Caterpillar Inc.

Spm Oil & Gas Inc.

Todd R Kabrich

Yuesheng He

Andy Publes

Casey Alan Otten

Sri Harsha Uddanda

Perry Dwain Converse

Shawn M Damm

Brandon J Mabe

Jason T Herlehy

Mark Francis Grimes

Mark C Paul

Joseph C Bufkin

Riadh Benguedda

Daryl J Belshan

Richard B League

Jacob Brown

Yanchai Zhang

Brian Eugene Lister

Zhijun Cai

Morris E Taft

Baoyang Deng

Wesley P Clark

Vaibhav H Shah

Timothy Josiah Lee

James Barnhouse

Rodney D Harms

Stephen C Todd

Nausheen Ahmad

Tom Brosowke

Kyle McElmury

Andrew W Sloan

Prabhu Jayaraman

Matthew Christopher Greving

Eric John Kuester

Scott Allen Weiss

Joseph A Grove

Christopher G Y Haddad

A hydraulic fracturing pump system may include a hydraulic fracturing pump, a gaseous fuel engine configured to drive the hydraulic fracturing pump, and a transmission system including a gear system mechanically coupled to the hydraulic fracturing pump and torque converter configured to fluidly couple the gaseous fuel engine and the gear system. The torque converter may include an impeller, a turbine fluidly coupled to the impeller and mechanically coupled to the gear system, a stator positioned between the impeller and the turbine, an impeller clutch configured to mechanically couple the impeller to the gaseous fuel engine, and a lockup clutch configured to mechanically couple the gaseous fuel engine and the gear system.

Control of an impeller clutch of a torque converter for a gaseous fuel engine

A hydraulic fracturing system may include a trailer having an unenclosed trailer bed, a fluid pump mounted on the unenclosed trailer bed, an engine, operably coupled to the fluid pump, mounted on the unenclosed trailer bed, and a sound-dampening system. The sound-dampening system may include a sound-dampening panel mounted on the engine. The sound-dampening panel may be configured to dampen sound produced by at least one moving part of the engine.

Sound-dampening panels for an engine

An example system includes a fluid end having a block, a fluid inlet formed in the block, and a fluid outlet formed in the block. The system also includes an intake manifold fluidly coupled to the fluid inlet, and a fluid conduit fluidly coupled to the fluid outlet and the intake manifold. The system further includes a valve fluidly coupled to the fluid conduit, the valve configured to control fluid flow through the fluid conduit, an actuator coupled to the valve and configured to position the valve in an open position or a closed position, and a controller communicatively coupled to the actuator and configured to send one or more signals to the actuator, causing the actuator to position the valve in the open position or the closed position.

System for managing pump load

A controller that is associated with a pump system causes a power ramp rate of a motor of the pump system to have an initial power ramp rate. The controller monitors, after causing the power ramp rate of the motor to have the initial power ramp rate, a frequency of a power bus. One or more power sources provide power to the pump system via the power bus. The controller causes, based on monitoring the frequency of the power bus, the power ramp rate of the motor to be modified.

Automatically controlling a power ramp rate of a motor of a pump system

In some implementations, a powertrain for powering a fluid pump may include a power source configured to rotate a first drive shaft at an approximately constant speed. The powertrain may include a mechanical transmission. The mechanical transmission may include one or more gearboxes associated with a set of fixed gear ratios, a second drive shaft coupled to the first drive shaft, and a third drive shaft coupled to an input drive shaft of the fluid pump and configured to rotate the input drive shaft at variable speeds or with variable torque based on using different gear ratios from the set of fixed gear ratios. The powertrain may include a torque converter disposed between the first drive shaft and the second drive shaft to enable the first drive shaft to be coupled to the second drive shaft.

Optimizing an efficiency of a positive displacement pump with a constant or near-constant speed power source

In some implementations, a controller may monitor, during a ramp up period of a fluid pump driven by a motor that is controlled by a variable frequency drive (VFD), an intake pressure of the fluid pump and a discharge pressure of the fluid pump. The controller may detect, based on monitoring the intake pressure and the discharge pressure, whether the intake pressure satisfies an intake pressure threshold or the discharge pressure satisfies a discharge pressure threshold. The controller may cause, via the VFD, reduction of a torque of the motor based on the intake pressure satisfying the intake pressure threshold or the discharge pressure satisfying the discharge pressure threshold.

Controlling ramp up of a fluid pump

A control system may include a recirculation circuit configured to direct fluid from an outlet of a fluid pump of a hydraulic fracturing system to an inlet of the fluid pump. The control system may include a control valve in the recirculation circuit. The control system may include a controller configured to cause opening of the control valve to cause the fluid to flow through the recirculation circuit at a first time when proppant is being added to the fluid. The controller may be configured to cause, after closing of the control valve and at a second time when the proppant is no longer being added to the fluid, re-opening of the control valve to cause the fluid to flow through the recirculation circuit to flush the recirculation circuit of the proppant.

