GB2589452A - Process for hydraulic mining - Google Patents
Process for hydraulic mining Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- GB2589452A GB2589452A GB2016573.4A GB202016573A GB2589452A GB 2589452 A GB2589452 A GB 2589452A GB 202016573 A GB202016573 A GB 202016573A GB 2589452 A GB2589452 A GB 2589452A
- Authority
- GB
- United Kingdom
- Prior art keywords
- drilling fluid
- pressure
- mineral
- mining
- density
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Granted
Links
- 238000005065 mining Methods 0.000 title claims abstract description 38
- 238000000034 method Methods 0.000 title claims abstract description 28
- 238000005553 drilling Methods 0.000 claims abstract description 40
- 239000012530 fluid Substances 0.000 claims abstract description 40
- 229910052500 inorganic mineral Inorganic materials 0.000 claims abstract description 28
- 239000011707 mineral Substances 0.000 claims abstract description 28
- 238000002347 injection Methods 0.000 claims abstract description 14
- 239000007924 injection Substances 0.000 claims abstract description 14
- 239000011261 inert gas Substances 0.000 claims abstract description 12
- 239000007789 gas Substances 0.000 claims abstract 2
- 239000002245 particle Substances 0.000 claims description 6
- 239000002002 slurry Substances 0.000 claims description 5
- 235000010755 mineral Nutrition 0.000 description 20
- XLYOFNOQVPJJNP-UHFFFAOYSA-N water Substances O XLYOFNOQVPJJNP-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 3
- 238000011010 flushing procedure Methods 0.000 description 2
- VNWKTOKETHGBQD-UHFFFAOYSA-N methane Chemical compound C VNWKTOKETHGBQD-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 2
- 239000004576 sand Substances 0.000 description 2
- FAPWRFPIFSIZLT-UHFFFAOYSA-M Sodium chloride Chemical compound [Na+].[Cl-] FAPWRFPIFSIZLT-UHFFFAOYSA-M 0.000 description 1
- 230000002411 adverse Effects 0.000 description 1
- 239000003570 air Substances 0.000 description 1
- 239000007864 aqueous solution Substances 0.000 description 1
- 238000013475 authorization Methods 0.000 description 1
- 229910000278 bentonite Inorganic materials 0.000 description 1
- 239000000440 bentonite Substances 0.000 description 1
- SVPXDRXYRYOSEX-UHFFFAOYSA-N bentoquatam Chemical compound O.O=[Si]=O.O=[Al]O[Al]=O SVPXDRXYRYOSEX-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 1
- 239000004568 cement Substances 0.000 description 1
- 230000001419 dependent effect Effects 0.000 description 1
- 239000003651 drinking water Substances 0.000 description 1
- 235000020188 drinking water Nutrition 0.000 description 1
- 230000000694 effects Effects 0.000 description 1
- 230000007613 environmental effect Effects 0.000 description 1
- RUTXIHLAWFEWGM-UHFFFAOYSA-H iron(3+) sulfate Chemical compound [Fe+3].[Fe+3].[O-]S([O-])(=O)=O.[O-]S([O-])(=O)=O.[O-]S([O-])(=O)=O RUTXIHLAWFEWGM-UHFFFAOYSA-H 0.000 description 1
- 239000000463 material Substances 0.000 description 1
- 239000000203 mixture Substances 0.000 description 1
- 239000003345 natural gas Substances 0.000 description 1
- 230000035515 penetration Effects 0.000 description 1
- 238000011084 recovery Methods 0.000 description 1
- 230000001105 regulatory effect Effects 0.000 description 1
- 230000002787 reinforcement Effects 0.000 description 1
- 238000007789 sealing Methods 0.000 description 1
- 235000002639 sodium chloride Nutrition 0.000 description 1
- 239000011780 sodium chloride Substances 0.000 description 1
- 239000002689 soil Substances 0.000 description 1
- 239000000243 solution Substances 0.000 description 1
- 229910001220 stainless steel Inorganic materials 0.000 description 1
- 239000010935 stainless steel Substances 0.000 description 1
- 239000003643 water by type Substances 0.000 description 1
Classifications
-
- E—FIXED CONSTRUCTIONS
- E21—EARTH OR ROCK DRILLING; MINING
- E21B—EARTH OR ROCK DRILLING; OBTAINING OIL, GAS, WATER, SOLUBLE OR MELTABLE MATERIALS OR A SLURRY OF MINERALS FROM WELLS
- E21B43/00—Methods or apparatus for obtaining oil, gas, water, soluble or meltable materials or a slurry of minerals from wells
- E21B43/29—Obtaining a slurry of minerals, e.g. by using nozzles
-
- E—FIXED CONSTRUCTIONS
- E21—EARTH OR ROCK DRILLING; MINING
- E21B—EARTH OR ROCK DRILLING; OBTAINING OIL, GAS, WATER, SOLUBLE OR MELTABLE MATERIALS OR A SLURRY OF MINERALS FROM WELLS
- E21B43/00—Methods or apparatus for obtaining oil, gas, water, soluble or meltable materials or a slurry of minerals from wells
- E21B43/16—Enhanced recovery methods for obtaining hydrocarbons
-
- E—FIXED CONSTRUCTIONS
- E21—EARTH OR ROCK DRILLING; MINING
- E21C—MINING OR QUARRYING
- E21C45/00—Methods of hydraulic mining; Hydraulic monitors
