Did you know that the millennials at the tail end of their generation will be turning 38 this year? According to Pew Research Center, the age range for this cohort is now between 23 and 38. What does that mean for HR and the workforce? More and more millennials are entering—or are in—leadership positions. In fact, according to Upwork's recent study, Future Workforce Report, nearly half of this younger generation is in positions at the director level or above. So the big question is: How will millennials manage?
In The Future is Bright, Zoe Harte, senior vice president of HR and talent innovation and head of human resources at Upwork, shares four ways millennials and Generation Z are shaping the workforce based on findings from the company's recent Future Workforce Report. Two factors are likely to have an impact on their management styles. Millennial and Gen Z workers are nearly three times more likely than baby boomers to believe that individual workers need to take personal responsibility for their development. They also believe that by 2028, nearly three-quarters of all teams will have remote workers and 33 percent of full-time employees will exclusively work remotely. Will these two factors lead to more autonomous management styles?
This entry was posted in Workforce Management and tagged April-2019, Millennials on April 18, 2019 by Audrey Roth.
What drives millennials to seek new opportunities?
Today's young professionals looking to further their careers are reaping the benefits of a robust job market, allowing them to identify opportunities based on a range of features besides compensation. In fact, Merrill Corporation recently conducted a survey of junior associates working in the financial services industry to find out what factors are driving them to choose a new role. The survey sought input into why they chose their career and employer, job satisfaction levels, future career aspirations, and their views on the overarching capital markets industry. The results offer insight into what this future generation of industry leaders are looking for right now—in the early stages of their careers—from employers, direct managers, and perhaps most importantly, from themselves.
This entry was posted in Engaged Workforce, RPO & Staffing, Workforce Management and tagged Attracting Talent, Culture, Millennials, November-2018, Reputation, Talent Acquisition on November 15, 2018 by Audrey Roth.


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The Welcome Optimism of "Star Trek: Picard"
By Neima Jahromi
In a new CBS All Access series, Patrick Stewart has been lured back to his "Star Trek" character, Jean-Luc Picard, by the franchise's bread and butter: social and political issues.Photograph by Trae Patton / CBS
On a planet in the far reaches of space, Jean-Luc Picard, the storied captain of the Starship Enterprise, ran into a being who said she was the devil. She could make people disappear in a flash of energy. The ground shook at her command. Picard was skeptical. In all of his voyages, he had never encountered absolute evil. The universe's creatures—humanoids, tiny robots, assemblages of light—were all capable of change, or at least of revelation. Surely, there must be a way to find the good in this powerful being, or otherwise a way to unmask her. In recent years, Picard's optimistic spirit has been hard to conjure, not just in the world but on TV. The success of shows such as "Breaking Bad" and "Veep" proved that audiences could be interested in morally bankrupt people without seeking their redemption. But, in the landscape of gritty realism that has surfaced in the decade since, a once daring aesthetic gesture has lost its edge. The audience, fatigued by the powerful opportunists that threaten us during the day, finds it harder to sit transfixed by rudderless immorality at night.
That may be why the "Star Trek" creator Gene Roddenberry's twentieth-century idealism is on the rise again, wafting up from shows such as Michael Schur's philosophical sitcom "The Good Place" and Seth MacFarlane's "The Orville," a Trekkie-approved homage to "Star Trek: The Next Generation." In the original "Next Generation," Patrick Stewart plays Picard, the commander of a starship on a mission of exploration and of a crew whose altruism he can take as granted. The show was one part Margaret Mead among the Samoans and one part undergraduate ethics course, and it derived its tensions not from the battle scenes or from the protagonist's tragic flaws but, rather, from moral and logical quandaries that tugged the audience from scene to scene: If a ship arrives through a time rift from a historic battle that saved the lives of billions, do you send it back to finish the skirmish, even though its crew will almost certainly die? Most dilemmas were resolved quietly. A laser gun (shaped like an electric shaver) might go off once an episode. Suspense would build as Picard, stern and sometimes shouty, slowly arrived at a way to respect all forms of intelligent life, no matter the circumstances. As for the earth-shaking devil, Picard defeats her not with choreographed kung fu on a high precipice but with due process in a courtroom, revealing her to be a con artist exploiting the latest in seismic technology.
Stewart eventually grew tired of the formula of "Star Trek: The Next Generation," and of his close identification with the character, but he has returned to playing Picard again, in a new CBS All Access series, "Star Trek: Picard." He seems to have been lured back by the franchise's bread and butter: social and political issues. The seventy-nine-year-old English actor, also an executive producer on the show, has said that he wants science fiction to confront a world plagued by Trump and Brexit, by endless wars and immigration crises. "I am angry, disappointed, and embarrassed by our decision to leave the Union," he told NPR recently.
In the new show, the captain, softened by age, reëmerges in a very dark time line. His beloved android lieutenant, Data, is dead. The United Federation of Planets, the organization that governs Picard's corner of the galaxy, has fallen under the sway of forces both xenophobic and corrupt. Synthetic life forms have set Mars on fire and are now banned. A supernova destroyed the home world of the Romulans, the Federation's historic enemies, setting off an interplanetary refugee crisis that has shaken the population of Earth. Picard's values have fallen completely out of joint with those of his government. In repose on the French vineyard where he grew up, and far from the off-kilter situations that threatened the Enterprise, he no longer speaks in clipped commands ("Speculate," "Report," "Make it so") but muses over the way his advanced years and the gloomy political situation have cowed him. "Nursing my offended dignity. Writing books of history people prefer to forget," he says, chiding himself. "I haven't been living. I've been waiting to die."
Like a sci-fi Jimmy Carter, Picard has retracted his personal universe into small moral acts. He has taken in two Romulan refugees. They banter and fix breakfast and remind him to wash his hands. Picard's outlook hasn't changed, only his sense of what an old universalist, protective of life in all its forms, can still do in a world suffering from a void in moral authority. And, yet, soon after we meet him, Picard is suddenly feeling hopeful, again.
The CBS executives that brought Picard back to us are optimistic, too: they announced the second season of "Star Trek: Picard" before Season 1 even aired its first episode. And Stewart has been going around collecting his old cast members for cameos, just as the reanimated Picard goes around collecting a new crew for one last mission into space. Stewart recently beamed over to the set of "The View," in his nicest striped jacket, to invite Whoopi Goldberg to join him for the next season of "Picard." He had good reason to think she'd say yes. Three decades earlier, at the height of her fame, Goldberg called Roddenberry to lunch and told him she wanted to be on "Next Generation." He cast her as the barkeep Guinan. For half a dozen seasons, Guinan advised the crew members on everything from how to flirt to how to find humanity in the nearly irredeemable collective known as the Borg, a hive of creatures that violently turned every species they encountered into half-mechanical automatons.
Goldberg's relationship to the show is a testament to its moral and political impact. As a little girl in the sixties, she fixed her eyes on Lieutenant Uhura, the communications officer first played by Nichelle Nichols, in the original "Star Trek" series. "There's a black lady on TV," Goldberg exclaimed to her mother. "And she ain't no maid!" Nichols herself nearly quit the show after one season, but was encouraged to hang on by another early "Star Trek" fan: Martin Luther King, Jr. "You turn on your television and the news comes on and you see us marching and peaceful, you see the peaceful civil disobedience, and you see the dogs and see the fire hoses, and we all know they cannot destroy us," she recalled King telling her, "because we are there in the twenty-third century."
The role-playing of diversity in the many iterations of "Star Trek" didn't always go well. Some species, like the Klingons or the Romulans, were often reduced to a static set of characteristics, "a kind of intergalactic racial profiling," as the novelist and "Picard" showrunner Michael Chabon recently put it. Chabon, along with his co-writers, have made attempts to change that. More recent "Star Trek" films and shows, such as "Discovery," have added intraspecies variety—not every Romulan is conniving and not every Klingon has a dark complexion. "Picard" also departs from more benign "Star Trek" rules to conform to the new tendencies of streaming television. The dialogue ("Dude, I'm a fellow in Artificial Intelligence and Quantum Consciousness") and habits (one character stuffs a futuristic pen with homegrown "snake leaf" and vapes from it, moodily) often seem more at home in the twenty-first century than the twenty-fourth. There are gratuitous fight scenes and some antihero grittiness, too: most of the new faces that surround Picard are premium-cable scoundrels and Daniel Craig–era Bond villains, full of worldly resentments, overcooked ideologies, and self-centered intentions. What's unique is that they're about to be swept up in Picardianism, the hokey but perhaps not yet worn-out utopian world view that longs to recognize common ideals across the galaxy, while also preserving its differences.
