Articles containing carbon composites and methods of manufacture

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10480288-B2
Application number	US-201414514510-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 15, 2014
Priority date	Oct 15, 2014
Publication date	Nov 19, 2019
Grant date	Nov 19, 2019

Abstract

Articles comprising carbon composites are disclosed. The carbon composites contain carbon microstructures having interstitial spaces among the carbon microstructures; and a binder disposed in at least some of the interstitial spaces; wherein the carbon microstructures comprise unfilled voids within the carbon microstructures. Alternatively, the carbon composites contain: at least two carbon microstructures; and a binding phase disposed between the at least two carbon microstructures; wherein the binding phase comprises a binder comprising one or more of the following: SiO2; Si; B; B2O3; a metal; or an alloy of the metal; and wherein the metal is at least one of aluminum; copper; titanium; nickel; tungsten; chromium; iron; manganese; zirconium; hafnium; vanadium; niobium; molybdenum; tin; bismuth; antimony; lead; cadmium; or selenium.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An article comprising a carbon composite containing
carbon microstructures having interstitial spaces among the carbon microstructures; and a binder disposed in at least some of the interstitial spaces;
wherein the carbon microstructures comprise microstructures of expanded graphite, the carbon microstructures have a thickness of about 10 to about 20 microns and an aspect ratio of about 25 to about 350 and comprise unfilled voids within the carbon microstructures, the unfilled voids having a size of about 200 nanometers to about 1 micron; and
the binder comprises a nickel-based alloy, a chromium-based alloy, an iron-based alloy, a titanium-based alloy, or a combination comprising at least one of the foregoing, and the binder is present in an amount of 20 to 50 wt. % based on the total weight of the carbon composite.

2. The article of claim 1 , wherein the article is a sealing element, a heat release or exchange element, or a friction reducing element.

3. The article of claim 2 , wherein the sealing element is a seal; a seal seat; a seal assembly; a packoff seal; a packer; a joint sheet; a gasket; a bridge plug;
or packing.

4. The article of claim 3 , wherein the seal is a static seal; a dynamic seal; a retrievable cementing packoff; a polished bore receptacle packoff; a wireline packoff; a head gasket, an exhaust gasket, a flange gasket; a valve packing; or a pump packing.

5. The article of claim 2 , wherein the heat release or exchange element is a heat sink; a cooling system; a heating radiating component; or a heat exchanger.

6. The article of claim 2 , wherein the friction reducing element is a bearing; a bearing seat; or a coating.

7. The article of claim 1 , wherein the article is a downhole element comprising a seal, a high pressure beaded frac screen plug; a screen base pipe plug; a coating for balls and seats; a compression packing element; an expandable packing element; an O-ring; a bonded seal; a bullet seal; a sub-surface safety valve seal; a sub-surface safety valve flapper seal; a dynamic seal; a V-ring; a back-up ring; a drill bit seal; a liner port plug; an atmospheric disc; an atmospheric chamber disc; a debris barrier; a drill in stim liner plug; an inflow control device plug; a flapper; a seat; a ball seat; a direct connect disk; a drill-in linear disk; a gas lift valve plug; a fluid loss control flapper; an electric submersible pump seal; a shear out plug; a flapper valve; a gaslift valve; or a sleeve.

8. An article comprising carbon composite containing:
at least two carbon microstructures, the at least two carbon microstructures having a thickness of about 10 to about 20 microns and an aspect ratio of about 25 to about 350 and comprising microstructures of expanded graphite; and
a binding phase disposed between the at least two carbon microstructures;
wherein the binding phase comprises a binder layer and an interface layer bonding one of the at least two carbon microstructures to the binder layer, the binder layer comprising a binder which comprises a nickel-based alloy, a chromium-based alloy, an iron-based alloy, a titanium-based alloy, or a combination comprising at least one of the foregoing, and the binder is present in an amount of 20 to 50 wt. % based on the total weight of the carbon composite; and
wherein the interface layer comprises at least one of the following: a C-metal bond; a C—O-metal bond; or a metal carbon solid solution, and the metal is at least one of nickel; chromium; iron; or titanium.

