METHOD TO DRILL WELLS USING LASER ENERGY AND DEVICE FOR ITS REALISATION Russian patent published in 2012 - IPC E21B7/14 E21C37/16 

FIELD: mining.

SUBSTANCE: group of inventions relates to mining industry and may be used to drill wells in loose rocks with simultaneous reinforcement of well walls. The method includes thermal softening and melting of a rock massif with subsequent formation and strengthening of well walls with axial feed of a drill string. Thermal softening of rocks and melting of rock mass in well walls is carried out by means of impact from a high-temperature penetrator, heated by laser beams focused on inner walls and the end part of the penetrator, to the temperature that exceeds temperature of rock melting by 200-250°. The device comprises a source of thermal energy, a hoist, a load-carrying cable, a high-temperature penetrator, a shaping crystalliser, a centraliser. The source of thermal energy is a laser connected via a current collector, a centraliser and a weighting agent by means of a fibre optic cable to a laser head placed inside the pipe cavity. The upper end part of the high-temperature penetrator body is rigidly connected to the pipe via the shaping crystalliser equipped with a well expander, freely installed on the external surface of the shaping crystalliser, and the external surface of the penetrator is formed by rotation of a chain line around the vertical axis.

EFFECT: invention provides for simultaneous and high-quality reinforcement and formation of well walls in loose and low cohesive rocks.

2 cl, 2 dwg