At many connecting points in drilling systems, different media have to be sealed
off from each other. Only high-performance rubbers that are resistant to oil, gases and aggressive drilling fluids, can withstand the high temperatures at depths of 5,000 meters and above and are not worn away rapidly by the rough drillings are considered for this application.

Rubber seals can be found in many vital areas of drilling rigs and oil platforms, such as in the drilling fluid pumps and diesel motors for energy generation, as well as in the rotary table system and in the drilling rig itself. In addition, there are hoses for removing the cuttings and transporting the oil that has been extracted to the next stage.

If thick stone poses a barrier to opening up an oilfield, or if the plan is to drill into the oleiferous layer from the side, the drilling teams often make use of a clever trick. In order to bypass the obstacle or to approach a deposit from the side rather than from above, the oil producers do not use a drilling rig with a rigid steel rod, but rather approach the deposit through boreholes “round the corner”. To achieve this they make use of a stator-rotor system which is based on the opposite of the operating principle for a Moineau or PCP pump (Progressive Cavity Pump) and, thanks to its small dimensions, permits the drill head to navigate through the substrate.

Here the drill head is driven by a metallic rotor located in a rubber stator. The rotor and the drill head begin to move as soon as fluid under high pressure is pressed through the helical cavity between the stator and the rotor. Turning the rotor in the opposite direction means that even extremely viscous crude oil can be brought to the surface using hot steam. The rubber used for the stator does not only need to be resistant to oil, but must also withstand extreme stresses and high temperatures.

The use of Therban® AT means that the production of these stators can be further optimized. The ease of flow of this HNBR elastomer enables the molds that are used to manufacture these stators to be filled more rapidly and reliably – with the outcome being a very homogenous vulcanizate that withstands the stresses placed on it for a significantly longer period of time.