- E21C45/02—Means for generating pulsating fluid jets
- E21C45/04—Means for generating pulsating fluid jets by use of highly pressurised liquid
-
- E—FIXED CONSTRUCTIONS
- E21—EARTH OR ROCK DRILLING; MINING
- E21C—MINING OR QUARRYING
- E21C45/00—Methods of hydraulic mining; Hydraulic monitors
- E21C45/02—Means for generating pulsating fluid jets
- E21C45/06—Means for generating pulsating fluid jets by use of compressed gases
Landscapes
- Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
- Mining & Mineral Resources (AREA)
- Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
- Geology (AREA)
- General Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
- Geochemistry & Mineralogy (AREA)
- Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
- Environmental & Geological Engineering (AREA)
- Fluid Mechanics (AREA)
- Drilling And Exploitation, And Mining Machines And Methods (AREA)
- Geophysics And Detection Of Objects (AREA)
- Earth Drilling (AREA)
Abstract
A hydraulic method for mining a subterranean deposit of granular minerals by pressure injection of a drilling fluid through a mining head inserted into a sealed borehole, wherein air or an inert gas under pressure approximately equal to the pressure of the drilling fluid are injected simultaneously with the drilling fluid. A borehole is drilling and lined with a casing 9. A large diameter pipe is inserted into the casing, together with a pipe7 for injecting air or inert gas into the deposit bed. A drilling fluid is injected into the borehole under pressure, and the gas is injected simultaneously under approximately the same pressure.
Description
PROCESS FOR HYDRAULIC MINING
GENERAL INFORMATION
a) Field of the invention
The present invention relates to an environmentally friendly and inexpensive method of mining granular minerals, especially amber from subterranean deposits.
The subject of the invention is a method of hydraulic mining a subterranean deposit of a granular mineral, especially amber by pressure injecting inert gas or air together with drilling fluid into the deposit with a minimum disturbance of the surface itself.
Related art Exemplary processes for hydraulic mining subterranean amber deposits by pressure injecting water and using various mining heads are disclosed in PRL Pat. No. 124413 issued to Pawlowicz et al. on Jan. 31, 1984; PRL Pat. No. 124407 issued to Pawlowicz et al. on Jan. 31, 1984; PRL Pat. No. 132862 issued to Pawlowicz et al. on June 30, 1986; Ukrainian Pat. No 32201 issued to Romanovskyi et al. on Sept. 15, 2014; German patent application No. DE102014222647 submitted by Afferden et al. on Nov. 62014; or by injecting drilling fluid with density higher than or at least equal to the density of amber according to RP patent application No. 356413 submitted by Hurnowicz on Oct. 022002. The disadvantage of these methods of amber mining is that the mining cavity has a small volume, thus mining of an amber deposit requires drilling multiple boreholes at a close proximity to each other. The existing methods beside high mining cost are environmentally damaging and demand subsequent land re-cultivation. Another disadvantage is that the stratum below the amber bed is disturbed during mining resulting in silting of the entire borehole. -2 -
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The object of the present invention is to provide an improvement which overcomes the drawbacks of the prior art methods.
In accordance with the present invention, a subterranean granular mineral deposit is mined using a borehole drilled into the granular mineral bed region into which is simultaneously injected air or an inert gas together with a drilling fluid and the mineral is withdrawn as a slurry.
Aspects of the invention are specified in the independent claims. Preferred features are specified in the dependent claims.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The present invention will now be further described, by way of example, with reference to the following figures, in which Fig. 1 is a schematic drawing of the mining method of this invention, showing a cross-section that depicts a drilled borehole, the piping and the mining area. Fig. 2 depicts a cross-section of the well together with piping.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The method of the present invention is a technique for carrying out hydraulic mining of a subterranean granular mineral deposit.
We have surprisingly found that simultaneous injection of an inert gas or air together with a drilling fluid into a mining well resulted in a significant increase in a volume of a mining cavity and eliminated the need to drill a large number of boreholes at a close proximity to each other to exhaust the deposit.
