GB2104936A - Sucker rods, pony rods and production thereof - Google Patents

Sucker rods, pony rods and production thereof Download PDF

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Publication number
GB2104936A
GB2104936A GB08125760A GB8125760A GB2104936A GB 2104936 A GB2104936 A GB 2104936A GB 08125760 A GB08125760 A GB 08125760A GB 8125760 A GB8125760 A GB 8125760A GB 2104936 A GB2104936 A GB 2104936A
Authority
GB
United Kingdom
Prior art keywords
sucker
coupling
coupling component
rod
pony
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Granted
Application number
GB08125760A
Other versions
GB2104936B (en
Inventor
John-Herbert North
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
DRILLCON IND Ltd
Original Assignee
DRILLCON IND Ltd
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by DRILLCON IND Ltd filed Critical DRILLCON IND Ltd
Priority to GB08125760A priority Critical patent/GB2104936B/en
Priority to CA000409901A priority patent/CA1197412A/en
Priority to IE2033/82A priority patent/IE53115B1/en
Priority to AU87540/82A priority patent/AU561534B2/en
Priority to BR8204951A priority patent/BR8204951A/en
Priority to JP57146755A priority patent/JPS5862284A/en
Priority to ES515226A priority patent/ES8308388A1/en
Priority to IN988/CAL/82A priority patent/IN157571B/en
Publication of GB2104936A publication Critical patent/GB2104936A/en
Application granted granted Critical
Publication of GB2104936B publication Critical patent/GB2104936B/en
Expired legal-status Critical Current

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Classifications

    • FMECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
    • F04POSITIVE - DISPLACEMENT MACHINES FOR LIQUIDS; PUMPS FOR LIQUIDS OR ELASTIC FLUIDS
    • F04BPOSITIVE-DISPLACEMENT MACHINES FOR LIQUIDS; PUMPS
    • F04B47/00Pumps or pumping installations specially adapted for raising fluids from great depths, e.g. well pumps
    • F04B47/02Pumps or pumping installations specially adapted for raising fluids from great depths, e.g. well pumps the driving mechanisms being situated at ground level
    • F04B47/026Pull rods, full rod component parts
    • EFIXED CONSTRUCTIONS
    • E21EARTH OR ROCK DRILLING; MINING
    • E21BEARTH OR ROCK DRILLING; OBTAINING OIL, GAS, WATER, SOLUBLE OR MELTABLE MATERIALS OR A SLURRY OF MINERALS FROM WELLS
    • E21B17/00Drilling rods or pipes; Flexible drill strings; Kellies; Drill collars; Sucker rods; Cables; Casings; Tubings
    • E21B17/02Couplings; joints
    • E21B17/04Couplings; joints between rod or the like and bit or between rod and rod or the like
    • EFIXED CONSTRUCTIONS
    • E21EARTH OR ROCK DRILLING; MINING
    • E21BEARTH OR ROCK DRILLING; OBTAINING OIL, GAS, WATER, SOLUBLE OR MELTABLE MATERIALS OR A SLURRY OF MINERALS FROM WELLS
    • E21B17/00Drilling rods or pipes; Flexible drill strings; Kellies; Drill collars; Sucker rods; Cables; Casings; Tubings

Landscapes

  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Geology (AREA)
  • Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
  • Mining & Mineral Resources (AREA)
  • Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
  • General Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
  • Fluid Mechanics (AREA)
  • Environmental & Geological Engineering (AREA)
  • Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • Geochemistry & Mineralogy (AREA)
  • General Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Forging (AREA)
  • Treatment Of Fiber Materials (AREA)
  • Earth Drilling (AREA)
  • Pressure Welding/Diffusion-Bonding (AREA)