Picard did not come away without damage from all his investigations of alien strife. He has had his mind repeatedly hijacked by the concerns of other beings. The Borg once assimilated him. "Have you ever . . . been a stranger to yourself?" someone asks him, in the first episode of "Picard." "Many, many times," he replies. Watching Picard and his crew explore the galaxy has always been as much about finding differences in the realms beyond our solar system as about finding the possibility of difference inside ourselves. Even as new Star Trek shows make the universe a shade more grim, what stays the same are the principles that guide our captain—the respect for all forms of intelligence, and the thrill of the unknown that is the very foundation of hope.
Neima Jahromi is a member of The New Yorker's editorial staff.
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What our staff is reading, watching, and listening to each week.
I love Mr. Spock because he reminds me of you, I told my father. For the first time that night, I considered the possibility that he was going to survive it.
By Michael Chabon
The Histories Hidden in the Periodic Table
From poisoned monks and nuclear bombs to the "transfermium wars," mapping the atomic world hasn't been easy.
From "Star Trek" to "Game of Thrones": The Rise of the Superfan
Michael Schulman reports on how the Internet has brought fan communities together.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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John Fogerty at Red Rocks Amphitheatre
John Fogerty Tickets
Be part of this great moment in rock and roll as one of the greatest sons of rock is bound to carve a new milestone in his illustrious career. John Fogerty is rolling out with his 50th-anniversary tour. He shows no signs of slowing down and he is even pushing the pedal to the metal as he goes around the country and will also cross the boundaries of international shores. Catch him as he takes on this gold moment here at the Red Rocks Amphitheater on Thursday 20th June 2019. Save your seat, or better yet, secure your space as most likely you'd be up on your feet stomping and your fists raised up in the air as he dishes out songs that rekindle the fire of the old days of protest and memories of sweet air of southern rock and Americana. Book your tickets and don't ever miss the show!
Come to think of it, "Proud Mary" is now fifty years old! As a lead ex-member of the legendary Credence Clearwater Revival, John Fogerty is now celebrating his golden year as one of the pillars of rock and roll music. Straight after the completion of his military service in 1969, Fogerty took a dive in the waters of a singer-songwriter-rock-musician career. Leading his band CCR, rock aficionados took notice and deemed their music relevant of the times of protest, peace, love, sex, drugs, and rock and roll. "Proud Mary", "Susie Q", "Bad Moon Rising", "Fortunate Son", all hit the top of the charts.
When Credence Clearwater Revival folded-up, John Fogerty forged on and embarked on a solo career. His prolific songwriter came to the fore once more as he delivered a string of monster hits which include "The Old Man Down the Road," "Jambalaya (On the Bayou)" and "Rock and Roll Girls." Fogerty has his share of noteworthy recognitions which include him in the current list of Rolling Stone magazine's list of 100 Greatest Guitarists at number 40 and the list of 100 Greatest Singers at number 72.
"I can't believe 50 years. It has been quite a ride… I bought a notebook in 1967 and wrote down some song titles. The first entry in my notebook is Proud Mary. To think that she is 50 years old and how my song has had such an impact is hard to put into words. I know when I wrote those songs it was my dream to become the best musician I could be. Not to let anything get in my way, not even the Vietnam war. I am thrilled to celebrate this time and my songs including the iconic Woodstock festival."
'Nuff said…it's showtime! Book your tickets now!


Tucked away in the heart of Hampstead Village in London, is an amazing contemporary house that has been recently placed for sale. Designed by renowned architects Paxton Locher, this gigantic 6,500 sq. ft house is set around a 40ft double volume reception room. The reception room, which has two retractable glass roof lights, transforms into an open-air courtyard when the glass roof is opened.
Alongside the courtyard, runs a dramatic custom-made glass swimming pool. The interiors have floor-to-ceiling glass walls which enable views of the courtyard and swimming pool from inside the rooms. The residence also houses five bedrooms, with the master bedroom overlooking the pool, a gymnasium, a party-and-media room, all of them featuring high-level windows. The interiors are done very tastefully and exude elegance in every aspect. Enjoy the pictures of this attractive modern house. How do you find this design?


In 1974 a small group of physicians seeking to dispel the myth that community physicians were uninterested in and incapable of participation in state-of-the-art cancer care came together to form the Association of Community Cancer Centers (ACCC). ACCC was born to give oncology practitioners in the community a voice in the national oncology forum and it would become the mechanism through which clinical protocols and other oncology standards of care were developed and disseminated to community cancer programs across the nation. ACCC promotes the entire continuum of quality cancer care for both patients and communities.
Most recently, Faye Flemming, RN, BSN, OCN, member of ACCC, created Nicole's Oncofertility Toolkit to help facilitate the development of a formalized oncofertility program in community cancer centers. Faye initiated the project as a direct result of the pain and suffering her 28year old newly married niece, Nicole, endured when her oncology team failed to address her oncofertility needs immediately after diagnosis. Ultimately, Nicole's fertility needs were recognized, but it wasn't until months later after she found an oncology provider that was equipped with the tools, resources and knowledge to facilitate this. It also took persistence on Nicole's part to seek out a cancer care team that would ensure she had fertility options prior to undergoing fertility impairing treatment.
Nicole's Oncofertility Toolkit is a resource for both patients and healthcare professionals. It provides each with general information (statistics, cost, procedures, assessment), tools for establishing a program and resources for fertility preservation information so that both the provider and the patient are well informed. According to Faye, "Many cancer patients experience unnecessary emotional turmoil due to a lack of attention, knowledge, support, resources, planning and preparation related to oncofertility issues and both the providers and payers are to blame." Therefore, this toolkit was created to empower both patients and providers to take control of the fertility options available to men, women and children.
In a community-based setting, it can be challenging to meet the fertility needs of cancer patients, but with the addition of Nicole's Oncofertility Toolkit, it opens up a much needed dialogue about oncofertility, increasing the likelihood that fertility will be addressed at diagnosis in age appropriate patients.


Fresh flowers and gifts delivered to Moresby, Western Australia.
Local florist delivers fresh flowers, flower baskets, chocolates, fruit baskets and gifts to Moresby.
Moresby Florist deliver fresh flowers, flower baskets and gifts to Moresby area.
Have your flowers and gifts delivered to Moresby area churches, hospitals, retirement and nursing homes, Moresby businesses, offices, private homes, anywhere in Australia by our local Moresby florist.


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What I learned teaching in China during the COVID-19 pandemic
Globalized higher education requires fresh cross-cultural approaches.
Teresa G. Valencak
Teresa Valencak
Teresa Valencak with students Xiaoyang Xu (xx) and Yuliang Huang.
China was on my radar when, in 2018, I was looking for a new faculty position to progress my career. I was working as an associate professor at the University of Veterinary Medicine in Vienna; five years prior I had completed a two-year postdoc at the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing. I knew the high value China places on science and research, its funding opportunities, its skilled students and its "get things done" attitude.
I came across a vacancy at Zhejiang University in the provincial capital, Hangzhou, located around 180 km west of Shanghai. My negotiations with the hiring board took place via email and phone messaging apps, and during a three-day stay at the university's main Zijingang Campus, which in September 2019 became my official work place.
Teresa G. Valencak. Credit: Simon Callaghan
Zhejiang University is among the oldest in China (founded in 1897), and one of the leading universities in the country. Its seven campuses extend in all directions within Hangzhou. At the College of Animal Sciences, I was the first foreign faculty to be hired.
I quickly perceived significant differences in teaching in my experience of the "West" and China in modes of delivery, class size, skills and in the relationship between students and mentors. I found that teaching focused more on memorization than it did in Europe, and although students quickly picked up content via textbooks, they were less accustomed to group work or classroom discussions.
In my view, to be useful for foreigners teaching in China, internationally used course books and lesson plans need to take account of these differences.
In my experience, early morning classes struggle to attract students in a western university setting. But at Zhejiang University, lecture halls and teaching buildings were very busy well before 8am; students and faculty enjoyed a freshly cooked, warm breakfast at around 6am.