Another significant, unexpected advantage of the mining method of this invention is that the process of obtaining permitting approvals from governmental regulatory bodies may be greatly simplified due to environmental friendliness of the method. -3 -
This factor represents a significant savings not only in the costs of seeking permits and approvals but also in the time typically required for obtaining such authorisations.
The mining technique of this invention is suitable for use with a variety of subterranean granular minerals.
The term "subterranean" as used in this disclosure refers to mineral deposits and associated recovery operations that are subsurface deposits located underground, as contrasted with surface-type operations such as strip mining which are used to extract or recover minerals located relatively close to the earth's surface.
Method according to the present invention comprises the following; a) drilling a borehole to the level of the bottom boundary of a granular mineral deposit bed; b) reinforcement of the well walls by inserting a casing (9) as shown on Fig. 1 c) inserting into the well a large diameter pipe (8) that will be used for withdrawing of the mineral to the surface in the form of slurry; d) inserting multiple pipes (5) into the well for injecting the drilling fluid into the deposit bed; e) ) inserting a pipe (7) for injecting air or an inert gas into the deposit bed; f) ) inserting a pipe (6) into the well to flush the discharge pipe (8); g) sealing the well head with cement; h) injecting a drilling fluid under the pressure calculated in accordance to the equation P> H x p where P is the drilling fluid pressure (bar gauge), H is the well depth, m; p is the density of the drilling fluid, tonne/m3; i) air or an inert gas is injected to the deposit simultaneously with the drilling fluid under approximately the same pressure; j) the air or an inert gas injection rate is calculated according to the equation Qair (m3/hr) Qdrilling fluid (m3/hr) + Qdrilling fluid X s, where s is solubility of inert gas or air in the drilling fluid at pressure P, m3/m3; k) if the density of the mineral is higher than the density of the drilling fluid the -4 -diameter of withdrawal pipe D, m should be in the range di <D < 0.062 x[(pm -p)xd]1/2 where d is the average size of mineral particles, m; di is the size of the largest particles, m; pm is the density of the mineral kg/m3, p is the density of the drilling fluid kg/m3; I) if the density of the mineral is lower than the density of the drilling fluid the diameter of the withdrawal pipe is determined by the size of the largest mineral particles; m) the drilling fluid and air or inert gas are injected continuously till the deposit is exhausted.
The three way valve (3) serves for redirecting the flow of the drilling fluid for flushing the mineral withdrawal pipe (8) in case of its clogging.
Backpressure valves 11 and 13 serve to maintain the pressure levels of air and drilling fluid respectively.
Safety valve 12 serves to prevent an uncontrolled build-up of the pressure in the mining well.
Unprecedented depth of the deposit penetration (up to 40 m) and the large volume of the mining cavity allows to avoid a tight net of boreholes that were formed as the result of the previous technical solutions. This method is applicable to mine granular or unconsolidated minerals up to the depth of 300 m. The complete control of the mining process and filling of the mining cavity with the native material during mining allows to avoid the sinking of soil above and below the deposit. This method of mining could be used in urban areas as well as in agricultural and forest areas and in areas with high levels of water table and in areas with artesian waters. The replacement of the mined mineral with coarse sand in the process of mining allows to use the well after mining as the source of drinking water as this sand will play the role of a filter.
This method of mining does not have an adverse effect to the mining of minerals (such as rock salt or natural gas) whose deposits lie below the level of mining cavity. -5 -
The invention is illustrated by Figs. 1 and 2 and by the following example.
Example
The Eocene deposit of amber with upper boundary depth of 90 m and bottom boundary of 119 m is mined by drilling a borehole that is reinforced by inserting a stainless steel casing. The casing diameter is 400 mm and the casing is 92 m in depth. The casing wall thickness is 15 mm.
To the well are inserted three drilling fluid injection pipes 50 mm diameter each, one 10 flushing pipe 50 mm diameter, amber withdrawing pipe 260 mm diameter, air injection pipe 75 mm diameter.
The drilling fluid injection pipes and the air injection pipe are connected to a mining head that is lowered to the level of the amber deposit.
The casing is sealed at the top.
As the drilling fluid is used bentonite -water mix with density 1400 kg/m3 or the aqueous solution of iron (III) sulphate of the same density.
Air is injected to the deposit at the rate of 45 m3/hr and pressure of 16.94 barg. Drilling fluid is injected at 17 barg pressure; the injection rate is 10 m3/hr at the start of the mining and 100 m3/hr at the end. The mining cavity volume is approximately 1200 m3.
The drilling fluid together with air hydraulically dislodge amber bearing deposit by a directed hydraulic jet causing an amber slurry to be formed and brought to the surface through the amber withdrawing pipe.