Abstract

The present invention relates to sucker rods and pony rods for use in a well. Conventional sucker or pony rods are formed from a single length of rod the ends of which are upset forged, machined, heat treated and cold rolled in order to provide a respective coupling at each end of the rod. The present invention provides many advantages compared with the conventional sucker rods by fabricating the sucker rod 10 from discrete components which are friction welded together. The sucker rod 10 is formed of an elongate central member 12 having a respective coupling component friction welded to each end thereof. The couplings may comprise a male component 14 and a female component 16. The coupling components 14, 16 are each provided with a shank 22, 34 which can be held in the chuck of a friction welding device. The shanks 22, 34 are shaped so as to enable raised lettering to be provided on the shank 22, 34 without the lettering 28 degrading the alignment of the component 14, 16 in the chuck. The central member 12 may be formed from a different material to the coupling components 14, 16. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Sucker rods, pony rods and production thereof The present invention relates to sucker rods and pony rods for use in wells. The only difference between a sucker rod and a pony rod is the difference in their lengths.
In this field of technology pony rods are defined as being up to 25 feet in length, with a usual although non definitive lower limit of 1 6 inches, and sucker rods are defined as being rods of or exceeding 25 feet in length.
In the following description, where reference is made to a sucker rod it is to be understood that the description also applies to a pony rod, unless the context requires otherwise.
Sucker rods are joined together to form a well string which is used for providing the prime movement of a pump located in a well by interconnecting the pump with surface machinery.
The surface machinery imparts a reciprocating movement to the sucker rods.
Sucker rods have been known for many years and are conventionally formed from a single length of rod. The single length of rod has its ends upset forged, machined and cold rolled so as to provide couplings at the ends of the rod.
Conventional sucker rods and the production thereof include many inherent disadvantages and the present invention seeks to provide an improved sucker rod and method of production by mitigating at least some of the disadvantages, as will be apparent from the following description of embodiments of the present invention.
According to a first aspect of the present invention there is provided a sucker or pony rod for use in a well, comprising an elongate central member having a respective coupling component friction forged to each end thereof.
According to a second aspect of the present invention there is provided a coupling component for use in a sucker or pony rod as set out in the first aspect of the present invention, comprising a coupling portion for retention in a complimentary coupling portion of another coupling component and a shank having a plurality of substantially plane surfaces constituting respective circumferential portions of the shank.
According to a further aspect of the present invention there is provided a method of manufacturing sucker or pony rods comprising friction forging a respective coupling component with each end of a central elongate member.
Embodiments of the present invention will now be described by way of example only and with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a diagrammatic, partly sectioned, side view of a sucker rod, Figure 2 is a diagrammatic side view to an enlarged scale of a coupling component shown in Figure 1, and, Figure 3 is a diagrammatic end view of the coupling component of Figure 2 and illustrates the retention of the component by the jaws of a chuck.
As illustrated in Figure 1, the sucker or pony rod 10 consists of three distinct components; a central member 12 a male coupling component 14 and a female coupling component 16. The male coupling component 14 is known as the pin and the female coupling component is known as the box. The three components are secured together by friction forging. The pin 14 and box 1 6 may be sequentially secured to the central member 1 2 or, with the aid of suitable machinery, may be simultaneously secured to the central member 12.
In either case, the central member 12 is held stationary and the, or both coupling components are retained in respective chucks. The chucks are rotated at high speed and the coupling components and central member 12 are brought into contact under the action of a relatively high pressure. The friction between the components is sufficient to cause the components to fuse together. A certain amount of flash may may be produced at the junctions of the components and this is subsequently machined off. It has been found possible to produce friction forged adhesion between components wherein the adhesion is stronger than one of the parent materials.
Manufacture of sucker rods 10 in the described manner permits many advantages as compared with conventional sucker rods.
The coupling components are preformed and hence the sucker rods 10 are easily constructed with different combinations of coupling components. Sucker rods 10 having pins 14 at both ends, boxes 1 6 at both ends or the illustrated pin 14/box 1 6 configuration are readily realised. The correct combination of coupling components merely have to be inserted into the chuck or chucks of the friction forging apparatus.
Specialised coupling components can be provided, for example, in order to effect a change from one diameter of sucker rod to another. The provision of couplings in the conventional manufacture of sucker rods is burdensome because the entire rod has to be manipuiated and machine controlled during formation of the couplings. Conventional manufacture becomes more onerous where specialised couplings or combinations are required and the necessary apparatus is considered to be relatively expensive and slow in operation compared with the method of manufacture of the present invention. The length of the sucker rod 10 is readily variable, since differing lengths of the central member 12 are easily incorporated into the rod 10.
