing wire, comprises an annular transparent CVD diamond body having an opening of uniform diameter with an interior surface in a region of smaller diamond grains and an external surface in a region of larger diamond grains.

Annular diamond bodies

A die for drawing wire of a predetermined diameter comprising an optically non-opaque CVD diamond body having a thermal conductivity greater than 4 watts/cm-K with an opening extending through said body and having a wire bearing portion of substantially circular cross-section determinative of the diameter of the wire.

Optically improved diamond wire die

A stress relieved CVD diamond is produced by annealing said CVD diamond at a temperature above about 1100 to about 2200 degrees Centigrade in a non-oxidizing atmosphere at a low pressure or vacuum and for a suitable short period of time which decreases with increasing annealing temperature so as to prevent graphitization of said diamond.

A method and apparatus for enhancing the nucleation of diamond by pretreating a substrate by electrically biasing a diamond film adjacent the substrate while exposing the substrate and the thus biased diamond film to a carbon-containing plasma. The bias pretreatment may be maintained for a time period in the range of about 1 hour to 2 hours to achieve a high diamond nucleation density. Alternatively, the biasing may be continued until diamond film formation is indicated by a change in reflectivity of the surface of the substrate. The biasing pretreating may be used to nucleate diamond heteroepitaxially on a substrate having a surface film formed of a material having a relatively close lattice match to diamond, such as .beta.-silicon carbide. The apparatus includes a laser reflection interferometer to monitor the surface of the substrate. The laser reflection interferometer is used to monitor growth of the diamond film and cooperates with a controller to control the processing parameters during the diamond growing process.

Nucleation enhancement for chemical vapor deposition of diamond

A CVD diamond die for drawing wire has top and bottom surfaces and opposing portions of a peripheral side located in respective regions of larger diamond smaller diamond grains. An opening which extends through the body from the top surface to the bottom surface is suitable positioned intermediate the side portions.

Diamond wire die with positioned opening

A CVD diamond wire drawing die has smaller diamond grains adjacent an initial diamond growth surface with larger diamond grains adjacent an opposing surface with an opening having a wire bearing portion of substantially circular cross-section determinative of the diameter of the wire positioned more closely adjacent to the initial growth surface in a region of smaller grains than to final large grained opposing surface.

Multiple grained diamond wire die

Adherent traces of a carbide-forming conductive metal are produced on a diamond surface, without deposition of carbide in areas to be non-conductive, by depositing an undercoat layer of a non-carbide-forming metal such as palladium, patterning said undercoat layer and then depositing a bond layer of the carbide-forming metal. The undercoat layer and the portion of the bond layer deposited thereon are then removed, typically by etching.

Growing community of inventors

Worthington, OH, United States of America

Bradley E Williams