US Patent 7207382 Shearing sealing ram

The present invention provides a method, apparatus, and system to shear a tubular member disposed in a well and seal the wellbore using a unique blade seal. In at least one embodiment, the blade seal is adapted to interface with opposing rams in a blowout preventer. The blade seal uses a combination of arcuate surfaces with a common centerpoint to interface with corresponding surfaces in a ram block of a ram. The blade seal retains sealing capabilities used for wells and at the same time reduces the forces on the ram body to reduce failures from overpressurization. Further, the blade seal can be used in existing blowout preventers bodies that heretofore have been overstressed by prior art designs.