Design and mechanical optimization of multidirectional pressure-preserved coring system for deep-earth resource exploration

Abstract

Pressure- preserved coring technologies are critical for deep-earth resource exploration but are constrained by the inability to achieve multidirectional coring, restricting exploration range while escalating costs and environmental impacts. We developed a multidirectional pressure-preserved coring system based on magnetic control for deep-earth environments up to 5000 m. The system integrates a magnetically controlled method and key pressure-preserved components to ensure precise self-triggering and self-sealing. It is supported by geometric control equations for optimizing structural stability. Their structure was verified and optimized through theoretical and numerical calculations to meet design objectives. To clarify the self-triggering mechanism in complex environments, a dynamic interference model was established, verifying stability during multidirectional coring. The prototype was fabricated, and functional tests confirmed that it met its design objectives. In a 300-meter-deep test inclined well, 10 coring operations were completed with a 100% pressure-preserved success rate, confirming the accuracy of the dynamic interference model analysis. Field trials in a 1970-meter-deep inclined petroleum well, representative of complex environments, demonstrated an in-situ pressure preservation efficiency of 92.18% at 22 MPa. This system innovatively expands the application scope of pressure-preserved coring, providing technical support for efficient and sustainable deep resources exploration and mining.

Keywords

Deep mining / Environmentally and economically sustainable deep-earth resource exploration / Multidirectional pressure-preserved coring system / Magnetic control technology / Dynamic interference model / Field validation

Acknowledgments

This research was supported by the National Key Research and Development Program of China (No. 2023YFF0615401), Joint Funds of the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. U24A2087), Research Fund of State Key Laboratory of Geomechan-ics and Geotechnical Engineering, Institute of Rock and Soil Mechanics, Chinese Academy of Sciences (No. SKLGME022009), and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 42477191).

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