PETROLEUM BRANCH, AIME

Fidelity Union Building

Dallas, Texas
=~ 282-G
THIS IS A PREPRINT --- SUBJECT TO CORRECTION

A New Gas Lift System

By
R. Price vincent, Member AIME, and L. B. Wilder
Stanolind Oil & Gas Company
Tulsa, Oklahoma

Publication Rights Reserved

This paper is to be presented at the Fall Meeting of the Petroleum Branch, American Institute of
Mining and Metallurgical Engineers, in Dallas, Texas, October 19-21, 1953, and is considered the prop-
erty of the Petroleum Branch. Permission to publish is hereby restricted to an abstract of not more than
300 words, with no illustrations, unless the paper is specifically released to the press by the Branch
Publications Committee Chairman or the Executive Secretary on his behalf. Such abstract should contain
appropriate, conspicuous acknowledgements. Publication .lsewhe~~ after publication in Journal of Petro-
leum Technology is granted on request, providing proper credit is given that publication and the origi-
nal presentation of the paper.
Discussion of this paper is invited. Three copies of any discussion should be sent to the Petro-
1e1m Branch Office; it will be presented at the above meeting with the paper and considered for publi-
cation in Journal of Petroleum Technology.

ABSTRACT The increasing availability of natural gas in

A system for intermittent or continuous gas
lift which uses rubber balls as pistons to prevent
wasteful gas slippage is described. Two parallel
strings of tubing are used. The rubber balls are
forced down one. string and the production is lifted
up the other. The rubber balls are separated from
the oil and gas at the surface and reinjected with
the lift gas by a special mechanism. at the surface.
Field Tests indicate that the pump offers an eco-
nomical solution for pumping wells where low pro-
duction, foamy crude, high gas-oil ratio, deep
n-roduction, or corrosion is a problem. One unique
3.tureof the pump is that adjustments and repairs
can be made at the surface by one or two men with-
out the use of heavy equipnent.
INTRODUCTION
Finding a method to economically produce low
fluid level, low production wells is becoming a
more urgent problem each year. High lifting costs
for wells of this type produced by generally used
methods results from these causes: frequent pull-
ing jobs due to rod failures, tubing wear, pump
replacement; paraffin troubles; corrosion; low
efficiency in handling gassy or foamy crudes; and
improperly adjusted equipment. Hydraulic subsur-
face pumping units and intermittent gas lift al-
leviate some of these problems, but they are not
universally useable because of limitations peculiar
to each. In an effort to find a lift system solv-
ing as many of the problems of pumping as possible,
the Stanolind Research Department made an investi-
gation of several possible methods of lift. One
method developed has been called the "ball pump",
and will be described here.
oil fields, either from gas wells, or from gas
compression plants used for secondary recovery
projects, existing rotative gas lift systems, gaso-
line plants, or transmission facilities, indicated
that new developnent should be directed toward
using gas as the lifting medium. By eliminating
all reciprocating parts in the hole, gas lift re-
moves the cause of many troubles of conventional
pumping. However, existing intermittent gas lift
systems have certain weaknesses which need improve-
ment. For instance, though recent developnent of
wire-line removable gas lift valves have lessened
the need for pulling tubing for repairs or adjust-
ments, low gas lift efficiency is still a problem.
The efficiency is affected by the depth of the lift,
the kind of fluid lifted, and the spread between
the opening and closing pressures of the working
gas lift valve. Paraffin control is also a serious
problem.
A new gas lift system, to be attractive eco-
nomically, should therefore offer these features:
1. All controls, adjustments, and repairs nec-
essary for operating the lift must be made
easily and quickly at the surface by one or
two men without heavy servicing equipnent or
special tools.
2. If possible, the initial installation should
serve the well to depletion without being
removed regardless of how the production
characteristics may change during its life.
3. The lift must be made with low gas volume
requirements at reasonable pressures.
4. Lifting efficiency should be independent of
the characteristics of the well produced
fluids - foaming crudes, suspended sand, water,
 2 A NEW GAS LIFT SYSTEM
and high produced gas volumes all should be
handled easily.
5. Paraffin accumulation should be prevented.
6. Inhibitors for control of corrosion must be
able to reach all portions of the system.