The formal relationship between students and faculty in the classroom did not extend to the campus cafeteria. It was part of the culture for lab groups to spend their lunch break together before returning to the desk or lab bench.
In class at Zhejiang University, teachers were distant intellectuals who delivered content but were not to be interrupted. Students were often timid about openly sharing their thoughts and questions in class or with teachers individually. Many were reluctant to interact with me, I think at least in part due to a lack of confidence in speaking English.
Pandemic effects
COVID-19 accelerated the use of online teaching tools across the globe. I witnessed first-hand how China, compared with the West, was very well prepared to take university classes into full online teaching in the first two weeks of February 2020.
Chinese academic institutions already used phone apps to communicate with students and share course content. In addition, hundreds of talented programmers from Zhejiang University swiftly worked to improve digital learning systems during the lockdowns, when the switch to online exams occurred.
With students confined to dormitories or parents' homes for several months, I organized 11 virtual Zoom webinars for 100 undergraduate students in animal science in July and August 2020. All speakers were scientists from outside China as I sought to partly make up for the loss of opportunities to attend any international guest lectures and networking events in person due to pandemic travel restrictions.
The webinar series addressed not only research topics in the animal sciences, but also career planning and modern biomedical technology, functional molecular biology and sequencing.
The series aimed to provide students with a sense of normalcy through networking and training delivered by people talking to them directly, albeit online. I invited a diverse group of five female and six male speakers from Europe, the US, Australia and Japan. Students could interact using the chat function in Zoom or by sending their question to me via WeChat in Chinese or English.
The in-app translations worked amazingly well; it seemed as if there was no language barrier at all between the speakers and the students. The students were more confident communicating in writing and many asked for a recording of our webinar session. I feared a drop in "live" attendance until I realized they were actively using the recordings to practice their English and reflect on the content.
I returned to Austria in October 2020, wanting to be close to family and friends during the pandemic. By then, my earlier expectation that students would ask questions during lectures felt old-fashioned.
My previous European classroom experiences were more interactive, embracing problem-based learning approaches, but my Chinese students learned flexibly after the lecture more than during it. They used recorded material, looked up content both alone and via references provided with the course notes and formed their own take-home messages. I would receive interesting questions from them several days after a session.
Based on my experience at Zhejiang University, I would like to see more development in the West of a learning system in which input from both teachers and experts is used as a research-led teaching tool for subsequent teacher-student interactions, for example via texting and one-on-one online conversation. Seeing their faces and even fluently speaking their language need not be fundamental requirements.
Globalization in higher education demands a new internationally recognized teaching approach that caters better to cross-cultural contexts.
This article has been contributed by a member of the Nature Index community. See our pitching guidelines.
Teresa G. Valencak is adjunct associate professor at the College of animal science at Zhejiang University. Her research focuses on energy metabolism and aging in mammals. Email: teresavalencak@zju.edu.cn
Chinese joint-venture universities try for the best of both worlds
Rising tide of China's science lifts Asia-Pacific research
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Taking regular backups of files and database is extremely important in an online business. It helps to recover the site from the unexpected situation. Thanks to WordPress community who has created and shared best free plugins to manage WordPress backups.
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BackUpWordPress will back up your entire site including your database and all your files on a schedule that suits you. Important features are Manage multiple schedules, Super simple to use, no setup required, Uses zip and mysqldump for faster back ups if they are available, Works in low memory, "shared host" environments, Option to have each backup file emailed to you, Works on Linux & Windows Server, Exclude files and folders from your back ups, Good support should you need help and Translations for Spanish, German, Chinese, Romanian, Russian, Serbian, Lithuanian, Italian, Czech, Dutch, French, Basque.
Simple Backup Plugin for WordPress create and download backups of your WordPress website. Plugin can also optionally perform many common optimizations to wordpress and MySQL Database before backup.
With this plugin, you may plan the backup of your entire website (folders, files and/or database). You can choose, which folders you want to save, the frequency of the backup process, whether your database should be saved, and whether the backup is stored on the local website, sent by email or stored on a distant FTP (support of multipart zip files).
Important features are Schedule automatic backups, Back up the database, Back up files and directories, Fine grained control over what gets backed up, Store backups locally and/or on Google Drive, Interrupted uploads to Google Drive automatically resume and more.
Complete Central Backup allows for backups to be made on the fly. You can also restore it just as fast. There are some backup plugins out right now but sometimes they just get too clunky and are hard to follow.
Included features are ONE CLICK to create a backup of your database, INSTANT backup restoring from the plugin dashboard (Very large databases may take longer or require manual restoring), Convenient log tracking of all actions(viewable form the plugin dashboard with the ability to clear the log), Ability to manage your backups right from the plugin dashboard (Delete, Restore, and even Download), Ability to restore database with out even being logged out and Create Scheduled backups.


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A Republic of China (Taiwan) flag outside the Taiwanese Embassy to the Holy See. The embassy is in Rome, which has no diplomatic ties with Taipei. Photo: Astrotrain/WikiMedia
Taiwan's vice-president off to the Vatican to firm up ties
A new deal with Beijing on appointing bishops has fueled new worries that the Holy See will ditch ties with the island
Taiwanese Vice-President Chen Chien-jen is scheduled to visit the Vatican next month to attend the canonization of six beatified individuals, or "blesseds," a source said.
The report on the planned visit by the Taipei-based Liberty Times came out at about the same time the Vatican and China signed a tentative deal on the appointment of bishops, with the potential of resolving an issue standing in the way of normalizing ties between the Holy See and Beijing.
The Vatican is the only European state that continues to maintain diplomatic ties with the self-governing island, though many are wondering when the Holy See will switch its recognition to Beijing after the groundbreaking consensus on the appointment of Chinese bishops.
Taiwan's Foreign Ministry rushed to quell speculation, stressing that the Vatican had repeatedly assured Taipei that the agreement with Beijing "is not of a political or diplomatic nature, and will not affect the diplomatic relationship that has been in place for 76 years."
Pope Francis announced in May that the canonization to sainthood of the six, including Pope Paul VI and archbishop Oscar Romero of El Salvador, would take place on October 14.
A file photo shows Taiwanese Vice-President Chen Chien-jen and his wife meeting Pope Francis in the Vatican in September 2016. Photo: Handout
An unnamed high-ranking official told the Taipei paper that President Tsai Ing-wen had already decided to send her deputy Chen, a Catholic, to be her special envoy to attend the ceremony and to shore up the decades-long ties at a somewhat precarious moment.
Chen led a Taiwanese delegation to the Vatican in September 2016 for the canonization of Mother Teresa.
He was made a knight of the Vatican's Order of the Holy Sepulcher in 2010 and a knight of the Order of St Gregory the Great in 2013 in recognition of his efforts in the fight against severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) in Taiwan in 2003 and his academic achievements as a medical professional.
Meanwhile, the Taipei Times also revealed that the Apostolic Nunciature in the capital city, the Vatican embassy in Taiwan, would reopen soon, after two years of renovation during which the nunciature moved to an office building.
The reopening of the embassy could be a much-needed move for Taiwan to convince the world that the papal state is not going to ditch the island.
The official added that Taiwan and the Holy See had held activities in recent years that underpinned their close relationship, citing the first overseas exhibition of historical artifacts from the Vatican, which was held at the National Palace Museum in Taipei in 2016.
Read more: Possible Sino-Vatican entente will raise a diplomatic storm over Taiwan
ChinaTaiwanTsai Ing-wenVaticanHoly SeeAsia UnhedgedTaiwan's diplomatic alliesSino-Vatican tiesChinese bishops


As with other foreign destinations, there's plenty to see and do. There are also several pieces of advice that will come in particularly handy for first time visitors. Read through our Hong Kong Travel Blog in order to gain a better understanding of the local culture, the best sights and other important travel tips.
Famous for its impressive skyline and naturally deep harbour, Hong Kong is also one of the most densely populated cities in the world. A former British colony, Hong Kong offers its guests everything from thrill rides at Ocean Park to spectacular views of the harbour from The Peak skyscraper. Between shopping at the night market, entertainment at Disney Hong Kong and the busy Ladies' Market, there is never a dull moment here!
