What does a nodding donkey do?
Nodding Donkey. The Nodding Donkey is responsible for the mechanical transmission to the piston in the underground pump. It is used to mechanically lift liquid out of the well if there is not enough bottom hole pressure for the liquid to flow all the way to the surface.
Why are they called nodding donkey?
A nodding donkey is a type of reciprocating pump (= one which uses a backward and forward movement), used to extract oil from an onshore well. A nodding donkey pumps oil from onshore wells, and gets its name from the movement it makes.
What are the things that pump oil called?
A pump jack is a device used in the petroleum industry to extract crude oil from a oil well where there is not high enough pressure in the well to force the oil to the surface. These pump jacks physically extract the oil for use. Pump jacks and oil derricks are commonly confused, but are not the same.
How much does a nodding donkey cost?
It costs about $250,000 to install a nodding donkey, along with all the startup gear, and as much as $100,000 to repair or replace it, according to Ambyint.
Who invented the pumpjack?
Walter Trout
The modern counter-balanced pump jack, invented in Lufkin, Texas, in 1925 by Walter Trout, works on the same principle as the old jacks of yesteryear.
How is a pumpjack powered?
Modern pumpjacks are powered by an engine known as a prime mover. Some are powered by electricity, while others in more remote locations run off natural gas. The prime mover runs a set of pulleys to the transmission, which in turn drives a pair of cranks.
Where does the oil from a pumpjack go?
A hollow chamber with a simple valve opens and fills each time the rod descends, then closes and lifts it up to the surface. Once at the surface, any water and natural gas obtained are separated from the crude oil, then pumped into holding tanks until it can be moved to the refinery.
Are Pumpjacks still used?
For decades, the pumpjack has served as part of Alberta’s identity, a symbol of its wealth and prosperity. Still, the landscape in the province is beginning to change as fewer are needed to do the work they once did.
What is a donkey pump?
A pumpjack or nodding donkey is the overground drive for a submersible pump in a borehole. These pumps are typically used to bring up crude oil from oil wells.
What are nodding donkeys powers?
Early versions of the nodding donkey were powered by rods that connected to a device called the central power. This power source often actuated many pump jacks simultaneously, though modern versions often use individual electric motors.
How does pump jack work?
An electric or gas-driven engine rotates a counterweight, attached to an arm that moves a pivoting beam up and down. A cable at the opposite end pulls a rod assembly up, and drops it down again. A hollow chamber with a simple valve opens and fills each time the rod descends, then closes and lifts it up to the surface.
How much do oil pumps make a day?
And how much oil does a pumpjack produce per day? But even with today’s best technology, more than half of the oil can remain underground. Marginal wells or low-volume strippers produce no more than 15 barrels per day. The average open pit mine only produces about 2.2 barrels per day.
What kind of pump is a nodding donkey?
A pumpjack or nodding donkey is the overground drive for a submersible pump in a borehole. The technical term for the mechanism is a walking beam, ” beam ” as in a structural element. These pumps are typically used to bring up crude oil from oil wells.
How did the Nodding Donkey get its name?
In either case the power source rotates the counterweight, which pushes the pitman arm up and down. This in turn causes the nodding donkey to perform the action it is named for. A pump at the bottom end of the well is then actuated by a sucker rod that is connected to the pump jack.
How much oil does a nodding donkey produce?
Some of these wells simply lack large deposits of oil, while others have become depleted over time. Many of them produce 10 barrels or less of oil each day. About five to 40 liters (about 1.3 to 10.5 gallons) of liquid can be pumped for each stroke of a nodding donkey depending on the configuration.