A grit trap filters gritty solids from drilling fluid, aiding in the drilling process. It is part of a multi-step purification process that includes tools such as mud cleaners and vacuum degassers. The sand trap has no moving parts and removes grains by gravity and pressure. It is used mainly by the oil industry and other industries involved in drilling and extracting substances.
A grit trap is an important part of the quarrying and drilling process. This simple container helps filter gritty solids from the drilling fluid, often in the form of mud, that is kicked up from a bore hole. Located near the end of the entire purification process, but not the last stage, grit removal is renowned for its simplicity and absence of moving parts. Its effectiveness has seen this technique adapted across many industries.
Many times when drilling and mining occurs, drilling fluids are needed to aid in the process of finding the underground target. For example, when drilling pockets of natural gas, a drill bit can easily overheat and melt or break from the stress. When a drilling fluid is added to the hole, it helps to cool the bit and keep it together, saving the drilling crew a great deal of time. Drilling fluid recovery is a multi-step purification process and the grit trap is a small part of that.
The steps before using a sand trap are numerous and differ depending on the industry that uses drilling fluid recovery. Generally, colorfully named tools such as gas busters, gumbo-removing equipment, shale agitators, mud cleaners, and vacuum degassers are all used to break down the fluid to the stage where the grit remover can remove small grains. After the sand trap has been used, many industries also use a silage trap to further purify the liquid.
When the drilling fluid reaches the sand traps, it enters through a pressurized pipe and first encounters the cone of the sand trap. This conical shape rotates the fluid in a similar way to the way water flows into a draining sink, except that the walls of the desand cones are porous and allow the grains of sand to filter through. There are no moving parts in a sand trap and the removal of grains occurs solely by gravity and pressure. A grit trap is generally not a large tool; in smaller operations, it can be the size of a bathtub and rarely gets larger than an average automobile. When the fluid reaches the small end of the cone, it is expelled from a tube and moves on to the next stage of the purification process.
This type of work is generally used by the oil industry. Other industries also use sand traps, mainly those involved in drilling and extracting substances such as natural gas. Companies that manage lakes and dams sometimes use desalination plants and desanders to pass the water and keep it free of impurities.
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