Operation of a recirculation circuit for a fluid pump of a hydraulic fracturing system

In some implementations, a controller may obtain a setting for a target discharge pressure associated with a fluid pump driven by a motor that is controlled by a variable frequency drive (VFD). The target discharge pressure may be for use in a pressure test of a system that includes the fluid pump. The controller may determine a target torque for the motor that achieves the target discharge pressure. The controller may cause, via the VFD and in connection with the pressure test, adjustment to a speed of the motor to achieve the target torque for the motor.

Controlling a discharge pressure from a pump for pressure testing a fluid system

A control system may include a recirculation circuit configured to direct fluid from an outlet of a fluid pump of a hydraulic fracturing system to an inlet of the fluid pump. The control system may include a control valve in the recirculation circuit. The control system may include a choke valve in the recirculation circuit. The control system may include a controller configured to cause opening of the control valve to cause the fluid to flow through the recirculation circuit, and cause, based on a pressure of the fluid flowing through the recirculation circuit downstream of the control valve and the choke valve, actuation of the choke valve to maintain the pressure of the fluid below a threshold.

A method may include monitoring an operation or a state of one or more subsystems of a hydraulic fracturing system. The hydraulic fracturing system may include one or more fracturing rigs, one or more blending equipment, and one or more power sources electrically connected to a first subset of the one or more fracturing rigs, or one or more fuel sources fluidly connected to a second subset of the one or more fracturing rigs. The hydraulic fracturing system may further include one or more missile valves, one or more zipper piping and zipper valve sets, one or more well head valves, and one or more well heads. The method may further include controlling, based on monitoring the operation or the state, the one or more subsystems within operating limits or based on operating expectations to cause or prevent an occurrence of one or more well integrity-related events.

Controlling operations of a hydraulic fracturing system to cause or prevent an occurrence of one or more events

A control system may include a recirculation circuit configured to direct fluid from an outlet of a fluid pump, via a first portion of the recirculation circuit, to an inlet of the fluid pump via a second portion of the recirculation circuit. The control system may include a control valve and a choke valve in the recirculation circuit. The control system may include a controller configured to identify, based on a differential pressure that is based on a first pressure of the fluid in the first portion and a second pressure of the fluid in the second portion while the control valve is closed, a position for the choke valve that is to result in a flow velocity of the fluid through the control valve that is below a threshold, and configured to cause actuation of the choke valve in accordance with the position.

A control system may include a fluid conduit configured to direct fluid discharged from a fluid pump. The control system may include a shutoff valve and a throttling valve in the fluid conduit. The control system may include a controller configured to cause, while the shutoff valve is closed, actuation of the throttling valve to an open position. The controller may be configured to obtain first information indicating a first pressure of the fluid in the fluid conduit at a first side of the throttling valve between the throttling valve and the shutoff valve and second information indicating a second pressure of the fluid in the fluid conduit at a second side of the throttling valve. The controller may be configured to transmit a signal to indicate that the shutoff valve has a leak based on the first pressure being different from the second pressure.

A method may include monitoring, for two or more well heads of a hydraulic fracturing system, an operation or a state of one or more subsystems of the hydraulic fracturing system. The hydraulic fracturing system may include one or more fracturing rigs, one or more blending equipment, one or more power sources electrically connected to a first subset of the one or more fracturing rigs, or one or more fuel sources fluidly connected to a second subset of the one or more fracturing rigs, and one or more missile valves. The hydraulic fracturing system may further include one or more zipper valves, one or more well head valves, and multiple well heads. The method may further include controlling, based on an operation schedule for the hydraulic fracturing system and based on monitoring the operation or the state, fluid pressures at the two or more well heads for continuous pumping.

Controlling fluid pressures at multiple well heads for continuous pumping

A pinion shaft assembly for operation in a power end of a reciprocating pump includes a tubular member coupled to first pinion gear member via an interference coupling extension, possibly having a protruding alignment key operable to engage a slot formed on an inner wall of the first end of the tubular member to ensure correct rotational orientation of the first pinion gear member and the tubular member and to help prevent rotation of the first pinion gear member relative to the tubular member. The tubular member is also coupled to a second pinion gear member via an interference coupling extension, possibly having a protruding alignment key operable to engage a slot formed on an inner wall of the second end of the tubular member to ensure correct rotational orientation of the second pinion gear member and the tubular member and to help prevent rotation of the second pinion gear member relative to the tubular member.

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Creve Coeur, IL, United States of America

Todd R Kabrich