7. Production should be possible in the deepest
wells.
8. The pump should lift low gravity crudes.
We believe that the ball pump gas lift system
fulfills these requirements with only one major
disadvantage: two strings of tubing are required.
This disadvantage, however, has been accepted by
the industry for dual completions and other means
of lift for several years, and it is believed that
the advantages of the ball pump will more than off-
set the additional cost of the extra string of
tubing.
The ball pump is a gas lift system which
eliminates any slippage of gas through the liquid
production by providing a solid interface or piston
between the liquid being lifted and the lift gas.
The solid interfaces used in present installations
are synthetic rubber balls of tubing bore diameter.
A ball is forced by compressed gas down one string
of tubing and returns up another string of tUbing,
bringing with it the load of liquid swept from the
accumulation chamber formed by the junction of the
two tubing strings. The balls are separated from
the well production and reinjected into the well
in a cycling system. A more detailed description
of the pump follows.
DESCRIPTION OF BALL PUMP
The elements of a typical ball pump are list-
ed below and shown in Figure 1.
(a) The power tubing through which the com-
pressed lift gas is injected.
(b) A constriction landed in a special seat-
ing collar that is permanently installed
in the power tubing at approximately the
working fluid level. The constriction
is easily removed without pulling the
tUbing if changing well characteristics
require a larger or smaller constriction.
The rubber balls will pass through this
constriction when the pressure in the
power string is raised SUfficiently.
(c) A liquid accumulation chamber beneath
the constriction with a return bend at
the bottom through which the balls pass
into the production tubing. The return
bend is located far enough below the
constriction to permit the desired load
per cycle to accumulate in the chamber.
The accumulation chamber may be simply
a continuation of the power and pro-
duction tubing, as shown in Figure 1, or
it may be a large chamber of near casing
size as shown in Figure 5. A small vent
line just below the constriction permits
gas in the power arm side of the chamber
282-G
to be bled into the production tubing,
thus insuring equal fill-up in both legs
of the chamber.
(d) A wire-line removable standing valve be-
neath the return bend which keeps lift
gas pressure off the fonnation.
(e) A production string of tubing through
which the liquid is lifted to the surface.
(f) A hopper at the top of the pump assembly
which collects the balls behind the lifted
slugs of liquid and accumulates then for
reinjection in the power tubing.
(g) A pressure-operated, specially designed
ball pump head which injects a single
ball into the power tubing ahead of each
charge of injected gas.
(h) Standard pressure-reducing regulator,
time-controlled valve for intermittently
admitting injection gas to the pump, and
a flow line connected to the gathering
system.
(i) A supply of gas at a pressure dependent
primarily upon the productivity of the
well.
DESCRIPTION OF OPERATING CYCLE FOR INTERMITTENT
LIFT
The operating cycle in which balls and gas are
injected into the power tubing and the oil lifted
from well is illustrated in the sequence of draw-
ings, Figures 1 through 4.
Figure 1 shows the fill-up period of the oper-
ating cycle. A slug of liquid has just been de-
livered to the surface, and the lift gas in the
production tubing is expanding to separator pres-
sure. Liquid from the annulus is flowing into
the accumulation chamber through the standing
valve because of the pressure difference caused
by the head of oil in the annulus. lllring fill-
up time the intermitter valve is closed, and the
vertical valve in the ball pump head has dropped
open by gravity since the pressure differential
across it has been equalized by the bleed con-
nection. The inclined deflector on the vertical
valve has directed Ball 2 into the horizontal
passageway where it rests against a slight con-
striction. The balls fit loosely in the stQrage
hopper and fall by gravity from where the oil
enters the flow line. The horizontal valve in the
ball pump head is closed, and gas pressure suffi-
cient to lift the next load of oil is trapped in
the power string between the valve and Ball 1 at
the constriction.
In Figure 2, the intermitter valve has opened
and directed gas beneath the. lightweight vertical
valve, carrying it upward against its seat and pre-
venting injection gas from escaping into the flow
line or production tubing. The valve lifts the
Balls 3, 4, 5, and 6 above it, leaving only Ball 2