Documentation: Whenever travelling to any foreign country, it is of utmost importance that you keep all relevant documentation handy and safe. When walking around Hong Kong, you should keep your passport and other travel documents on you but be sure to keep them in a bag separate from your other goods and be careful of pickpockets. When booking your hotel, ask about reserving a room with a built in safe where you can store additional documentation, travellers' checks and any extra cash you may have.
Swimming: Several hotels in Hong Kong have swimming facilities and there are several beaches in the area as well. If you are visiting during swimming season, make sure that you pack sunscreen and your swimsuit. The best time to visit is between March and May. September to December is probably the busiest time of year so, if you wish to plan your trip during this time, you will need to book your airfare and accommodation in advance.
Medical: Be sure that all of your usual vaccines are up to date and get a booster shot before your trip. In particular, make sure that you have immunized against Hepatitis A and B. A flu shot is also recommended before visiting Hong Kong. Especially in the winter months. Ensure that you have comprehensive medical coverage for the duration of your trip and rest assured that Hong Kong medical care and hospitals are some of the very best in the world.
Public restrooms: You will find public restrooms everywhere. However, you should always carry tissues or serviettes with you since these restrooms are not always stocked.
Smoking: Like many countries throughout the world, there are laws regarding smoking in Hong Kong and you are not permitted to do so in any kind of public transport vehicle as well as many public areas. Check the local laws to avoid any problems in this regard.
Water and food: The tap water in Hong Kong conforms to the World Health Organisation's standards for drinking-water quality. Remember that the different cuisine and methods of food preparation can cause some travellers to experience digestive issues. If you have a particularly sensitive stomach, then rather consume bottled drinks and avoid fatty or fried foods to make it easier for your body to adjust.


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Mud systems with pressure relief valve
A pressure relief valve assembly useful for relieving fluid pressure in a pressurized device, the assembly in certain aspects including a valve body with an inlet passageway in fluid communication with an outlet passageway, a valve member for selectively controlling fluid flow from the inlet passageway to the outlet passageway, a wear member around a portion of an entrance end of the outlet passageway, the valve member movable within the wear member, the wear member extending into the outlet passageway a distance less than the length of the outlet passageway; and, in certain aspects, the wear member threadedly secured to the valve body.
Tettleton, Tab S. (Spring, TX, US)
Cox, Ernest Floyd (Tomball, TX, US)
E21B41/00
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BOMAR, THOMAS S
NATIONAL OILWELL VARCO (ATTENTION KRISTI JOHNSON 7909 PARKWOOD CIRCLE DRIVE, HOUSTON, TX, 77036, US)
1. A pressure relief valve assembly useful for relieving fluid pressure in a pressurized device, the pressure relief valve assembly comprising a valve body with an inlet passageway in fluid communication with an outlet passageway, a valve member within the valve body for selectively controlling fluid flow from the inlet passageway to the outlet passageway, the valve member having a first end and a second end, the outlet passageway having an entrance end and an exit end, the first end of the valve member movable into the outlet passageway to prevent fluid flow from the inlet passageway through the outlet passageway, a wear member around a portion of the entrance end of the outlet passageway, the wear member having an interior surface, the valve member movable within and sealingly contacting the interior surface of the wear member, the outlet passageway having a length, the wear member extending into the outlet passageway a distance less than the length of the outlet passageway, the valve body having an interiorly threaded portion at the entrance of the outlet passageway, the wear member having an exteriorly threaded portion, and the wear member releasably secured to the valve body by threaded engagement of the wear member's exteriorly threaded portion with the valve body's interiorly threaded portion.
2. The pressure relief valve assembly of claim 1 wherein the wear member has a length which is less than half the length of the outlet passageway.
3. The pressure relief valve assembly of claim 1 further comprising an actuator connected to the second end of the valve member for selectively actuating the pressure relief valve assembly.
4. The pressure relief valve assembly of claim 3 wherein the actuator includes an actuator housing with a flange, the flange having bolt holes therethrough, the flange releasably bolted to the valve body.
5. The pressure relief valve assembly of claim 1 further comprising a first cap at the first end of the valve member, and a second cap at the second end of the valve member.
6. The pressure relief valve assembly of claim 1 further comprising a bore through the valve body, the wear member accessible through the bore for installation and removal thereof.
7. The pressure relief valve assembly of claim 3 further comprising a bore through the valve body, the wear member accessible through the bore for installation and removal thereof, the actuator having an actuator housing bolted to the valve body, part of the actuator housing projecting into the bore, the bore accessible when the actuator housing is unbolted from the valve body and the actuator is removed therefrom.
8. The pressure relief valve assembly of claim 1 including a controller for selectively moving the valve member.
9. The pressure relief valve assembly of claim 8 wherein the controller includes an automatic reset function to automatically close the pressure relief valve assembly following the pressure relief valve assembly acting to relieve pressure in a pressurized device.
10. The pressure relief valve assembly of claim 9 wherein the controller is programmable to reset at one of a plurality of different measured pressures at the inlet passageway.
11. The pressure relief valve assembly of claim 8 wherein the controller resets the pressure relief valve assembly automatically.
12. The pressure relief valve assembly of claim 8 wherein the pressure relief valve assembly is resettable manually.
13. The pressure relief valve assembly of claim 1 wherein the fluid pressure is pressure of drilling fluid and the pressurized device includes apparatus for the flow of drilling fluid under pressure.
14. The pressure relief valve assembly of claim 13 wherein the pressurized device includes at least one mud pump.
15. The pressure relief valve assembly of claim 1 wherein the wear member is made of INCONEL material.
16. The pressure relief valve assembly of claim 3 wherein the actuator is initially acted upon by fluid under pressure to maintain the valve member in a valve-closed position.
17. A pressure relief valve assembly useful for relieving fluid pressure in a pressurized device, the pressure relief valve assembly comprising a valve body with an inlet passageway in fluid communication with an outlet passageway, a valve member within the valve body for selectively controlling fluid flow from the inlet passageway to the outlet passageway, the valve member having a first end and a second end, the outlet passageway having an entrance end and an exit end, the first end of the valve member movable into the outlet passageway to prevent fluid flow from the inlet passageway through the outlet passageway, a wear member around a portion of the entrance end of the outlet passageway, the wear member having an interior surface, the valve member movable within and sealingly contacting the interior surface of the wear member, the outlet passageway having a length, the wear member extending into the outlet passageway a distance less than the length of the outlet passageway, the valve body having an interiorly threaded portion at the entrance of the outlet passageway, the wear member having an exteriorly threaded portion, the wear member releasably secured to the valve body by threaded engagement of the wear member's exteriorly threaded portion with the valve body's interiorly threaded portion, wherein the wear member has a length which is less than half the length of the outlet passageway, an actuator connected to the second end of the valve member for selectively actuating the pressure relief valve assembly, a bore through the valve body, the wear member accessible through the bore for installation and removal thereof, the actuator having an actuator housing bolted to the valve body, part of the actuator housing projecting into the bore, and the bore accessible when the actuator housing is unbolted from the valve body and the actuator is removed therefrom.
18. A pressure relief valve assembly useful for relieving fluid pressure in a pressurized device, the pressure relief valve assembly comprising a valve body with an inlet passageway in fluid communication with an outlet passageway, a valve member within the valve body for selectively controlling fluid flow from the inlet passageway to the outlet passageway, the valve member having a first end and a second end, the outlet passageway having an entrance end and an exit end, the first end of the valve member movable into the outlet passageway to prevent fluid flow from the inlet passageway through the outlet passageway, a wear member around a portion of the entrance end of the outlet passageway, an actuator connected to the second end of the valve member for selectively actuating the pressure relief valve assembly, wherein the actuator includes an actuator housing with a housing part, the housing part having bolt holes therethrough, and the housing part releasably bolted to the valve body.
19. The pressure relief valve assembly of claim 18 wherein the fluid pressure is pressure of drilling fluid, and the pressurized device includes apparatus for the flow of drilling fluid under pressure.
The invention related to drilling fluid or "mud" systems; to relief valves for such systems; and to apparatus, systems and methods for relieving fluid pressure in pressurized devices or systems.
