Triplex Crank

Zirconia mud pump liners offer longer service life
MUD PUMP LINERS made of zirco- Self aligning rods are either recom- expense of possibly tens of thousands of
nia ceramic can offer lifetime cost sav- mended or required with alumina dollars.
ings, significantly longer service, better ceramic liners. Self aligning rods are
performance and safer operation than used to assure that pistons run perfect- Safety is enhanced on drilling rigs when
sleeves made of more commonly used ly straight inside the pump. Imperfect liners are made of zirconia because the
chrome iron or alumina ceramic, alignment could result in a side load, for crew is spending less time repairing
according to data developed by manu- example, that could cause a crack. mud pumps. That is especially impor-
facturers. tant on offshore rigs where space is lim-
The choice of alumina for a mud pump ited and environmental conditions such
PISTON WEAR liner adds a one-time cost of about as wind, rain, snow and a pitching plat-
$1,000 per cylinder, and represents the form can make such work hazardous.
The special hardness and exceptional difference between higher-cost, self
wear resistance of zirconia translates aligning rods and the lower-cost, stan- Mud pump liners have to withstand
into longer service from the urethane dard rods that suffice with both chrome severe operating conditions during
and rubber pistons that move at high liners and zirconia liners. drilling operations. They circulate up to
speeds and under tremendous pressure 200 gpm of water and slurry at pump
inside the mud pump liners. With true LABOR AND RIG DOWNTIME pressures as high as 7,500 psi.. The cir-
bores and zirconia liners honed to a fine culated mud contains a large volume of
4 RMS finish, piston wear/consumption The costs mentioned above do not abrasive, corrosive contaminants. Lost
can be reduced by as much as 75%, include labor or rig downtime costs, circulation material containing peanut-
according to Carpenter Advanced which are expended numerous times as like cedar fiber particles is very abra-
Ceramics (CAC) and C&C Equipment parts or equipment replacement are sive. Further, temperature of slurry
Specialists. needed. The costs cannot be forecast in returned to the pump can increase in
event of breakdowns, emergencies or the range of 88°C-149°C (190°F-300°F)
that are mud pump liner-related. as drilling penetrates deeper, making
the mud mixture even more abrasive
Steve N Thompson, CAC Manager/Oil
and corrosive.
& Gas, recognizes that rig supervisors
are best equipped to estimate costs for Mud pumps in some rigs operating in
parts and components replacement by the mining industry have to deal with a
applying prevailing hourly labor rates mixture of salt water and sand, which is
and hourly cost of lost productivity from both corrosive and abrasive. In one min-
pump or rig downtime.
“If it takes two hours of skilled labor to

break down a pump, remove and replace
the liner, then re-assemble the pump,”
Mr Thompson said, “that process could
be very costly in three years of routine
operation for a platform running two to
four triplex pumps.
Zirconia mud pump liners come in a variety of
“Factor in a surprise or two, a serious
sizes and wall thicknesses. accident, or multiply by a fleet of 50 to
100 drill rigs and you are looking at an
Comparative costs of normal average expense that could run into hundreds of
piston replacement are dependent upon thousands of dollars.”
replacement frequency. All pistons cost
the same, about $125 each, however, the OTHER CONSIDERATIONS
cost gaps widen with the differences in
All drilling operations require a plentiful
replacement frequency.
and continuous flow of water to mini-
Pistons used inside chrome iron liners mize heat build up that could burn up
pistons and/or cause bore wear. Use of a
A piston hull with a zirconia ceramic sleeve
had to be replaced twice a month for
three years, for a total cost of $9,000. zirconia liner does not require any alter- that fits inside the piston.
Pistons inside the alumina liners were ation of the driller’s existing lubrication ing installation, the drilling contractor
changed once a month, or 36 times in system, unlike an alumina liner that reported increasing the service life of
three years, at a cost of $4,500. Pistons requires a larger water supply. his mud pump liners from 100 days to
stroking inside zirconia liners had to be more than one year by switching from
If the contractor’s water system is mar-
replaced only 12 times in three years, at the traditional chrome iron to the newer
ginal, a change in piping or a water sys-
a cost of $1,500. zirconia ceramic. n
tem re-design may be needed at an
September/October 2004 D R I L L I N G C O N T R A C T O R 45

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Zirconia mud pump liners offer longer service life

“If it takes two hours of skilled labor to

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