in the horizontal passageway. The radial clearance
around the vertical valve permits the free flow
of gas to open the horizontal valve and carry
282-G R. PRICE VINCENT AND L. B. WILDER
Ball 2 into the power tubing.
In Figure 3, the horizontal valve is held
open temporarily by the gas flow and Ball 2 is
carried down the tubing, compressing the gas be-
tween Balls 1 and 2 to a pressure sufficient to
force Ball 1 through the constriction, this pres-
sure being called the "pop-through pressure". Pop-
through, depending on the size of the constriction,
can be controlled to occur anytime during the
second ball's travel through the top half of the
pewer tubing, and the pop-through pressure may thus
vary from one to two times the pressure used to
lift each slug of liquid. The time available for
actual lift will determine what pop-through pres-
sure to use.
In Figure 4, Ball 1 has passed through the
constriction and is carrying the oil up the pro-
duction tubing. The intermitter valve closes when
sufficient gas has been admitted into the power
tUbing behind Ball 2 to lift the next load of
liquid. If the intermitter valve is adjusted to
stop injecting gas when Ball 2 is halfway down, and
the constriction is sized to let Ball 1 pop through
simultaneously, the lift is accomplished by ex-
pansion of gas in the power tubing alone. At the
other extreme, if Ball 1 popped through when Ball 2
entered the power tubing, the intermitter valve
would have to remain open during the entire lift
cycle until the load reached the surface and Ball 2
reached the constriction, and the lift would be
straight displacement at the gas injection rate
with no lift by gas expansion. In practice, the
lifts are between these extremes - BallI will pop
through the constriction before Ball 2 is halfway
dOwn, and the gas injection will continue after
pop-through. The lift is thus by a combination of
displacement and expansion, and neither the timing
of the injection period nor the size of the con-
striction is critical. In any case, the quantity
of gas injected is the same. When the intermitter
valve closes, the horizontal valve is closed by
~he spring and is held closed by the differential
pressure that develops across its seat as the pres-
sure in the ball-injecting head bleeds to the sepa-
rator. The operational cycle is complete when the
load reaches the surface, and the fill-up time of
the next cycle begins.
Figure 5 shows a bottom hole assembly using an
accumulation chamber. The surge of gas which fol-
lows the ball through the constriction depresses
the column of oil down the large tube and up the
small tube. Tests· have shown that very little oil
is left in the accumulation chamber when the ball
enters the small tubing at the return bend. The
operation of the pump equipped with an accumulation
chamber is the same as outlined above. This also
permits greater production with the same fluid
level.
The importance of the constriction in this
system of intermittent gas lift should be noted.
Without the constriction, the injection gas re-
quirements would be doubled since the gas in the
3
power tUbing would expand uselessly after the load
had reached the surface, and the time required for
the lift gas to escape from the tubing down to
separator pressure would be doubled. Also, with
the constriction there is always a ball at the
bottom ready to lift a load of oil as soon as it
has accumulated.
OPERATION OF THE PUMP FOR CONTINUOUS LIFT
While the original conception of the ball pump
was for use in intermittent lift of low fluid level
wells, the pump has important advantages for con-
tinuous lift of large volumes of fluid from high
fluid level wells. To produce wells of this type,
the physical equipment of the ball pump is identical
with that used for intermittent gas lift except.
that the constriction is not used and that the re-
turn bend is set several joints below the working
fluid level of the well. The distance the return
bend is set below the working fluid level will de-
pend on the producing characteristics of the well
and the available lift gas pressure. The operation
of the ball pump in high fluid wells is illustrated
by Figure 6. A number of rubber balls separated
by a quantity of gas fills the power tUbing. Hence-
forth, each time a ball and a quantity of gas is
added by the ball injector valve at the surface,
one ball and a quantity of gas is forced from the
power tubing into the production string. The
quantity of gas injected can be controlled so that
the combination of the lift gas and the well's pro-
duced gas can maintain an over-all gradient in the
production string low enough to permit the well to
produce at the desired rate.
It is realized that the production of high
