(2023035) Selected Best Recommended Practices

Following Best Recommended Practices adds value, this paper will discuss selected Best Practices.
1. Tensile strength historically is used as an essential criterion in rod selection. The primary cause of sucker rod failures is not due to exceeding the tensile strength threshold but is due to compression from the polished rod velocity exceeding the plunger velocity. Value can be added from loading up rod strings.
2. Operating a sucker rod lifted well with incomplete pump fillage or in wellbores with severe mechanical friction will result in high failure rate, even when applying best practices to the operation of their wells.
3. A specific design and size of a gas separator determines the maximum liquid rate that will not entrain gas into the pump intake. This rate is defined as the Separator Liquid Capacity. If the pump displacement exceeds the separator liquid capacity, then gas separation will fail and the producing efficiency of the well will be poor. Proper gas separator selection requires that pump displacement not exceed gas separator liquid capacity. The gas anchor length is a significant factor in the number of incomplete fillage cycles. Too long of a gas anchor results in gas breaking out. This is particularly damaging when operating with pump off controllers. The gas collects below the standing value and is processed at start up.
4. Properly setting sucker rod pump clearances maximizes value. After the Patterson Slippage Equation was developed, industry began opening pump clearances. It was believed this would improve solids handling and decrease failures. When pump clearances are too large, the results are 1) increased energy cost, 2) increased failures from increased polished rod velocities to lift the same volume, and 3) increased capital investment to surface the same volume.
5. It is a common practice for operators to delegate responsibility for down hole sucker rod pumps to pump companies. Inspecting the failing component is usually required to identify and understand cause(s) of failure. Part of failure analysis is to be present when failed equipment is pulled from the well and to attend to the tear down of pumps when repaired at the pump shop. Delegation without proper oversight can increase costs. Oversight procedures should be included in Best Recommended Practices. When pump repair volumes are adequate, it may add value for operators to own pump shops.