In certain typical wellbore drilling situations using a drilling rig, drilling fluid or "mud" is pumped by a pumping system with one or more "mud" pumps (e.g. some systems have a triplex mud pump). The mud pump system delivers a large volume of mud flow under pressure for operations of the drilling rig. The mud is delivered to the drill stem to flow down the string of drill pipe and out through the drill bit appended to the lower end of the drill stem. It flows through the drill bit. The flow of mud cools the drill bit and reduces the temperature so that it lasts longer. Also, in certain situations, the mud flow is jetted out through a set of openings in the drill bit so that the mud hydraulically washes away the face of the well borehole if it is formed of soft materials. In addition, it washes away debris, rock chips and cuttings which are generated as the drill bit advances. Then, the mud flow returns to the surface in an annular space on the outside of the drill stem and on the interior of the open hole formed by the drilling process. While portions of the borehole may be cased from the surface, is of sufficient velocity that the mud is returned to the surface so that debris, chips and cuttings which are heavier than the mud are moved to the surface. This requires a substantial flow velocity. The cooling necessary also requires a substantial velocity. A relatively high volume of mud is needed to achieve these flow velocities. Typical mud pump systems can deliver 500 to 1,000 gallons per minute through the drill stem. The flow of mud must be delivered under control. The mud pump system can be required to deliver mud flow at 1,000 psi and higher. The wellhead pressures at the pump must be much higher if there is substantial flow pressure resistance along the flow path. The pump therefore is often operated at a very high pressure. The drill stem in a deep well is an impediment to flow, thereby resulting in higher back pressures. The impediment to flow is overcome by applying greater pressures at the surface. In this regard, the mud pump system can typically be operated at pressures as high as 5,000 psi output. Because of the great variety of circumstances in which the drilling rig may be used, the output pressure of the mud pump may vary widely. In one aspect, the mud pump output pressure varies with the change in pump speed. Mud pumps can operate with pressure peaks that can be excursions as great as 200 or 300 psi on top of the prevailing baseline pressure. Thus mud pump output pressure can vary significantly.
The prior art discloses a variety of mud systems, relief valves and regulators, and systems to control and stabilize the pressure downstream of mud pump systems; see, for example, and not by way of limitation, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,063,776; 5,616,009; 5,975,129; 7,055,623; 5,715,861; 4,638,978; and in U.S. application Ser. No. 11/098,166 filed Apr. 4, 2005 (co-owned with the present invention), all incorporated fully herein for all purposes. In many prior art systems, a mud pump output manifold is input to a pressure relief valve which is operated so that the output pressure is controlled to a desired level, thus allowing a mud pump system to operate with a controlled pressure level to insure that the pressure experienced down hole at the drill bit and in the formations penetrated by the drill bit is regulated and to protect the mud pump system itself.
Various operations involve the use of pressurized systems and/or devices. For example, many different components used in the petroleum drilling and production industries, such as fluid pumps and mud pumps, are used in pressurized systems and subject to potentially significant internal fluid pressures. It is often desirable or necessary to relieve these systems and devices from excessive pressure to prevent equipment damage and failure, personal injury or for other reasons. To assist in relieving undesirable fluid pressure in pressurized systems and devices, pressure relief technology is commonly used.
Currently available versions of pressure relief valves, systems and methods have various disadvantages. For example, many pressure relief valves wear and fail quickly due to high pressure fluid passing therethrough. For another example, various versions of pressure relief valves are large and bulky and require extensive space for operation. For still another example, many pressure relief valves are difficult to disassemble for servicing and maintenance. For an even further example, some pressure relief valves throttle between open and closed positions during operation, which is undesirable in many applications. For still another example, some pressure relief valves are purely mechanical in operation, which may contribute to inaccurate valve operation and overall poor or erratic performance. There are yet other potential disadvantages of presently available pressure relief valves, systems and methods. It should be understood, however, that each embodiment of the present invention and each claim of this patent does not necessarily address or solve every, or any particular, disadvantage of the existing technology.
Thus, there remains a need for pressure relief valve assemblies, systems and methods having one or more of the following attributes, capabilities or features: may be easily disassembled and reassembled; is easy to inspect and service, adjust and/or repair in the field; allows for the repair and replacement of internal valve components without removing the valve body from the line or equipment to which it is attached; has reduced likelihood of damage to internal valve components when discharging fluids; is not difficult to manufacture; includes a valve that is easily opened to allow access for inspection or removal of internal components; includes a valve having an angle-body configuration and/or a fluid flow path with approximately a ninety degree turn; includes a valve having a "flow-to-close" and/or a "fail-to-open" arrangement; includes a valve that opens rapidly and resets easily; includes a snap or pop acting valve; includes a valve having increased longevity; includes a valve that does not throttle between open and closed positions so that when the fluid pressure in the pressurized device is too high, the valve stays fully open until closed; includes a valve actuator that is integral to the valve; includes a reciprocating valve actuator stem or piston that does not protrude from the valve assembly; includes a valve actuator that is electronically controllable; includes an actuator piston engaged with and moveable on the same axis as the valve piston; includes an actuator piston actuated based upon the actual measured pressure of fluid in the pressurized device or system; includes a solenoid valve useful to assist in controlling movement of an actuator piston; includes a valve piston and/or actuator piston that is mechanically-biased in one direction; includes a valve piston and/or actuator piston that is controllably movable in one direction by fluid pressure; includes a valve piston and/or actuator piston that is internally sealed without metal seating; or any combination thereof.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT INVENTION
The present invention, in certain embodiments, discloses pressure relief valve assemblies useful for relieving fluid pressure in a pressurized device (e.g., but not limited to, mud pump systems with at least one mud pump), the pressure relief valve assemblies having: a valve body with an inlet passageway in fluid communication with an outlet passageway; a valve member within the valve body for selectively controlling fluid flow from the inlet passageway to the outlet passageway, the valve member having a first end and a second end, the outlet passageway having an entrance end and an exit end; the first end of the valve member movable into the outlet passageway to prevent fluid flow from the inlet passageway through the outlet passageway; a wear member around a portion of the entrance end of the outlet passageway; the wear member having an interior surface; the valve member movable within and sealingly contacting the interior surface of the wear member; the outlet passageway having a length, the wear member extending into the outlet passageway a distance less than the length of the outlet passageway; the valve body having an interiorly threaded portion at the entrance of the outlet passageway; the wear member having an exteriorly threaded portion; and the wear member releasably secured to the valve body by threaded engagement of the wear member's exteriorly threaded portion with the valve body's interiorly threaded portion.
Various embodiments of the present invention involve a pressure relief valve assembly useful for relieving fluid pressure in a pressurized device. The pressure relief valve assembly, in certain aspects, includes an angle-body valve having a valve piston disposed therein and being movable between at least one closed position and at least one open position. The closed position of the valve piston prevents fluid flow through the valve from the pressurized device and the open position allows fluid flow through the valve from the pressurized device.
An actuator according to certain aspects of the present invention is capable of moving the valve piston between closed and opened positions. The actuator includes an actuator piston that is fluid-powered in at least one direction. When the actuator piston is fluid-powered in only one direction, it is mechanically-biased in the opposite direction. The actuator piston is connected with, and movable along the same axis as, the valve piston. The actuator piston is moveable between at least one extended position and at least one retracted position. The valve piston is in a closed position when the actuator piston is in an extended position and the valve piston is in an open position when the actuator piston is in a retracted position. A remotely-operated directional control valve is associated with the actuator and useful for directing fluid power to allow the actuator piston to move from an extended position to a retracted position, causing the valve piston to move from a closed position to an open position.
At least one electronic pressure measuring device is separate from and associated with certain embodiments of the remotely-operated directional control valve and monitors pressure within the pressurized device. The position of the remotely-operated directional control valve is varied based upon power supplied to the control valve that is based upon at least one reading taken by the electronic pressure measuring device.
In some embodiments, a pressure relief valve assembly useful for relieving fluid pressure in a pressurized device includes an unintelligent angle-body valve having a flow-to-close arrangement. The valve includes a valve piston capable of moving between open and closed positions. The valve piston in the open position allows venting of fluid from the pressurized device through the valve. Movement of the valve piston into an open position does not depend upon internal fluid pressure within the unintelligent angle-body valve. At least one electronic pressure measuring device is capable of monitoring pressure within the pressurized device. An electronic controller is capable of causing the opening and closing of the valve piston based upon pressure readings of the electronic pressure measuring device.
