Thank you Mech Tech. I think Lqmt`s transparency is as much as necessary and as little as possible. But I totally understand that. If I had a disruptive technology like Liquidmetal in my portfolio and Customers like Apple, Omega and Lockheed Martin, I also wouldn`t shout out loud, which innovations are in the pipeline. And the technology is disruptive, as it allows several OEMs to invent completely new product lines.
This might be also the reason, why we haven`t yet seen any quotations of the new engel machinery. I believe Engel/LQMT`s whole capacity is currently used to provide existing customers like Apple and Swatch with the machinery. And as long as their demands aren`t met, we will not see any marketing for the turnkey solutions.
I think some people on this board misunderstand the nature of marketing a disruptive technology, especially if the technology heavily intervenes in the supply chain of the OEM`s. Some investors on this board complain why we haven`t yet seen any shipped Liquidmetal products, since 2010. But the thing is, you cannot invent new products from one day to another. The Liquidmetal Technology is just the foundation, it is only a technology platform. It takes time for the OEM´s to invent upon this technology platform. And as a potential Customer I also wouldn`t want to substitute my value chain too rapidly with a new disruptive manufacturing technology, as it means shiftings of power and dependences.
Anyway, I believe Liquidmetal goes exactly the right way: gradually innovating their technology into new products by cooperating with the big OEM`s. As it goes really silent, many investors may not have recognized it, but there are lot of technological advancements.
Recently I have found another such example, which I would like to share. As a lot of investors may remember, in the beginning of this year, Liquidmetal announced the shipment of prototypes into the oil industry. As proclaimed by Liquidmetal, the advantageous properties of Liquidmetal fit perfectly within the application of shaped charges, where “detonation forces the liner to collapse inwardly with tremendous force, projecting a tightly focused jet of liner material with enormous energy. [...] Because of its amorphous structure, Liquidmetal either shatters into fine particles or liquifies upon detonation, forming the powerful penetrating jet that tunnels into bedrock. As a result, Liquidmetal does not leave a metal slug in the tunnel that impedes oil flow.”
At exactly the same time (03/13/13) Halliburton filed a patent application for the utilization of Bulk Metallic Glass as the main material for a whole new oil & well perforating system:
The market potential for shaped charges is enormous, as millions of them are detonated each year in perforating guns. But this recently published patent (08/01/13) bursts the bounds of our imaginations and expactations. Halliburton`s patent suggests to make the whole perforating system out of Liquidmetal!
“FIG. 1 shows the expendable tubing conveyed perforator 10 of the invention. According to the invention, the outer tubular 12 of the expendable tubing conveyed perforator is made from a metallic glass alloy having high strength and low impact resistance.”
Prior art: “In one of the primary methods currently in use, any remaining portion of the TCP assembly, after firing, is pulled out of the casing and can be reloaded with charges and reused, if intact. However, this method has several disadvantages since in many drilling situations the inner tubular on which the shaped charges are mounted is damaged to such a degree that it cannot be removed from the hole without destroying the well. The other method used in the industry is to utilize expendable TCP perforators to fire the charges. Following firing, the expendable perforating system is dropped to the bottom of the drilled hole that extends below the targeted formation, that is, into the rathole. However, drilling the rathole portion of the well requires additional drilling to depths as much as 2,000 feet beyond the target area so that the expended perforator can be accommodated. This extra drilling results in considerable additional time and drilling costs. In addition, the conventional metal tubing used for the TCP assembly generally fragments into large pieces of debris upon firing of the charges. These large pieces of metal debris often cause problems in fluid extraction, such as jamming of equipment, preventing tube removal, inhibiting fluid flow, contaminating the fluid, or clogging pumps or tubing used to extract the fluid.”