Since the sucker rods 10 are constructed from separate components, the components need not consist of the same material unlike conventional sucker rods. The process of friction forging enables materials such as aluminium and steel to be joined even though such joints are generally regarded as being unobtainable by known methods of welding. In the known art, if it is desired to provide couplings of a high quality material, then the entire sucker rod must necessarily be formed of that material. The present invention permits a lower quality material to be used for the major, central, member and a different material having the requisite qualities to be used for the coupling components. It will often be acceptable to have a central member 12 of the sucker rod 10 fabricated from a different quality material than the coupling components.This is due to the fact that the coupling components engage with other components, normally by way of threaded portions, and will be subjected to rotary torques during assembly of the rods to form a well string for insertion into the well. The central members 12 are not subjected to any substantial rotary torques during assembly into a well string and under normal working conditions the sucker rods 10 are subjected to mainly tensile and compression forces rather than rotary forces. It has been found that the sucker rods 10 of the present invention can surpass the industrial strength standards specified for sucker rods. An additional benefit of forming the sucker rods 10 of discreet components is that the central member 1 2 can be pretreated, for example, by being provided with a coating.Such coatings may be applied for a specific purpose such as anti corrosion and a particularly convenient coating may be formed from a thermo-setting epoxy resin.
This feature can be of particular benefit when the central member 12 is fabricated of a lower quality material than the coupling components.
Sucker rods 10 of the present invention are economically desirable since they may permit the raw material cost to be reduced and permit the speed of manufacture to be improved. It has been found possible, using the double ended friction forging technique, to attach the coupling components to the central member 12 in approximately 30 seconds. The combined time for preforming the coupling components and central member and assembling the sucker rod 10 is enhanced with respect to the conventional manufacturing process involving upset forging of the ends of the sucker rod.
Improved alignment between the axes of the components can accrue from the use of the friction forging process. In known sucker rods a tolerance of 1/64th of an inch in alignment of the axes of the couplings is common. It has been found possible to obtain a repeatable value of 2-1 0000ths of an inch for sucker rods of the present invention. Such an improvement in alignment represents a major potential saving in the cost of well operation. Sucker rods are often used to a working depth of 1 5000 to 25000 feet and the "run out" caused by conventional tolerance standards necessitates frequent well maintenance.The improved tolerances of the sucker rods of the present invention, when multiplied by the number of sucker rods employed in a well string, represents a substantial enhancement of alignment and corresponding reductions in essential maintenance are anticipated.
A pin 14 is shown in Figures 2 and 3. In order to be suitable for a 1 inch diameter sucker rod, the pin 1 4 would typically have a length of 6 inches and a maximum diameter of 2 inches. The pin 14 is formed in the required material by drop forging.
There are four sections constituting the pin 14, sequentially; the threaded stub 18, collar 20, shank 22 and bull 24. A thread 1 9 is cold rolled on the thread stub 1 8 after the pin 14 has been heat treated Collar 20 mates with the end surface 26 of the box 1 6 (Figure 1 ) when the thread 19 of the pin 14 is fully engaged with the thread of the box 16. Bull 24 is similar in shape to that portion of the upset end of a conventional sucker rod which remains after maching of the coupling has taken place. The bull 24 may be omitted or replaced by a straight sides portion but if retained it is useful when handling the sucker rods 10 during their assembly into a well string.
The shank 22 is an important portion of the pin 14. It provides the plane surfaces of the pin 14 which are held by a chuck during friction forging and it is also the portion of the pin 14 on which the rod specifications are located. The rod specifications are provided in this region of the sucker rod in order to comply with convention. The rod specifications would typically include; the grade (quality) of the rod, year of manufacture, identification of manufacturer and year of manufacture. It has been found that the most efficient method of providing the rod specifications on the pin 14 is by the use of raised lettering 28 formed during the drop forging of the pin 14. Stamping the specifications onto the pin 14 either before or after friction forging the pin 14 to the central member 1 2 is uneconomic and time consuming.If the lettering 28 is indented rather than raised, the die used during drop forging is found to become unacceptably degraded after approximately 500 operations whereas if raised lettering is produced as many as 20000 to 30000 operations can be performed before degradation becomes unacceptable. It is therefore economically desirable to effect the rod specifications in raised lettering 28. However, raised lettering will detrimentally effect the accuracy of alignment of the pin 14 in a chuck, if the jaws of the chuck engage the lettering 28.
Consequently, the shank 22 has an external configuration which enables the rod specifications to be provided without effecting alignment of the pin 14 in a chuck.
The friction forging device will typically have a two jaw chuck in which the jaws are spaced apart by 1800 and in which the gripping portion of each jaw is formed by two indented surfaces which intersect each other an an angle of 900. The jaws are shown by the phantom lines 30 in Figure 3.
The shank 22 has a substantially square transverse cross-section and the gripping surfaces of each jaw 28 engage two respective sides of the shank 22. In order to provide an area on which the raised lettering 28 of the rod specifications can be located without affecting alignment of the pin 14 in the chuck, the desired number of corners of the square cross section of the shank 22 are truncated. The truncated corners 32 provide an area having a width of 3/1 6ths of an inch and two such areas will usually be sufficient to contain the rod specifications. The remaining corners of the cross-section of the shank 22 are rounded. If the truncated corners 32 are positioned between the jaws 30, the gripping surfaces of the jaws 30 engage the flat sides of the shank 22 and the raised lettering 28 provided on the truncated corner 32 is not contacted by the chuck jaws 30.
Hence, the section of corners to be gripped is not critical.
The provision of truncated corners 32 on which the rod specifications are presented enables the pin 14 to be gripped by a four jaw chuck in a corresponding manner to that described for a two jaw chuck without damaging the lettering 28. The truncated corner system can be applied to other rectilinear external configurations of the shank 22 in order to secure the same advantage.
The box 1 6 is formed in a similar fashion to the pin 14 and in particular, the box 1 6 is provided with a shank 34 corresponding to the shank 22 of the pin 14.