Accordingly, the present invention includes features and advantages which are believed to enable it to advance pressure relief valve technology. Characteristics and advantages of the present invention described above and additional features and benefits will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art upon consideration of the following detailed description of preferred embodiments and referring to the accompanying drawings.
Certain embodiments of this invention are not limited to any particular individual feature disclosed here, but include combinations of them distinguished from the prior art in their structures, functions, and/or results achieved. Features of the invention have been broadly described so that the detailed descriptions that follow may be better understood, and in order that the contributions of this invention to the arts may be better appreciated. There are, of course, additional aspects of the invention described below and which may be included in the subject matter of the claims to this invention. Those skilled in the art who have the benefit of this invention, its teachings, and suggestions will appreciate that the conceptions of this disclosure may be used as a creative basis for designing other structures, methods and systems for carrying out and practicing the present invention. The claims of this invention are to be read to include any legally equivalent devices or methods which do not depart from the spirit and scope of the present invention.
What follows are some of, but not all, the objects of this invention. In addition to the specific objects stated below for at least certain preferred embodiments of the invention, there are other objects and purposes which will be readily apparent to one of skill in this art who has the benefit of this invention's teachings and disclosures. It is, therefore, an object of at least certain preferred embodiments of the present invention to provide:
New, useful, unique, efficient, non-obvious pressure relief valve assemblies;
Such assemblies which have an easily accessible and easily replaceable wear member for a fluid passageway;
Such assemblies which have a wear member for a fluid passageway that does not extend for the whole length of the fluid passageway; and
Such assemblies which have an actuator housing bolted exteriorly to a valve body for easy removal of the actuator housing.
The present invention recognizes and addresses the problems and needs in this area and provides a solution to those problems and a satisfactory meeting of those needs in its various possible embodiments and equivalents thereof. To one of skill in this art who has the benefits of this invention's realizations, teachings, disclosures, and suggestions, other purposes and advantages will be appreciated from the following description of certain preferred embodiments, given for the purpose of disclosure, when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. The detail in these descriptions is not intended to thwart this patent's object to claim this invention no matter how others may later attempt to disguise it by variations in form, changes, or additions of further improvements.
The Abstract that is part hereof is to enable the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and the public generally, and scientists, engineers, researchers, and practitioners in the art who are not familiar with patent terms or legal terms of phraseology to determine quickly from a cursory inspection or review the nature and general area of the disclosure of this invention. The Abstract is neither intended to define the invention, which is done by the claims, nor is it intended to be limiting of the scope of the invention in any way.
It will be understood that the various embodiments of the present invention may include one, some, or all of the disclosed, described, and/or enumerated improvements and/or technical advantages and/or elements in claims to this invention.
For a detailed description of presently preferred embodiments of the invention, reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings wherein:
FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a system according to the present invention with a relief valve according to the present invention.
FIG. 3A is a perspective cutaway view of relief valve according to the present invention.
FIG. 3B is an front view of the relief valve of FIG. 3A.
FIG. 3C is a partial view of the relief valve of FIG. 3A.
FIG. 4A is a top view of an insert of the relief valve of FIG. 3A.
FIG. 4B is a cross-section view along line 4B-4B of FIG. 4A.
FIG. 5A is a top view of part of the relief valve of FIG. 3A.
Presently preferred embodiments of the invention are shown in the above-identified figures and described in detail below. It should be understood that the appended drawings and description herein are of preferred embodiments and are not intended to limit the invention or the appended claims. On the contrary, the intention is to cover all modifications, equivalents and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims. In showing and describing the preferred embodiments, like or identical reference numerals are used to identify common or similar elements. The figures are not necessarily to scale and certain features and certain views of the figures may be shown exaggerated in scale or in schematic in the interest of clarity and conciseness.
As used herein and throughout all the various portions (and headings) of this patent, the terms "invention", "present invention" and variations thereof mean one or more embodiment, and are not intended to mean the claimed invention of any particular appended claim(s) or all of the appended claims. Accordingly, the subject or topic of each such reference is not automatically or necessarily part of, or required by, any particular claim(s) merely because of such reference.
Referring to FIG. 1, a system S according to the present invention includes a mud system M with mud pits 28 for containing and storing drilling fluid; mud pumps 16 for pumping the drilling fluid to drillstring 18 and back to the mud pits 28; and a relief valve 8 according to the present invention for relieving pressure in the system. The drilling fluid or "mud" flows down the drill string 18 and then up in an annulus 20 between casing 22 and the drill string 18 to a bell nipple 24. The mud then flows in a return line 26 to the mud pits 18.
Initially mud flows into the valve 8 through a line 21 that is in communication with the line 19. A pressure sensor 23 senses a signal indicative of the pressure in the line 19, via the line 21, to a control system 14 which controls operation of the valve 8 and controls an air supply 12 which provides air under pressure to maintain the valve 8 closed until a pre-selected mud pressure is exceeded. When the mud pressure exceeds the pre-selected pressure, the valve 10 opens and the mud that was previously flowing to the drill stem 18 flows through the inlet 13 of the valve 8 and exits through an outlet 15 into an exit line 17. When pressure in the line 19 again falls below the pre-selected pressure, the control system 14 signals the air supply 12 to close the valve 8 (as will be described in more detail for certain embodiments described below).
FIG. 2 shows schematically the mud flow path for the system M. As shown in FIG. 2, the system M (like numerals indicate like parts) includes a degasser 25 which reduces the gas content of the mud. In certain aspects, the control system ("CONTROLLER") includes an automatic reset function and also permits manual resetting ("ReSet," FIG. 2), e.g. to re-close the valve after it has relieved pressure; and/or the possibility of two settings ("Hi," "Low," FIG. 2) corresponding to two different pressure setpoints (e.g. a high setting, e.g. 7500 psi, at which the valve opens for relief and a low setting, e.g. below 400 psi). The valve is operable by manually pressing an "Operate" button. The controller can be a computerized system and/or PLC appropriately programmed.
Referring now to FIGS. 3A-3C, a relief valve 100 (one embodiment of the relief valve 8, FIG. 1) includes a valve 120 and an actuator 160. In the embodiment shown, the valve 120 is an angle-body, two-way valve that includes a valve body 126 having intersecting first and second passageways 130, 140. The first passageway 130 is in fluid communication with a pressurized device (not shown) (e.g. a mud pump or pumps) and allows fluid flow (arrow 131) into the valve body 126 from the pressurized device. The second passageway 140 extends to an exit port 144, allowing the exhaust (arrow 146) of fluid from the valve body 126. In an "angle-body" valve, the axis of the first passageway 130 is not concentric or coaxial with, but is approximately in the same plane as, the axis of the second passageway 140. Nuts 132a are used on valve body studs 132b; and nuts 142a are used on valve body studs 142b.
An actuator housing 164 of the actuator 160 is connected to valve body studs 149.
A valve piston 148 is disposed at least partially within the second passageway 140 and serves to selectively control the flow of fluid from the first passageway 130 into the second passageway 140. The valve piston 148 is movable between "open" and "closed" positions relative to the first passageway 130. In a "closed" position, such as shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B, the exemplary valve piston 148 blocks the first passageway 130, preventing fluid flow from the first passageway 130 into the second passageway 140. When the valve piston 148 is in an "open" position, the first and second passageways 130, 140 are in fluid communication, allowing the flow of fluid from the first passageway 130 (and pressurized device) into the second passageway 140 (and out the exit port 144). The valve 120 of the illustrated embodiment has a "flow-to-close" arrangement in which fluid flows through the second passageway 140 in the same direction as the movement made by the valve piston 148 going to its closed position.
The valve piston 148 has a removable cap 153 which is threadedly connected to an end of the valve piston 148. Optionally the cap 153 has an inclined or bevelled end surface 151 with holes 154 for facilitating piston installation. An exterior surface 157 of the cap 153 abuts an interior surface 121 of a seal insert 128.
The seal insert 128 (or, in one aspect a "wear member") is threadedly and removably secured in the body 126. In one particular aspect, the seal insert 128 is made of Inconel material due to the high wear area at the beginning of the passageway 140 at which the seal insert 128 is located. In certain aspects, the seal insert's length is considerably less than the length of the passageway 140 and, in one particular aspect, less than half said length.
