US Patent 10407995 Repetitive pulsed electric discharge drills including downhole formation evaluation

Electrocrushing drills and methods for operating electrocrushing drills. Electrocrushing drill bits comprise one or more high voltage electrodes surrounded by a ground or current return structure, which can be a ring or a comprise rod shaped electrodes. Openings in the rim of the current return structure facilitate removal of drilling debris and bubbles created by the electrocrushing process out from the bottom face of the bit and up the wellbore. The high voltage electrodes can be arranged in a circle. The current return structure may partially cover the bottom face of the drill bit, thereby enclosing the high voltage electrodes in openings that may be sector shaped. The drill may comprise one or more conducting loops, in each of which pulsed current creates a pulsed magnetic field. The loops can be oriented in particular directions to provide a pulsed magnetic field with the desired configuration and orientation in space. The formation ahead of the drill can then be evaluated with the appropriate sensors.