Paper: QRod, a Practical Beam Pumping Design Program

This paper presents a computer based tool for those wanting to use the wave equation in their beam pumping design activities, but do not require the needs of a more sophisticated, full featured program. This program properly handles the problems faced by a person responsible for designing what could be termed normal rod pumped installations. The output of the program includes pump size, rod string, surface unit size, and motor size for an input depth and production rate. The author has found that accepted design practices are not used much of the time. Whether it is because they are too cumbersome and time consuming or that acceptable knowledge about proper design procedures are not widely understood, I do not know. The objective of this software is to help the designer implement state of the art beam pumping design technology without getting buried with details. The program is a WindowsTM program requiring Windows 3.x and a 386 class computer or better. All important input and output information is available on a single window displayed for the user. More detailed information including graphs may be optionally displayed. It uses a rapid solution method to the damped wave equation allowing the user to see immediately the effect of changing a parameter such as tubing anchor, stroke length, stroke rate, and pump diameter. Correlations are used for the motion of conventional, Mark llTM and air balanced units. allowing the program to determine the size of the pumping unit required. Tapered rod strings (API taper) and Fiber Glass Steel combination strings are allowed. A full featured context sensitive help file is available to the user. This means that whenever the main screen is active you can get help by simply pressing it. The program is suitable for use on a desktop or laptop computer with or without an attached printer. Provisions are made for results to be saved to files for later examination.