Claims (16)

1. A sucker or pony rod for use in a well, comprising an elongate central member having a respective coupling component friction forged to each end thereof.
2. A sucker or pony rod as claimed in claim 1, wherein the central member and at least one coupling component are formed of different materials.
3. A sucker or pony rod as claimed in claim 2, wherein the central member is provided with a coating.
4. A sucker or pony rod as claimed in claim 3, wherein the coating is a thermo-setting epoxy resin.
5. A sucker or pony rod as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein one of the coupling components is a male member and the other coupling component is a female member.
6. A sucker or pony rod as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the coupling components are provided with threaded portions for effecting coupling.
7. A coupling component for use in a sucker or pony rod as claimed in any preceding claim, comprising a coupling portion for retention in a complimentary coupling portion of another coupling component and a shank having a plurality of substantially plane surfaces constituting respective circumferential portions of the shank.
8. A coupling component as claimed in claim 7, wherein the planes containing the substantially plane surfaces intersect at substantially 900.
9. A coupling component as claimed in claim 7 or 8, wherein two of the substantially plane surfaces are interconnected by a surface having alpha-numeric characters provided thereon.
10. A coupling component as claimed in claim 9, wherein the surface having alpha-numeric characters provided thereon is substantially plane.
11. A coupling component as claimed in claim 9 or 10, wherein the alpha-numeric characters project from the shank above the level of the surface on which they are provided,
12. A method of manufacturing a sucker or pony rod comprising friction forging a respective coupling component with each end of a central elongate member.
13. A method as claimed in claim 12, wherein the coupling components are simultaneously friction forged with the central member.
14. A method as claimed in claim 12 or 13, wherein the central member is held stationary during friction forging.
1 5. A method as claimed in any of claims 12 to 14, comprising the step of preforming at least one of the coupling components by drop forging.
16. A method as claimed in claim 15, comprising the step of cold rolling a thread on the coupling component subsequent to drop forging and prior to friction forging.
1 7. A sucker or pony rod substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.
1 8. A coupling component for use in a sucker or pony rod, substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.
1 9. A method of manufacturing sucker or pony rods substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.
GB08125760A 1981-08-24 1981-08-24 Sucker rods, pony rods and production thereof Expired GB2104936B (en)