Amber is withdrawn as a slurry from the deposit by the drilling fluid and separated using a mesh with -1.5 mm openings. The mining of a single amber deposit with approximately 100,000 m3 volume with the average amber content of 500 kg/m3 gives approximately 50,000 kg of amber with particle size ranging from 2 to 255 mm.
It should be understood, however, that the intention is not to limit the invention to the particular embodiments described.
Claims (4)
- Claims 1 A hydraulic method for mining a subterranean deposit of granular minerals by pressure injection of a drilling fluid through a mining head inserted into a sealed borehole where the drilling fluid hydraulically dislodges mineral bearing deposits by a directed hydraulic jet causing a slurry to be formed and brought to the surface through the mineral withdrawal pipe, the method comprising simultaneous injection of air or an inert gas under pressure approximately equal to the pressure of the drilling fluid.
- 2 A method as specified in claim 1, wherein the drilling fluid injection pressure is determined according to the formula P > H x p, wherein P is the drilling fluid injection pressure, H is the depth of the drilling fluid injection pipe, m; p is the density of the drilling fluid, tonne/m3.
- 3 A method as specified in claims 1 and 2, wherein the air or gas injection rate is determined according to the formula Qair (m3/hr) n -cdrilling fluid (m3/hr) + Qdrilling fluid x s, where s is solubility of inert gas or air in the drilling fluid at pressure P, m3/m3.
- 4. A method as specified in claims 1, 2 and 3, wherein the mined mineral is amber.A method as specified in claims 1,2 and 3, wherein in the case of mineral density being higher than the density of the drilling fluid the diameter of withdrawal pipe D, m should be in the range di <D < 0.062x[(pm -p)xd]i12 where d is the average size of mineral particles, m; di is the size of the largest particles, m pm is the density of the mineral kg/m3, p is the density of the drilling fluid kg/m3;
Priority Applications (2)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| GB2016573.4A GB2589452B (en) | 2020-10-19 | 2020-10-19 | Process for hydraulic mining |
| PL439242A PL243599B1 (en) | 2020-10-19 | 2021-10-18 | Process of hydraulic extraction |
Applications Claiming Priority (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| GB2016573.4A GB2589452B (en) | 2020-10-19 | 2020-10-19 | Process for hydraulic mining |
Publications (3)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| GB202016573D0 GB202016573D0 (en) | 2020-12-02 |
| GB2589452A true GB2589452A (en) | 2021-06-02 |
| GB2589452B GB2589452B (en) | 2022-02-23 |
Family
ID=73598300
Family Applications (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| GB2016573.4A Active GB2589452B (en) | 2020-10-19 | 2020-10-19 | Process for hydraulic mining |
Country Status (2)
| Country | Link |
|---|---|
| GB (1) | GB2589452B (en) |
| PL (1) | PL243599B1 (en) |
Citations (4)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US20030221836A1 (en) * | 2001-01-29 | 2003-12-04 | Robert Gardes | Multi seam coal bed/methane dewatering and depressurizing production system |
| US20050252689A1 (en) * | 2001-01-29 | 2005-11-17 | Robert Gardes | Multi seam coal bed/methane dewatering and depressurizing production system |
| US20090173543A1 (en) * | 2008-01-02 | 2009-07-09 | Zupanick Joseph A | Slim-hole parasite string |
| CN209818038U (en) * | 2019-02-19 | 2019-12-20 | 中石化石油工程技术服务有限公司 | Gas-liquid double-flow injection allocation tool |
-
2020
- 2020-10-19 GB GB2016573.4A patent/GB2589452B/en active Active
-
2021
- 2021-10-18 PL PL439242A patent/PL243599B1/en unknown
Patent Citations (4)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US20030221836A1 (en) * | 2001-01-29 | 2003-12-04 | Robert Gardes | Multi seam coal bed/methane dewatering and depressurizing production system |
| US20050252689A1 (en) * | 2001-01-29 | 2005-11-17 | Robert Gardes | Multi seam coal bed/methane dewatering and depressurizing production system |
| US20090173543A1 (en) * | 2008-01-02 | 2009-07-09 | Zupanick Joseph A | Slim-hole parasite string |
| CN209818038U (en) * | 2019-02-19 | 2019-12-20 | 中石化石油工程技术服务有限公司 | Gas-liquid double-flow injection allocation tool |
Also Published As
| Publication number | Publication date |
|---|---|
| GB202016573D0 (en) | 2020-12-02 |
| PL439242A1 (en) | 2022-04-25 |
| GB2589452B (en) | 2022-02-23 |
| PL243599B1 (en) | 2023-09-18 |
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