US1697321A - Self-contained gas anchor - Google Patents

Description

Patented Jan. l, 1929..

UNITED STATES BIALLA1\T 1\T. MARSH, OF LOS ANGELES, GAL1'EORNIA.

SELF-CON'IAINED GAS ANCI-IOR.

Application fi1ed Mary 31,

A type of gas anchor in common use at this time, consists essentially of a downward extension of the pump .suction, such extension being open at the bottom, and of a. shie1d placed therearound,-such shield being closed a.t the botom und substantially open at the top, the upper portion of the shield cornmunicating with the oil in the W611 casing; through slots 01' perforations formed in the shield.

In the gas ancho-rs of this type heretofore constructed the extensin 0 f the pump suction with constitutes the anchor proper has consisted of a1 pipe of suitable 1ength sorewed into or otherwise made fast to the, bottom of the standing va.1ve block, and the shield has consisted 0f a. suitable length 01: a la.rger size -of pipe made fast at its upper end in some suitable manner to t he bottom of the working barreL the tvvo pipes being concent1io and leaving an annula'r space therebetvveen throu,qh Which the 011 fiows downward ab a retarded veloeity for the separation of such gas as ma.y be entrainecl in the 0i1.

When building anchors of this type for use in wells ofverv small diameter the outside diameter of th e shield is rigidly limited und the thickness of the metal f-whic-h the concentric.tubes is composed is a materia.l proportion of the total transverse area of the anchor. -Inasmuch a's it is'highly desimble to retain the greatest possible availabletrans- Verse area. for the purpose of reducing t-he velocity 0f the 011 flowing through the zmchor t0 the greatest possible extent, it is desimble t0 use as little metal as possible in the Walls 01: the tubes 01' ohannels of which the anchor is composed.

I ha.ve discovered tlfit by-buildingan 2mchor having a shield of a diamet-er which the' well casing W111 freely admit, und forming the channel which constitutes the pump suction ext-ension inside this shield b-y a straight 0r curved partition Wall pla.ced therein, I not on1y reduce the transverse area. of metal Wall ;1s compared with the ordinary const-ruction of two concentric pipes, but also obta.in a materially better hydraulio radius 01' ratio 01 eross sectionzil area to perimeter of the downpass. The latter improvement is of material importance, not only in reducing loss of head due to friction, but also by reducing the turbulenee which acts to retard the separation of gas from 011 in the downpass.

A preferred manner of constructing my 1927. Serial N0. 195,552.

improved gas anchor is shown in the attached draw1ng 1n W111011 Figure 1 represents a. complete device attached 150 the working barrel of the pump.

Figure 2 is a cross section of Fig. 1 on the line 22 showing particularly the manner in which the partition Wall und the partition cap are inserted und made fast.

Figure 3 is a oross section of Figure 1 on the 1ine 33 in dicating particulafly the man ner in which the partition Will]. is inserted in the shield and Figure 4 is a. similar cross section illustrating an alternative shape of p-artition Wall.

It Will -be understood that these drawings are strictly diagrammatic and that I do not limit my 1nvention t0 the particular means shown for placi ng the partition in the shield, nor to any Curvature or particular curvature of the partition, 1101 t0 the particular means tfor attaching the shie1d to the pump.

Referring particularly to Figure l, 1 represents the 10wer end of the working barrel,

whitzh is s'crewed irito the coupling 4 by means 0f the threads 5, corresponding threads being formed in the upper end of coupling und on the lower end 0f the working banal. The

10wer end of the coupling may be recessed und the projecting end threaded as shown at 6, and corresponding internal threads formed in the shield 7 by which the shield may b e made fast 00 the coupling, 0r any other suitab1e or' preferred means of attaching the shield to the coupling may be used. Inside the shield 7 i's placed a partition 8 Which divides the shield into two parts. This partition may be placed in the shiel'd a.s shown at 99 in Fig. 2 by removing with a. flamme Gutshield as indica.ted at 10, und this piece Weld- 7 ed. to' the p-artition und to the wallof the shie'ald as indicated at 11. By following this procedure all points t0 be welded are readily a.ccessible to either .a gas 01' e1ectric welding cool and the structure shown m2.y be made up without encountering any mehanical difficulties, but I do not restrict myself 120 any particular mannen of inserting und closing ofl the partition inasmuch as there are numerous ways in which the partition may'be placed and ma.de fast which will suggest themselves to those skilled in the art.

'Ilhe partition which separates the narrow suctiqn extension from the wider downpass,

- ;cated at 12 and 13. These perforations should not extend fair enough around the shield that any of them would come on the narrow side whichconstitutes the up-pass. The perforations may be placed in two rings 01' bands as inclicated in the drawing, these bands being spaced a few inches apart, 01' they may be placed in a single band, as preferred. The size of the perforations shoulcl prefembly be about 4" for a 3 anchor though larger 01' smaller perforations may be used if desired. The total area of t-he perforations shoul'cl be not less than the transverse area of the downpass side 0f the anchor as indicated at 14:, and should preferably be t'wo 01 three times greater in total rea.

The uppass or pump suction channel formed in the shield, as at 15, should be as large as casing diameters Will permit. In ordinary cases the area Will correspon'd to the transverse internal area of a 1" 01 1 pipe.

The bottom of the shield may be close d by swaging the pipe of which it is composed down to the diameterof the next smaller pipe size, as indicated at 16, screwing it into the coupling 17 and blocking this coupling with the bull plug 18., but any other -suitable 01 preferre'd means for closing the bottom of the shield may be used, the manner ofclosing the shield ab this end being no part 0f my present invention.

In operation this anchor functions in tlie following manner. Oil flows into theperforations 13 from the space between the shield 7 and the we1lcasing, not shown, giving up a p0r ti0n of its entrained gas atthe point where itmakes a rightangle turn t0 enter such perforations. On entering the shield the oil again turns at a right angle and flows downward through the space 14, being prevented from passing into the pump suction by the partition cap 10. Because f the relatively large transverse area of the downpass 14 the flow of oil downward is so retarded that gas bubbles may rise through it by gravity und escape into the casing outside of. the shielcl through the perforations 125 the gas being prevented from passing int0 the pump suction by the partition 8 and rises through the up-pass 15 by which it is conducted into the chamber 16 and thence to the pump suction,

all as indicated by the directional arro-ws' placed on the drawing;

I claim as my invention:

A gas anchor, comprising: a tube adapted to form a longitudinal extension of a, pump barrel and to be attachd t0 an'd communicate With the lower end cf said barrel ab end only, and having its lower end close'd; a longitudin'al partition extending from Wall to Wall 0f said tube, j.oined t0 said wall' a1; its longitudinal e dges and dividing said tube into two longtudinal channels of unequal area, said partition terminating atits upper end at a point below the upper end of said tube and at itslower end at a poinbabove the lower end of said tube so as to permit the Passage of liquid beneath the lower endmnd' 0ver the upper end of said partition; a elosure joining the upper end of said partition to a portion of the inner circumference '0f Said tube in suchmanner as to close the upper end 0f only the Wider of said unequal channels, and openings through said tube wallbeneath sai'd closure communicmting with said wider channel only and at substantially the upper end of said channel.

In witness that I claim the foregoin,g I

day of May, 1927.

HALLAN N. MARSH.

haVe hereunto subscribod my name this 23rcl its uppen

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