Priority Applications (8)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
GB08125760A GB2104936B (en) 1981-08-24 1981-08-24 Sucker rods, pony rods and production thereof
IE2033/82A IE53115B1 (en) 1981-08-24 1982-08-23 Sucker rods, pony rods and production thereof
CA000409901A CA1197412A (en) 1981-08-24 1982-08-23 Sucker rods, pony rods and production thereof
BR8204951A BR8204951A (en) 1981-08-24 1982-08-24 SUCK STEM OR COMPONENT STOP FOR EMPLOYMENT IN A STEM TYPE AND PROCESS OF ITS MANUFACTURING
AU87540/82A AU561534B2 (en) 1981-08-24 1982-08-24 Sucker rods and pony rods for use in wells
JP57146755A JPS5862284A (en) 1981-08-24 1982-08-24 Soccer rod and pony rod and production thereof
ES515226A ES8308388A1 (en) 1981-08-24 1982-08-24 Sucker rods, pony rods and production thereof
IN988/CAL/82A IN157571B (en) 1981-08-24 1982-08-25

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
GB08125760A GB2104936B (en) 1981-08-24 1981-08-24 Sucker rods, pony rods and production thereof

Publications (2)

Publication Number Publication Date
GB2104936A true GB2104936A (en) 1983-03-16
GB2104936B GB2104936B (en) 1985-11-13

Family

ID=10524136

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
GB08125760A Expired GB2104936B (en) 1981-08-24 1981-08-24 Sucker rods, pony rods and production thereof

Country Status (8)

Country Link
JP (1) JPS5862284A (en)
AU (1) AU561534B2 (en)
BR (1) BR8204951A (en)
CA (1) CA1197412A (en)
ES (1) ES8308388A1 (en)
GB (1) GB2104936B (en)
IE (1) IE53115B1 (en)
IN (1) IN157571B (en)

Cited By (4)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
EP0145154A1 (en) * 1983-10-05 1985-06-19 Texas Forge &amp; Tool Limited Improvements in or relating to rods
US4796799A (en) * 1985-11-26 1989-01-10 Azerbaidzhansky Nauchno-Issledovatelsky I Proektno-Konstruktorsky Institut Neftyanogo Mashinostroenia Method for making sucker rods
DE3590881C2 (en) * 1985-11-26 1989-06-22 Azerbajdzanskij Ni Skij I Pki Process for the manufacture of pump rods
US5088638A (en) * 1985-11-26 1992-02-18 Karaev Islam K O Method for making sucker rods

Families Citing this family (2)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
CN103089166A (en) * 2013-02-22 2013-05-08 李汉余 Sucker rod connector
DE102018124781A1 (en) * 2018-10-08 2020-04-09 Avl List Gmbh Assembly method for joining the telescopic rod part of a VCR connecting rod

Cited By (6)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
EP0145154A1 (en) * 1983-10-05 1985-06-19 Texas Forge &amp; Tool Limited Improvements in or relating to rods
US4796799A (en) * 1985-11-26 1989-01-10 Azerbaidzhansky Nauchno-Issledovatelsky I Proektno-Konstruktorsky Institut Neftyanogo Mashinostroenia Method for making sucker rods
DE3590880C2 (en) * 1985-11-26 1989-02-23 Azerbajdzanskij Ni Skij I Pki Process for the manufacture of pump rods
DE3590881C2 (en) * 1985-11-26 1989-06-22 Azerbajdzanskij Ni Skij I Pki Process for the manufacture of pump rods
AT391914B (en) * 1985-11-26 1990-12-27 Azerb Nii METHOD FOR PRODUCING PUMP RODS CONSISTING OF A ROD AND END HEADS
US5088638A (en) * 1985-11-26 1992-02-18 Karaev Islam K O Method for making sucker rods

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
JPS5862284A (en) 1983-04-13
IN157571B (en) 1986-04-26
ES515226A0 (en) 1983-08-16
CA1197412A (en) 1985-12-03
AU561534B2 (en) 1987-05-14
IE822033L (en) 1983-02-24
ES8308388A1 (en) 1983-08-16
AU8754082A (en) 1983-03-03
BR8204951A (en) 1983-08-02
GB2104936B (en) 1985-11-13
IE53115B1 (en) 1988-06-22

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Legal Events

Date Code Title Description
732 Registration of transactions, instruments or events in the register (sect. 32/1977)
PCNP Patent ceased through non-payment of renewal fee
708B Proceeding under section 8(1) patents act 1977