Upgrading the Hydraulic System of Rotary Drilling Rigs: Strengthening Stability and Enhancing Operational Efficiency

    As the core equipment of infrastructure construction, the hydraulic system of the rotary drilling rig is the "central nervous system" for its power transmission and action control, which directly determines the operational reliability and accuracy of the equipment under complex working conditions. With the extension of infrastructure projects towards ultra deep, ultra large pile diameters, and complex geological conditions, higher requirements are placed on the stability and controllability of hydraulic systems. Technological upgrades need to focus on core pain points, target breakthroughs in key technologies, and achieve performance improvement and efficiency enhancement. Stability improvement is the core prerequisite for upgrading hydraulic systems, with a focus on addressing potential faults caused by sudden load changes, oil contamination, and component wear. In terms of component selection and structural optimization, world-renowned hydraulic components are preferred, combined with improved structural design, such as optimizing the support points of the mast oil cylinder and adopting a double large triangular amplitude structure to enhance the stability of the entire machine during rock operations, suppress vehicle lifting, and avoid accidents such as drill pipe breakage. At the same time, upgrading the oil management system, adding a hydraulic oil particle size detector and an automatic temperature control energy-saving system, real-time monitoring of oil quality cleanliness and oil temperature, intelligent adjustment of cooling fan speed, timely alarm of oil pollution, extending the service life of hydraulic components, and eliminating system jamming, leakage and other faults caused by oil problems. In addition, through redundant power design and pressure feedback regulation, the risk of sudden load changes can be addressed. For example, when the oil supply pressure suddenly rises, a dedicated oil discharge valve can be opened to buffer the peak torque, weaken the overflow impact of the valve group, and ensure the smooth operation of the system under extreme working conditions such as deep holes and hard rocks.

    The precise optimization of controllability is the key lever for upgrading hydraulic systems, with the core being to solve pain points such as delayed movements, poor coordination, and high operational intensity under complex working conditions, and to adapt to the precise construction needs of ultra deep piles, irregular piles, and other types of piles. Based on the upgrade of electro-hydraulic proportional control technology, the control logic of the hydraulic valve group is reconstructed, and high-precision proportional directional valves and flow adaptive control modules are adopted to achieve stepless speed regulation of drill rod lifting, rotation, pressurization and other actions. The response time of the actions is shortened to less than 0.2 seconds, effectively avoiding construction problems such as hole wall collapse and pile diameter deviation caused by action lag. For multi action collaborative work scenarios, a multi loop independent control hydraulic system is developed to achieve precise linkage of various execution components (mast oil cylinder, rotary motor, and pressurization oil cylinder) through a bus based control architecture. For example, during deep hole drilling, the pressurization speed and rotation speed are synchronously regulated to match the geological hardness and dynamically adjust the power output, ensuring drilling efficiency and reducing drill pipe wear. At the same time, optimizing the operation interaction design, integrating hydraulic system status display and fault self diagnosis functions into the operation panel, operators can view real-time parameters such as pressure, flow rate, oil temperature, etc. of each circuit, and accurately control the operation status of the equipment; Equipped with a wireless remote control operation module, it is suitable for special work scenarios such as high altitude and narrow spaces, reducing the labor intensity of operators and improving operational safety and convenience.

    Energy saving upgrade is an inevitable trend for hydraulic systems to adapt to the development of green infrastructure. It is necessary to reduce energy consumption while ensuring power performance and operational efficiency, and achieve a win-win situation of environmental protection and energy conservation. Breaking through the limitations of traditional quantitative pump oil supply mode, a variable pump controlled hydraulic system is adopted to dynamically adjust the pump displacement through load sensitive control technology, so that the output flow of the hydraulic pump matches the actual demand of the actuator accurately, avoiding energy waste caused by excess flow overflow. Compared with traditional systems, energy consumption can be reduced by 15% -25%. Optimize hydraulic circuit design, adopt integrated hydraulic valve group, reduce pipeline connection nodes, lower hydraulic oil pressure loss along the way, and select low viscosity, anti-wear and environmentally friendly hydraulic oil to improve oil fluidity, reduce component friction loss, further reduce energy consumption, and minimize environmental pollution. In addition, by combining energy recovery technology, the hydraulic energy generated during drilling rod descent, rotation braking and other working conditions is recovered and utilized. Excess energy is stored through energy storage devices and released during high-power output conditions such as drilling and pressurization, achieving energy recycling and effectively reducing equipment fuel consumption, adapting to the energy-saving requirements of green infrastructure for construction equipment.

    Intelligent empowerment is an important direction for upgrading hydraulic system technology. By integrating technologies such as the Internet of Things, big data, and sensing detection, it promotes the transformation of hydraulic systems from "passive maintenance" to "active warning and intelligent regulation". Build an intelligent monitoring platform for hydraulic systems, integrating multi-dimensional sensors (pressure sensors, temperature sensors, vibration sensors), to collect real-time operating parameters of key nodes in the hydraulic system, and transmit them to cloud servers through IoT modules to achieve real-time monitoring, storage, and analysis of data. Based on big data algorithms, a fault warning model is constructed to accurately predict potential faults such as hydraulic oil pollution, component wear, and circuit leakage. Early warning signals are issued and targeted maintenance suggestions are pushed to avoid the expansion of faults, reduce equipment downtime maintenance costs, and improve construction continuity. At the same time, an intelligent adaptive control system is developed to automatically adjust hydraulic system parameters such as pressure and flow rate based on construction geological data and load changes, achieving optimal matching between operating conditions and hydraulic system performance. For example, during drilling in hard rock geology, the system pressure is automatically increased, flow output is adjusted, and adapted to rock operation requirements; When drilling in soft soil geology, appropriately reducing pressure and accelerating flow circulation can improve drilling efficiency. In addition, through remote operation and maintenance technology, technicians can remotely view the operating status of hydraulic systems, remotely debug parameters, troubleshoot simple faults, break geographical limitations, improve equipment operation and maintenance efficiency, and assist in the efficient progress of infrastructure projects.

    In summary, the technological upgrading of the hydraulic system of rotary drilling rigs should take stability as the core, precision as the key, energy-saving as the orientation, and intelligence as the empowerment. It should focus on the core pain points of infrastructure construction, break through key technical bottlenecks, optimize system structure and control logic, and enhance component reliability and system synergy. In the future, as infrastructure projects develop towards more complex, refined, and green directions, hydraulic systems will further integrate multi-disciplinary technologies to achieve comprehensive improvements in stability, maneuverability, energy efficiency, and intelligence. This will provide core support for the efficient, safe, and environmentally friendly operation of rotary drilling rigs, contributing to the high-quality development of China's infrastructure industry.