SPUDDING & DRILLING RIGS

B7

PUMPJACKS:

A pump jack is an above ground drive for a reciprocating piston pump in an oil well. It is used to mechanically lift liquid out of a well if not enough bottom hold pressure exists for the liquid to flow all the way to the surface. Depending on the size of the pump, it generally produces 1.5 to 10.5 gallons of liquid at each stroke. Often this consists of an emulsion of both crude oil and water.

Pump size is also determined by the depth and weight of the oil being removed, with deeper extraction requiring more power to move the increased weight of the discharge column. A pump jack converts the rotary motion of the motor to a vertical reciprocating motion to drive the pump shaft, and is exhibited in the characteristic nodding motion. This design has been employed in stationary engine designs going back to the 18th and 19th centuries.