Abstract: A cutting element for use in a drilling bit and/or a milling bit having a cutter body made of a substrate having an upper surface, and a superabrasive layer overlying the upper surface of the substrate. The cutting element further includes a sleeve extending around a portion of a side surface of the superabrasive layer and a side surface of the substrate, wherein the sleeve exerts a radially compressive force on the superabrasive layer.

Abstract: A method of forming a cutting element for an earth-boring tool. The method includes providing diamond particles on a supporting substrate, the volume of diamond particles comprising a plurality of diamond nanoparticles. A catalyst-containing layer is provided on exposed surfaces of the volume of diamond nanoparticles and the supporting substrate. The diamond particles are processed under high temperature and high pressure conditions to form a sintered nanoparticle-enhanced polycrystalline compact. A cutting element and an earth-boring tool including a cutting element are also disclosed.

Abstract: The present disclosure relates to substrates for use in microwave plasma reactors. Certain substrates include a cylindrical disc of a carbide forming refractory metal having a flat growth surface on which CVD diamond is to be grown and a flat supporting surface opposed to said growth surface. The cylindrical disc may have a diameter of 80 mm or more. The growth surface may have a flatness variation no more than 100 mm The supporting surface may have a flatness variation no more than 100 mm.

Abstract: A bit for a rotary drill, the bit including a cylindrical body having at least two flutes provided therein, the cylindrical body terminating in a cutting end; and a cylindrical land defined by a peripheral face of the cylindrical body between adjacent flutes, the cylindrical land including a margin that is radially elevated relative to a remainder of the cylindrical land; the margin having a width that varies along the length of the cylindrical land.

Abstract: A polycrystalline diamond (PCD) composite compact element 100 comprising a substrate 130, a PCD structure 120 bonded to the substrate 130, and a bond material in the form of a bond layer 140 bonding the PCD structure 120 to the substrate 130; the PCD structure 120 being thermally stable and having a mean Young's modulus of at least about 800 GPa, the PCD structure 120 having an interstitial mean free path of at least about 0.05 microns and at most about 1.5 microns; the standard deviation of the mean free path being at least about 0.05 microns and at most about 1.5 microns. Embodiments of the PCD composite compact element may be for a tool for cutting, milling, grinding, drilling, earth boring, rock drilling or other abrasive applications, such as the cutting and machining of metal.

Abstract: The present disclosure relates to the formation of polycrystalline diamond materials with fine diamond grains and nano-sized particles of a grain growth inhibitor. In one embodiment, a method of fabricating a polycrystalline diamond material is provided. The method includes providing a mixture of diamond particles with an average particle size of about 1 micron or less, distributing a plurality of nano-sized titanium-containing particles with the diamond mixture, to act as a grain growth inhibitor, and sintering the mixture of diamond particles and titanium-containing particles at high pressure and high temperature to create a polycrystalline structure of sintered diamond grains. The sintered diamond grains have an average size of about 1 micron or less.

Abstract: A bipolar cell for a reactor for treatment of electrolyte such as waste water and effluent or for electrosynthesis comprises end electrodes and at least one bipolar electrode therebetween. The or each bipolar electrode comprises a diamond sheet. The cell includes a porous support structure, for example in the form of spacers, a lattice of plastic rods, or a woven mesh, between each end electrode and the adjacent diamond sheet, there being porous support structure between the or each pair of adjacent diamond sheets, the support structures acting to contact or support the or each diamond sheet.

Abstract: PCBN material consisting of cBN grains dispersed in a matrix, the content of the cBN grains being in the range of about 35 to about 70 volume % of the PCBN material. The matrix comprises at least one kind of chemical compound that includes aluminum (Al) and at least one kind of chemical compound that includes titanium (Ti). The size distribution of the cBN grains exposed at a surface of the PCBN material is such that at least about 50% percent of the total equivalent circle area (ECA) arises from cBN intercept lengths up to 5 microns. At least about 20 percent of the total ECA arises from cBN intercept lengths greater than about 5 microns.

Abstract: A method of making a construction comprising a polycrystalline super-hard structure joined to a side surface of an elongate substrate. The method includes: providing a vessel configured for an ultra-high pressure, high temperature furnace, the vessel having an elongate cavity for containing a pre-sinter assembly and defining a longitudinal axis, the cavity having opposite ends connected by a cavity wall. The pre-sinter assembly comprises the substrate, an aggregation comprising a plurality of super-hard grains arranged over at least a part of the side surface of the substrate, and a spacer structure configured for spacing the substrate apart from the cavity wall. The spacer structure comprises material having a Young's modulus of at least 300 GPa.

Abstract: Disclosed herein are methods of manufacturing synthetic CVD diamond material including orienting and controlling process gas flow in a microwave plasma reactor to improve performance. The microwave plasma reactor includes a gas flow system with a gas inlet comprising one or more gas inlet nozzles disposed opposite the growth surface area and configured to inject process gases towards the growth surface area. The method comprises injecting process gases towards the growth surface area at a total gas flow rate equal to or greater than 500 standard cm3 per minute wherein the process gases are injected into the plasma chamber through the one or more gas inlet nozzles with a Reynolds number in a range 1 to 100.