The valve piston 148 has an edge 147. The seal insert 128 is sized with a sufficient length to encounter the initial highly abrasive flow of fluid at high speed from the passageway 130 to the passageway 140. Once this fluid exits the seal insert 128 it slows sufficiently so that the remainder of the interior of the passageway 140 (not protected by the seal insert 128) is not seriously worn or damaged. A seal 149 seals a valve-piston-148/actuator-housing-164 interface.
By unbolting the actuator 160 (by removing bolts 169) from the valve body 126, and removing valve piston 148 with its cap 153 from the passageway 140, the seal insert 128 can be removed from the valve body 126 for repair or replacement.
A seal 122 in a recess 157 seals a seal-insert 128/valve-body-126 interface. Holes 123 facilitate installation of the seal insert 128. Holes 152 in a cap 139 facilitate installation of the cap 139.
The actuator housing 164 has a central cavity 170 within which an actuator piston 174 is moveable. The exemplary central cavity 170 is aligned with the second passageway 140 of the valve body 26. The actuator piston 174 connects to the valve piston 148 and moves it between open and closed positions. In the example shown, an actuator stem 180 connects the actuator piston 174 with a valve stem 150 extending from the valve piston 148, all of which move on the same axis. The cap 139 is threadedly secured around the valve stem 150.
The actuator stem 180 and valve stem 150 are releasably connected together with a releasable latch pin 156 to allow quick disconnection and replacement of the valve piston 148 without disturbing the actuator 160. The illustrated latch pin 156 extends through an opening 158 in the actuator housing 164 to allow for unencumbered movement of the latch pin 156 concurrent with reciprocation of the stems 150, 180.
The actuator piston 174 may be actuated in any desired manner. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 3A, the actuator piston 174 is single acting, being fluid-powered in one direction (e.g. by pneumatic or hydraulic pressure) and mechanically-biased in the opposite direction. In one aspect when the pressurized device is a mud pump or pumps, the power fluid is air, e.g. air supplied by a rig air supply. For example, air or pneumatic pressure may be provided from an external source (not shown) into an outer portion 172 of the central cavity 170 of the actuator housing 164 to act upon an outer side 178 of the actuator piston 174 and move and hold the actuator piston 174 in an "extended" position and the valve piston 148 in a closed position (e.g. FIG. 3A). In the illustrated embodiment, in one normal operating state of the valve assembly 100 has the actuator piston 174 in an extended position and the valve piston 148 in a closed position.
The mechanical-biasing force on the actuator piston 174 (and effectively on the valve piston 148), when included, may be provided in any suitable manner. For example, one or more spring element or spring-like devices may be used to provide the sufficient biasing forces on the actuator piston 174 and move and hold the actuator piston 174 in a retracted position and the valve piston 148 in an open position, regardless of the system pressure or fluid pressure in the valve assembly 100.
In the embodiment of FIG. 3A, for example, outer and inner nested compression springs 184, 186, respectively, are shown disposed around the actuator stem 180 in the central cavity 170. The springs 184, 186 act on the inner side 176 of the actuator piston 174 to move and hold the actuator piston 174 in a "retracted" position (and the valve piston 148 in an open position). The use of dual nested springs may be included, for example, to provide adequate biasing forces in the small area of the central cavity 170 sufficient to move the actuator piston 174 and the valve piston 148. In the embodiment shown, the springs 184, 186 provide sufficient biasing force to overcome multiple sealing engagements, such as at the seals 134 and 149. However, the present invention is not limited to fluid-powering in only one direction, the use of mechanical-biasing forces or the use of one or more spring element to provide mechanical-biasing force on the actuator piston and/or the valve piston.
If desired, one or more devices may be included for cushioning any contact of the actuator piston 174 with other components during its movement. For example, in FIG. 3A, an elastomeric cushion ring 181 is disposed in an actuator end cap 182 to cushion contact of the actuator piston 174 with the end cap 182.
In another independent aspect of the invention, the actuator 160 may be controlled to move the valve piston 148 between open and closed positions in any desired manner. For example, referring to FIG. 3A, the actuator 160 may be controlled based upon the fluid pressure within, or coming from, the pressurized device (not shown), referred to herein and throughout this patent as the "relevant pressure." Such a control scheme is referred to herein and throughout this patent as a "pressure-based" system. For example, when the valve assembly 100 of FIG. 3A is used with a fluid pump, the relevant pressure may be the upstream pressure of fluid flow into the first passageway 130 of the valve body 126 from the fluid pump. When the relevant pressure is at an acceptable or desirable value (or range), the actuator 160 retains the valve piston 148 in a closed position, not relieving pressure from the fluid pump. If the relevant pressure increases to a certain level or range, the actuator 160 is triggered to move the valve piston 148 to an open position, allowing fluid pressure relief for the fluid pump. After a certain period or, alternately, when the relevant pressure returns to a certain level or range, the actuator 160 of this example is adjusted to allow the valve piston 148 to move back to a closed position, and so on.
Any suitable components and techniques may be used in a pressure-based system. For example, a directional control valve may be used to control fluid power acting upon the actuator piston to allow it to move from an extended position to a retracted position. For example, referring to FIG. 3A, the directional control valve is a three-way, two position solenoid valve (not shown) used to control pneumatic or other fluid pressure in the outer portion 172 of the central cavity 170 of the actuator housing 164. The exemplary solenoid valve is connected with the actuator end cap 182 and actuated based upon the relevant pressure of the pressurize device (not shown). In the embodiment shown, the solenoid valve is maintained in a fluid-to-cylinder/exhaust-blocked position that allows pressurized fluid to the outer portion 172 of the outer cavity 170 through at least one port 166 to act upon the outer side 178 of the actuator piston 174 and move or retain the actuator piston 174 in an extended position. For example, air pressure in the outer portion 172 of the central cavity 170 may, in certain applications, be maintained at approximately 90 psig.
If the relevant pressure reaches a certain value (or range), the solenoid valve is actuated to move to a supply-fluid-blocked/cylinder-exhausted position, blocking or preventing pressurized fluid from acting upon the outer side 178 of the actuator piston 174 and allowing pressurized fluid from the outer portion 172 of the central cavity 170 to be exhausted from the actuator 160. This permits the actuator piston 174 to move into a retracted position, opening the valve piston 148. When the relevant pressure returns to a desired level or range, the solenoid valve is actuated to allow fluid back into the outer portion 172 of the central cavity 170 of the actuator 160. In the embodiment shown, the mechanical forces on the actuator piston 174 are overcome and the actuator piston 174 returns to an extended position, closing the valve piston 148.
In yet another independent aspect of the invention, the actuator 160 may be electronically controlled by an electronic control device or system, if desired, e.g. the "CONTROLLER" of FIG. 2 which may be any suitable control system, computerized system, and/or PLC, on-site or remote. In conjunction with the embodiment of FIG. 3A, a control valve according to the present invention is on-site or remotely-operated by a programmable logic controller (PLC) that receives relevant pressure readings from one or more electronic pressure measuring devices (e.g. "SENSOR," FIG. 2). For example, the electronic pressure measuring device may be a pressure transducer that accurately measures, detects or reads fluid pressure in the pressurized device or the upstream pressure of fluid within, or proximate to, the first passageway of the valve body. If desired, the electronic pressure measuring device may either continuously or intermittently monitor such pressure. The position of the exemplary remotely-operated directional control valve is varied based upon electrical, mechanical, fluid power or a combination thereof supplied to it based upon at least one reading taken by the electronic pressure measuring device.
In operation of the illustrated embodiment used in conjunction with the valve assembly 100 of FIG. 3A, the PLC is powered by any suitable power supply and receives input indicating the relevant pressure from the electronic pressure measuring device. The PLC compares the received fluid pressure value(s) with one or more pre-programmed set point values or ranges (the "set point"). If the relevant pressure reaches the set point, the PLC closes a relay (not shown), providing electric power to the directional control valve, causing it to function to temporarily block the fluid supply, such as from a rig air source, into the central cavity outer portion and allow the fluid in the outer portion to exhaust out of the actuator through the directional control valve. The actuator piston is then allowed to move into a retracted position, opening the valve piston.