fluid level wells by present continuous lift
methods is very efficient; however, there are some
advantages to be gained by using the ball pump.
The ball pump offers a means of utilizing all of
the lift energy of both the produced gas and the
injected gas, since the balls act as pistons to
prevent gas from by-passing the liquid. Also,
corrosion is sometimes a problem in wells of this
type since large quantities of salt water may be
produced, and inhibitor can be injected into the
power tubing at the surface where it will be circu-
lated throughout the well tUbing. FUrther, the
annular space between the tubing and the casing can
be treated easily since this space is not used for
lift gas storage.
Wells in a depletion type reservoir with high
producing gas-oil ratios and paraffin problems
are particularly well suited to this type of lif.t.
In a well of this type, the ball pump installation
should be made when the bottom hole pressure has
declined to the point where occasional swabbing
is necessary to keep the well flowing. No con-
striction would be installed in the tubing in-
itially, and the occasional cleanout of the tubing
could be done by circulating a single ball to swab
out the paraffin and excess liquid. The frequency
of the swabbing cycle and the quantity of gas used
may be increased as the bottom hole pressure
4 A N»l GAS LIFf SYSTEM
declines, until finally the production is by the
continuous lift previously described. If' later the
well's bottom hole pressure further declines and
the gas production is also insufficient to lift the
oil, the well can be converted to intermittent li!'t
simply by dropping in the proper size constriction.
FIELD TESTS OF THE BALL PUMP
Well No.1
The initial installation of the ball pump was
made in West Texas in a field having no difficult
pumping problems. The field was considered well
suited for beam pumping - the pumping depth of
4,500 feet and the production of about 20 BOPD were
moderate conditions for the operation of the pump.
No water and little gas was produced, and the
paraffin accumulations were handled easily by use
of scrapers on the rod string and an occasional
hot oil treatment.
This well was chosen for the first test of the
ball pump because it had recently been used to test
a gas lift plunger and several types of gas lift
equipnent, and a reliable comparison of this new
gas-lift method with other lift methods could be
made. The volumetric efficiency obtained with each
method is as follows:
Intermittent Gas Lift Eguipnent
Ball Pump Tm A TyPe B Type D
. 83% 57% 48% 21%
The volumetric efficiency shown here is the
ratio of the minimum theoretical quantity of gas
required to lift the liquid compared to the qu.antit
of gas actually used. Volumetric efficiencies of
80 to 85% are readily achieved and will require in-
put gas injection ratios in the order of 200 to 250
ft3 /bbl/lOOO !'t of lift.
Well No.2
The second ball pump was installed in a 6,900-
foot well in Central Oklahoma. The well selected
was nearing the end of its natural now stage, it
being necessary to swab it into production about
twice monthly, and production had averaged 6 barre
of oil and 17 barrels of water per day. Production
after installation of the pump increased to 8
barrels of oil and 50 barrels of water per day, but
soon declined to 3 barrels of oil and 26 barrels
of water per day. Since the water production had
to be trucked from the lease, the well was shut in
before reliable efficiency tests could be made.
Short tetm tests indicated a lift gas ratio of
1,500 ftJ/bbl., or 218 ft 3/bbl/lOOO ft of lift.
Well No.3
The third installation of a ball pump was made
in a well in East Central Oklahoma. It was antici-
pated that the producing characteristics of this
282-0
well would vary widely during its life. This proved
to be the case, and numerous minor changes were made
in the design in order to adapt the mechanical parts
of the pump to the different conditions which oc-
curred.
A secondary recovery program had been in
progress some months before the installation of the
pump. This well was located in the center of a
lenticular fomation and was 1600 feet deep. The
production from this well between the time the
pump was installed to date is of interest because
it illustrates the widely varying conditions which
the pump can accommodate without any change in the
lIUbsurface equipnent. The production of this well
for the first few months was from 2 to 3 barrels
per day with no measurable quantity of gas or water.
After a Hydrafrac treatment, the production in- .
creased during the next few months to an average
of 300 barrels per day with a produced GOR of 560
ft3/bbl and an insignificant increase of water.
!».ring this period of high gas production, the
