American Coldset Corporation

Charles M Thompson

Charles T Thompson

Charles W Spehrley

A stabilizer for a drill string is disclosed. The stabilizer is of split configuration having an open slot or split which extends for the length of the stabilizer. The split stabilizer is slipped over a drill collar and fasteners are used to draw the split stabilizer together to clamp the stabilizer to the drill collar. The stabilizer may thus be positioned at any desired axial location on the drill collar and non-rotatably locked thereto by the fasteners. Advantageously, the stabilizer is made of a non-magnetic material.

Drilling stabilizer

Core barrel apparatus for obtaining and retrieving sealed core samples of subterranean formations are disclosed. The core barrel comprises a sample chamber for receiving a core sample as it is formed at the bottom of a bore hole and an expansion chamber for receiving sample fluids. The expansion chamber comprises a cylinder having a movable sealing member therein adapted to movably seal the expansion chamber. The volume of the expansion chamber is determined by the position of the sealing member in the cylinder, movement of the sealing member changing the volume of the expansion chamber. The sample chamber and expansion chamber are selectively connected to one another by means of a seal therebetween. The expansion chamber is sealed closed by the sealing member at one end and said seal at the other end while the sample is being cut and received within the sample chamber. Thereafter, the lower portion of the sample chamber is sealed by a flap-valve and the expansion chamber is opened to the sample chamber. The movable sealing member moves during ascent to expand the expansion chamber and reduce the pressure therein. A cup-like member, a piston, a spheroidal member, and a bellows member are disclosed to be embodiments of the movable sealing member. Valving is provided in the sample and expansion chambers so that the chambers may be individually sealed and separated, and sample fluids removed from the chambers through the respective valves.

Core barrel for obtaining and retrieving subterranean formation samples

Core barrel apparatus and a method for obtaining and retrieving sealed core samples of subterranean formations are disclosed. The core barrel apparatus comprises inner and outer core barrels. The upper portion of the outer core barrel is adapted to be connected to a drill string. A core bit for cutting a core sample is mounted on the lower portion of the outer core barrels. The inner core barrel comprises a sample chamber for receiving a core sample as it is formed at the bottom of a bore hole and an expansion chamber for receiving sample fluids. The sample chamber and expansion chamber are selectively connected to one another. The expansion chamber is sealed closed while the sample is being cut and received within the sample chamber. The lower portion of the sample chamber adjacent the core bit is sealed by a flap-valve which includes a flexible flap member. The flexible flap member is deflected from its normal form of a flat disc into a semi-cylindrical form and stored adjacent to the inner circumference of the sample chamber while the sample is being cut. Once the core sample is within the sample chamber, the flap member is permitted to spring into its flat disc form and extend across the opening in the lower portion of the sample chamber in order to seal the core sample within the chamber. Thereafter the expansion chamber is opened to the sample chamber. As the apparatus is raised toward the surface and the pressure within the bore hole decreases, the expansion chamber expands in response to the pressure of the fluid within it and thereby maintains the pressure within the expansion chamber at or relatively near the bore hole pressure.

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Carrollton, TX, United States of America

Charles M Thompson