Thereafter, when the PLC detects that the relevant pressure has returned to a desired value/range, or based upon some other criteria, the PLC resets, or opens, the relay, reducing or eliminating power to the directional control valve. This causes the valve to function to allow fluid back into the outer portion of the central cavity, which moves the actuator piston back to an extended position. If desired, multiple set points may be used. In one example, a 0-8,000 p.s.i. pressure relief valve assembly 100 snaps open quickly (with minimal throttling) based upon a signal from a pressure transducer at a degree of accuracy of with 20% (±16 psig) of the set point pressure value. However, the present invention is not limited to such electronic control or the control components and techniques described above.
Referring initially to FIG. 1, an embodiment of a pressure relief valve assembly 10 in accordance with the present invention is shown. The pressure relief valve assembly 10 is capable of relieving fluid pressure in a device or system which is desired to be relieved of pressure (referred to herein and throughout this patent as a "pressurized device"). As used herein and throughout this patent, the term "fluid" means one or more gas, liquid, or a combination thereof, and may, if desired and suitable, also include material or particles, or slurries thereof. The pressurized device may, for example, include a triplex or duplex mud pump that may experience overpressure situations. In various embodiments, the valve assemblies of the present invention relieves such overpressure situations. However, the present invention is not limited to such use with mud pumps.
Preferred embodiments of the present invention thus offer advantages over the prior art and are well adapted to carry out one or more of the objects of the invention. However, the present invention does not require each of the components and actions described above. Any one or more of the above components, features and processes may be employed in any suitable configuration without inclusion of other such components, features and processes. Further, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments and methods of operation. Additional features, capabilities, components, functions, methods, uses and applications may be included.
The methods described above and any other methods which may fall within the scope of any of the appended claims can be performed in any desired suitable order and are not necessarily limited to the sequence described herein or as may be listed in any of the appended claims. Moreover, the methods of the present invention do not require use of the particular components or embodiments shown and described in the present specification, but are equally applicable with any other suitable structure, form and configuration of components.
Accordingly, while preferred embodiments of this invention have been shown and described, many variations, modifications and/or changes of the system, apparatus and methods of the present invention, such as in the components, details of construction and operation, arrangement of parts and/or methods of use, are possible, contemplated by the patentee, within the scope of the appended claims, and may be made and used by one of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the spirit or teachings of the invention and scope of appended claims. Thus, all matter herein set forth or shown in the accompanying drawings should be interpreted as illustrative and not limiting, and the scope of the invention and the appended claims is not limited to the embodiments described and shown herein.
The present invention, therefore, in some, but not necessarily all embodiments, provides pressure relief valve assemblies useful for relieving fluid pressure in a pressurized device, the assemblies having: a valve body with an inlet passageway in fluid communication with an outlet passageway; a valve member within the valve body for selectively controlling fluid flow from the inlet passageway to the outlet passageway, the valve member having a first end and a second end, the outlet passageway having an entrance end and an exit end; the first end of the valve member movable into the outlet passageway to prevent fluid flow from the inlet passageway through the outlet passageway; a wear member around a portion of the entrance end of the outlet passageway; the wear member having an interior surface, the valve member movable within and sealingly contacting the interior surface of the wear member; the outlet passageway having a length, the wear member extending into the outlet passageway a distance less than the length of the outlet passageway; the valve body having an interiorly threaded portion at the entrance of the outlet passageway; the wear member having an exteriorly threaded portion, and the wear member releasably secured to the valve body by threaded engagement of the wear member's exteriorly threaded portion with the valve body's interiorly threaded portion. Such assemblies may have one or some (in any possible combination) of the following: wherein the wear member has a length which is less than half the length of the outlet passageway; an actuator connected to the second end of the valve member for selectively actuating the pressure relief valve assembly; the actuator including an actuator housing with a flange, the flange having bolt holes therethrough, the flange releasably bolted to the valve body; a first cap at the first end of the valve member, and a second cap at the second end of the valve member; a bore through the valve body, the wear member accessible through the bore for installation and removal thereof; a bore through the valve body, the wear member accessible through the bore for installation and removal thereof, the actuator having an actuator housing bolted to the valve body, part of the actuator housing projecting into the bore, the bore accessible when the actuator housing is unbolted from the valve body and the actuator is removed therefrom; a controller for selectively moving the valve member; the controller includes an automatic reset function to automatically close the pressure relief valve assembly following the pressure relief valve assembly acting to relieve pressure in a pressurized device; the controller programmable to reset at one of a plurality of different measured pressures at the inlet passageway; the controller able to reset the pressure relief valve assembly automatically; the pressure relief valve assembly is resettable manually; the fluid pressure is pressure of drilling fluid and the pressurized device includes apparatus for the flow of drilling fluid under pressure; the pressurized device includes at least one mud pump; wherein the wear member is made of INCONEL material; and/or the actuator is initially acted upon by fluid under pressure to maintain the valve member in a valve-closed position.
The present invention, therefore, provides pressure relief valve assemblies useful for relieving fluid pressure in a pressurized device, the assemblies having: a valve body with an inlet passageway in fluid communication with an outlet passageway; a valve member within the valve body for selectively controlling fluid flow from the inlet passageway to the outlet passageway, the valve member having a first end and a second end, the outlet passageway having an entrance end and an exit end; the first end of the valve member movable into the outlet passageway to prevent fluid flow from the inlet passageway through the outlet passageway; a wear member around a portion of the entrance end of the outlet passageway; the wear member having an interior surface, the valve member movable within and sealingly contacting the interior surface of the wear member; the outlet passageway having a length, the wear member extending into the outlet passageway a distance less than the length of the outlet passageway; the valve body having an interiorly threaded portion at the entrance of the outlet passageway; the wear member having an exteriorly threaded portion; the wear member releasably secured to the valve body by threaded engagement of the wear member's exteriorly threaded portion with the valve body's interiorly threaded portion; wherein the wear member has a length which is less than half the length of the outlet passageway; an actuator connected to the second end of the valve member for selectively actuating the pressure relief valve assembly; a bore through the valve body; the wear member accessible through the bore for installation and removal thereof; the actuator having an actuator housing bolted to the valve body, part of the actuator housing projecting into the bore; and the bore accessible when the actuator housing is unbolted from the valve body and the actuator is removed therefrom.
The present invention, therefore, provides in at least some embodiments, but not necessarily all, pressure relief valve assemblies useful for relieving fluid pressure in a pressurized device, the pressure relief valve assemblies having: a valve body with an inlet passageway in fluid communication with an outlet passageway; a valve member within the valve body for selectively controlling fluid flow from the inlet passageway to the outlet passageway, the valve member having a first end and a second end, the outlet passageway having an entrance end and an exit end; the first end of the valve member movable into the outlet passageway to prevent fluid flow from the inlet passageway through the outlet passageway; a wear member around a portion of the entrance end of the outlet passageway; an actuator connected to the second end of the valve member for selectively actuating the pressure relief valve assembly; wherein the actuator includes an actuator housing with a part, e.g., but not limited to, a flange; the part having bolt holes therethrough; and the part and therefore the housing releasably bolted to the valve body. Such an assembly may have: fluid pressure which is pressure of drilling fluid, and the pressurized device including apparatus for the flow of drilling fluid under pressure; and/or the pressurized device including at least one mud pump.
In conclusion, therefore, it is seen that the present invention and the embodiments disclosed herein and those covered by the appended claims are well adapted to carry out the objectives and obtain the ends set forth. Certain changes can be made in the subject matter without departing from the spirit and the scope of this invention. It is realized that changes are possible within the scope of this invention and it is further intended that each element or step recited in any of the following claims is to be understood as referring to the step literally and/or to all equivalent elements or steps. The following claims are intended to cover the invention as broadly as legally possible in whatever form it may be utilized. The invention claimed herein is new and novel in accordance with 35 U.S.C. § 102 and satisfies the conditions for patentability in § 102. The invention claimed herein is not obvious in accordance with 35 U.S.C. § 103 and satisfies the conditions for patentability in § 103. This specification and the claims that follow are in accordance with all of the requirements of 35 U.S.C. § 112. The inventors may rely on the Doctrine of Equivalents to determine and assess the scope of their invention and of the claims that follow as they may pertain to apparatus not materially departing from, but outside of, the literal scope of the invention as set forth in the following claims. All patents and applications identified herein are incorporated fully herein for all purposes.
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