Advantages of a Liquidmetal perforating system:
“The present invention overcomes problems with prior art TCPs in that substantially all of the outer tubular is fragmented upon detonation, and the inner structure is combustibly consumed upon detonation. Thus, the expendable TCP of the present invention does not require that an extended rathole be prepared, nor depressurization of the well system for perforator removal. In addition, due to the highly frangible nature of the materials used to make the outer tubular of the TCP of the present invention, the pieces produced after detonation of the expendable TCP are less likely to inhibit fluid flow or clog the extraction equipment.”
“The thickness of the outer tubular 12 is preferably thin enough such that the tubular fragments into small pieces upon detonation, yet thick enough to provide structural integrity and protection to the inner structure. Metallic glasses, as detailed below, can be much stronger than conventional alloys, such as steel. This characteristic is beneficial to the design of the system because the outer tubular can be made to have a thinner wall than a conventional steel carrier while still guaranteeing the structural integrity of the system. At the same time, a thinner outer tubular wall should shatter more easily and into smaller pieces.”
Interconnected sections made from Liquidmetal:
“The expendable tubing conveyed perforator 10 of the invention may be combined in sections to produce a longer perforator unit 25 as shown in FIG. 4. As shown in FIG. 4, each perforator 10 is connected to the next perforator by a connector 20 and held in place with an adhesive, such as an epoxy adhesive or threaded interface, pins, integrated entrapment, or a combination of these attaching means. The connectors 20 may be made from materials such as steel, or the same frangible materials as the outer tubular 12 so that the connectors are also highly fragmented upon detonation. [...] Like the connectors 20, the end plugs 22 may also be made from steel or the same frangible materials used to make the outer tubular 12.” (as claimed above Bulk metallic glass is meant to be the same frangible material)
“As making large sized items can be more difficult with metallic glass alloys, another embodiment of the TCP 30, an example of which is seen at FIG. 5, comprises individual charge holding sections 32, each section 32 holding just one or two charges 34. These sections would effectively be hollow boxes. The sections 32, once loaded, are stacked and interconnected. The outer tubular wall 36 of each section serves to protect the shaped charge(s) inside.”
Considering the stated advantages of this patent, a perforating system made from BMGs is definitely a game-changer in the industry of oil & gas well completion. Due to its dematerialization upon detonation, the whole perforating process will become really simple, resulting in less drilling time and cost, as no deep rathole has to be drilled. Besides, a net-shape production of LM perforator parts will also be highly acurate and cost-effective, which may save additional money and allow a better control of the perforating process, due to the accurately reproduced geometry.
Moreover Liquidmetal seems to be the only material which allows both integrally protection and fragmentation upon detonation. Rather contradictory, the aim of developing outer casings which protect as well as shatter at the right time have been of much interest in the past. As you can see in the Figures 6-15, the currently used shaped charges have to be produced out of several layers in order to accomplish those wished mechanical properties. Because a thin wall of Liquidmetal would solve this problem, the production cost will be so much less.
If that wasn`t enough, it is highly interesting to review an updated table of LM`s BMG properties (consider that those values published in the patent were used just 8 months ago).
In one of my last posts I have pointed out, that Liquidmetal filed a patent for a new BMG-formula, which is based on low-cost iron, chrome, molybdenum and boron.
In this CIP patent they produced ingots with Fe48Cr5Mo4B6Y2. Though it is not 100% the same formula, as seen in the upper table, its obvious that they have just substituted Yttrium with Copper. I have always wondered, why the LM shaped charges look so different then the other molded parts.
Well, I now know its because they have developed a special BMG for this perforating application, to optimize the frangible nature. You can see its mechanical properties (see table). Amazingly its yield strength is two times higher than that of vitreloy (Zr-based BMG).
Coming to an end, I just want to restate that currently big companies are innovating upon the Liquidmetal Technology platform! There are several other examples like this one, for instance in the medical and automotive industry, which I will post as soon as I will find the time. I am very happy, that the time has come for Liquidmetal to eventually provide those companies with the turnkey solutions they need to produce these innovative approaches in-house. This is the only way, and Liquidmetal will receive its share!
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