Abstract: A method of forming an instrumented cutting element comprises forming a free-standing sintered diamond table having at least one chamber in the free-standing sintered diamond table, providing a doped diamond material within the at least one chamber, and attaching a substrate to the free-standing sintered diamond table to form an instrumented cutting element. The instrumented cutting element includes the doped diamond material disposed within the sintered diamond table on the substrate. A method of forming an earth-boring tool comprises attaching at least one instrumented cutting element to a body of an earth-boring tool. The at least one instrumented cutting element has a diamond table bonded to a substrate. The diamond table has at least one sensing element disposed at least partially within the diamond table. The at least one sensing element comprises a doped diamond material.

Abstract: An earth-boring drilling tool comprises a cutting element. The cutting element comprises a substrate, a diamond table, and at least one sensing element formed from a doped diamond material disposed at least partially within the diamond table. A method for determining an at-bit measurement for an earth-boring drill bit comprises receiving an electrical signal generated within a doped diamond material disposed within a diamond table of a cutting element of the earth-boring drill bit, and correlating the electrical signal with at least one parameter during a drilling operation.

Abstract: The invention relates to an insert for an attack tool, the insert comprising a super-hard cap having a volume and bonded to a substrate at an interface, the super-hard cap having an average Young's modulus of greater than 900 GPa and the substrate characterized in that it comprises a reinforcing bolster portion as a means for stiffening a region of the substrate proximate the interface, the reinforcing bolster portion having an aggregate volume that is greater than that of the super-hard cap and an average Young's modulus at least 60% that of the super-hard cap. The invention further relates to a method for manufacturing such an insert and a method for using such an insert.

Abstract: A method of manufacturing encapsulated superhard material includes the steps of providing a source of superhard material, providing a mixture comprising an appropriate binder, a solvent or fluid medium and the intended coating or encapsulating layer, combining the superhard material and the mixture in a shovel rotor, the shovel rotor having a vessel including a rotor, the vessel adapted to receive a stream of gas. The rotor is rotated at an appropriate velocity such that the superhard material is encapsulated by the mixture.

Abstract: A process for the formation of pellets containing an ultra hard (superhard) core coated with an encapsulating material includes utilizing a shovel rotor in combination with a rotating pan and/or a fluidized bed apparatus in sequence. The process includes providing a source of superhard material, providing a mixture comprising a binder, a solvent or fluid medium and the intended coating or encapsulating layer, and combining the superhard material and the mixture in a shovel rotor. The rotor of the shovel rotor is rotated at a velocity such that the superhard material is encapsulated by the mixture to form pellets. The pellets are introduced into a rotating vessel or fluidized bed granulating apparatus, and the pellets are contacted with encapsulating material to form pellets of greater mass than the pellets introduced into the vessel.

Abstract: A synthetic diamond material comprising one or more spin defects having a full width half maximum intrinsic inhomogeneous zero phonon line width of no more than 100 MHz. The method for obtain such a material involves a multi-stage annealing process.

Abstract: A polycrystalline superhard construction comprises a body of polycrystalline superhard material having two or more layers. A first layer differs from a second layer in one or more characteristics. The body has a thickness of greater than around 1.8 mm. A substrate is bonded to at least one of said layers, and one of the interface surface of the substrate or the body comprises one or more projections arranged to project from the interface surface, the height of the projection(s) being between around 0.2 mm to around 2.0 mm measured from the lowest point on the interface surface from which the one or more projections extend. At least a portion of the body of superhard material is substantially free of a catalyst material for the superhard material, and forms a thermally stable region extending a depth of at least around 300 microns from the working surface of the body of superhard material.

Abstract: A polycrystalline superhard construction comprises a body (20, 51, 52) of polycrystalline diamond material, a working surface (34), a first region (51) substantially free of a solvent/catalysing material, the first region extending a depth (Y) from the working surface into the body along a plane substantially perpendicular to the plane along which the working surface extends, and a second region (52) remote from the working surface that includes solvent/catalysing material in a plurality of interstitial regions. A substrate (30) is attached to the body along an interface (24) with the second region. A chamfer extends between the working surface and a peripheral side surface of the body. The depth of the first region tapers towards the working surface at the intersection of the first region with the peripheral side surface such that the depth (Y?) of the first region at the peripheral side surface is less than the depth of the majority of the first region.

Abstract: A twist drill assembly (10) comprising a shaft (30) and a drill tip (20); the shaft having a single internal shaft conduit (34) for a fluid, extending between orifices (36, 37) formed into the shaft; the drill tip having an internal drill tip conduit (22) for the fluid, extending between orifices formed into the drill tip; the shaft and the drill tip configured such that the drill tip is connectable to an end of the shaft with the internal drill tip conduit in communication with the internal shaft conduit, allowing the fluid to be capable of flowing from the internal shaft conduit into the internal drill tip conduit; the internal shaft conduit having a spiral form aligned with a central longitudinal axis of the shaft, and configured to complement the arrangement of spiral flutes (38) formed on the shaft.

Abstract: A method of manufacturing a bit for a rotary drill, the bit including a drill tip (30), the method including providing a precursor structure (10) comprising substrate body (14) and a super-hard structure (12) joined to an upper surface of the substrate body; cutting a plurality of conformal inserts (20) from the precursor structure (10), each insert (20) comprising a part of the super-hard structure; providing a drill tip (30) configured for receiving the insert (20); and joining the insert to the drill tip (30).