9. The article of claim 8 , wherein the article is a sealing element, a heat release or exchange element, or a friction reducing element.

10. The article of claim 9 , wherein the sealing element is a seal; a seal seat; a seal assembly; a packoff seal; a packer; a joint sheet; a gasket; a bridge plug; or packing.

11. The article of claim 10 , wherein the seal is a static seal; a dynamic seal; a retrievable cementing packoff; a polished bore receptacle packoff; a wireline packoff; a head gasket; an exhaust gasket; a flange gasket; a valve packing; or a pump packing.

12. The article of claim 9 , wherein the heat release or exchange element is a heat sink; a cooling system; a heating radiating component; or a heat exchanger.

13. The article of claim 9 , wherein the friction reducing element is a bearing; a bearing seat; or a coating.

14. The article of claim 8 , wherein the article is a downhole element comprising a seal; a high pressure beaded frac screen plug; a screen base pipe plug; a coating for balls and seats; a compression packing element; an expandable packing element; an O-ring; a bonded seal; a bullet seal; a sub-surface safety valve seal; a sub-surface safety valve flapper seal; a dynamic seal; a V-ring; a back-up ring; a drill bit seal; a liner port plug; an atmospheric disc; an atmospheric chamber disc; a debris barrier; a drill in stim liner plug; an inflow control device plug; a flapper; a seat; a ball seat; a direct connect disk; a drill-in linear disk; a gas lift valve plug; a fluid loss control flapper; an electric submersible pump seal; a shear out plug; a flapper valve; a gaslift valve; or a sleeve.

15. The article of claim 1 , wherein the article is continuously resistive to one or more of thermal cracking, thermal degradation or thermal decomposition, at an ambient temperature of greater than 750° F. for more than 30 days.

16. The article of claim 1 , wherein the binder is free of silicon.

17. The article of claim 8 , wherein the binding phase has a thickness of about 1 to about 20 microns.

18. An article comprising carbon composite containing:
at least two carbon microstructures, the at least two carbon microstructures having a thickness of about 10 to about 20 microns and an aspect ratio of about 25 to about 350 and comprising microstructures of expanded graphite; the carbon microstructures comprising unfilled voids within the carbon microstructures, the unfilled voids having a size of about 200 nanometers to about 1 micron; and
a binding phase disposed between the at least two carbon microstructures;
wherein the binding phase comprises a binder comprising a nickel-based alloy, a chromium-based alloy, an iron-based alloy, a titanium-based alloy, or a combination comprising at least one of the foregoing, and the binder is present in an amount of 20 to 50 wt. % based on the total weight of the carbon composite, and
the binding phase is free of silicon.

19. The article of claim 1 , wherein the carbon composite further comprises 1 to 8 wt % of a filler comprising one or more of the following: carbon fibers, carbon black, mica, clay, glass fibers, ceramic fibers, a ceramic hollow.

20. The article of claim 1 , wherein the carbon microstructures are substantially parallel.

21. The article of claim 1 , wherein the carbon microstructures have a density of about 0.5 to about 3 g/cm 3 .

22. The article of claim 1 , wherein the carbon microstructures have a density of about 0.1 to about 2 g/cm 3 .

23. The article of claim 1 , wherein the carbon composite comprises about 50 to about 80 wt % of the carbon microstructures based on the total weight of the carbon composite.

Assignees

• Xu Zhiyue
• Zhao Lei
• Baker Hughes A Ge Co Llc

Inventors

• Xu Zhiyue
• Zhao Lei

Classifications

• E21B10/25

  characterised by sealing details · CPC title

• C04B2235/9692

  Acid, alkali or halogen resistance · CPC title

• C04B35/82

  Asbestos; Glass; Fused silica · CPC title

• C04B35/536

  based on expanded graphite {or complexed graphite} · CPC title

• C04B2235/428

  Silicon · CPC title