Air/Water & Discharge Swivel Assemblies

The ARS designed, maintenance free (no grease fittings) side entry, air/water swivels were originally designed for Klemm and Hutte drill rigs for a customer having repeated failures, which, in some cases, resulted in the complete replacement of the swivel after a few months of operation. The OEM air/water swivel's grease fittings have to be greased daily for the seals to survive. Many of the drill rig operators were not following the recommended greasing intervals, especially in the winter months when the drill rigs were covered in ice, because climbing on to the rig with a grease gun in hand posed a major safety hazard.

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The ARS discharge swivel was again designed for the same customer that required a unit that had to be maintenance free (no grease fitting) and could work in the most demanding weather conditions without leaking hydraulic oil while discharging soil, rock cuttings and water. 

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ARS side and central entry swivels are designed with hydraulic hydrodynamic seals. No servicing is required (no grease fittings), as the units run on hydraulic oil supplied by the drill rig's hydraulic system. When the air/water and discharge swivels are being run together on the same drill rig, only one oil supply is required (units connected in series). 

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The latest ARS side and central entry, maintenance free, air/water swivels (shown in images below) features built-in hydraulic oil flow and pressure control. They are rated at 500 psi for air, water and hydraulic oil and are primarily designed to fit Klemm and Hutte drills.

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The air/water swivel is attached to the inner drill rods and drill rig's upper hydraulic rotary drive unit (double head drilling (rotary-rotary)), and is designed to operate with air supplied at 500 psi by an air compressor and water supplied from the drill rig's high pressure piston water pump. This mixture is passed down through the hollow inner drill rod string to the carbide cutter (bit) or down the hole hammer (DTH) which is attached to the end of the string. The air and water cool the bit or DTH, and also flush out the cuttings which are forced out between the inner rods and the outer drill rods (casings). A shock absorber must be fitted for DTH operation.

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The discharge swivel assembly is attached to the drill rig's casing drive unit (lower rotary drive head). The drill casings (generally screw on sections) are attached to the front end of the swivel. The casings are driven and turned into the soil with the inner rods and drill bit.

Two discharge outlets are provided for connection of the material discharge hoses. Normally one hose is used and the other outlet is capped. The modular bearing and seal assemblies (same on both ends) are assembled and tested before being installed. All major parts are nitrided to reduce corrosion. The hydrodynamic seals have been used in the oil drilling field for many years and are a reliable and proven design.

 

ARS worked with the manufacturer of the seals to establish the correct operating and machining parameters. This has resulted in units that have performed beyond expectations. The air/water swivel and discharge swivel assemblies have been field tested in Canadian temperature extremes over thousands of hours without leakage. Regular inspection of the seals over the years have proven the design concept, and in most cases, the seals have been re-installed after inspection.

 

The images shown below are of the ARS air/water and discharge swivel assemblies