ball pump continued to pump an average of 250 bbls
per day, whereas in a neighboring well with
identical producing characteristics, the high voll--.':
of produced gas lowered the efficiency of a sucker
rod pump to the extent that only 70 barrels per
day of oil could be produced.
Well No.3 is at the present time producing at
a daily rate of 30 barrels of oil, ~ barrels of
water and the produced GOR is 100 ft /bbl of oil.
The gas lift input r~tio in this well is currently
approximately.325 ft-'/bbl/lOOO ft of lift. This
higher ratio results from the necessity of oper-
ating with very frequent lift cycles because it is
desirable in this instance to maintain the maximum
possible drawdown.
Two more wells are currently under test and
plans for six more are being formulated.
ANNULUS UNLOADING OPERATION
The ball pump shares with other intermittent
gas lift systems the problem of unloading the oil
which accumulates in the casing during a shut-in
period. In example Well No. 1 pressure controlled
gas-lift unloading valves were installed on the
production tubing, and the well was unloaded to
the working fluid level by injecting gas into the
annulus. Gas lift valves are a possible source of
leaks or other malfunctions which could necessitate
pulling the dOUble string of tubing from the well
to make repairs, so this method should be avoided
if at all possible. Elimination of the need foI'
pulling tubing was one of the primary design
objectives of the ball pump.
Example Well No. 2 was swabbed into initial
production since the available gas pressure was
sufficient to unload the well after shut-down
periods of a day or so. The unloading problem
on this high-bottom hole pressure, low PI well
was thus simple.
 282-G R. PRICE VINCENT AND L. B. WILDER
On the shallow Well No.3, sufficiient gas pres
sure was available on the lease to unlbad the well
even with the hole full of liquid, though most
locations will not be so fortunately situated.
Methods for unloading the ball puinp other than
the above mentioned gas lift valves, swabbing or
high pressure gas are under consideration at the
present time. The aim is to devise a method that
will simplify the unloading procedure without sacri
ficing the reliability and simplicity of the pump-
ing operation.
MEASURING INJECTION GOR
Measurement of the gas injected can be accu-
rately made in a ball pump installation without the
use of orifice meters. The cubic_feet of gas at
discharge pres-sure used per cycle is simply the
volume of gas in the power tubing between the ball
on the constriction and the surface. This gas
volume converted to standard conditions times the
cycles per day gives the daily gas consumption.
single pen pressure recorder may be used to re-
~ord pressure and count the cycles.
Gas measurements for continuous lift are more
difficult since the gas ia injected in .intermittent
surges of short deviation. Also, measurements of
the combined produced gas and injected gas are
difficult because of the heading nature of the gas
flow.
J
5
RUBBER BALLS
The rubber balls used in the ball pump are made
of two different types of synthetic rubber, Type A
and Type B. furometer hardness of the balls used
have varied from 45 to 65, Shore scale. The hard-
ness of the balls can be used as an index in ad-
justing the differential pressure required to pop
a ball through the constriction, the harder the
ball for a given diameter constriction, the higher
the pop-through pressure.
Type A synthetic is preferred to the Type B
Hycar because of its greater abrasion resistance
and better resilience. However, some of the crude
oils pumped caused the Type A synthetic to swell
and deteriorate and Type B must be used if this is
the case. Three rubber companies are actively
working to develop balls with improved qualities -
a Type A which is more resistant to oil and a more
resilient and abrasion resistant Type B synthetic.
Balls have never been a serious problem, how-
ever. The Type B balls used in the West Texas well
gave dx weeks- service, each ball traveling 2,680
miles to lift 140 barrels at a cost of 0.9 cents
per barrel. Type A balls in the shallow Oklahoma
well gave up to thirty days' service each traveling
990 miles to lift 850 barrels at a cost of 0.10
cents per barrel.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
The authors of this paper are grateful to the
management of Stanolind Oil and Gas Company for
permission to present this paper.
 BETWEf LIFTS INJECTING BALL
__ FLOW LINE

...-BLEED VALVE

_VERTICAL VALVE CLOSING

,...--INTERM ITTER OPEN

\.. E42>.
, r I h GAS SUPPLY PRESSURE
, (i) GAS SUPPLY PRESSURE
(h) INTERMITTER CLOSED
... a TUBING HANGER
WELL HEAD
SEPARATOR PRESSURE
-
(e) PRODUCTION TUBING
(SEPARATOR PRESSURE)
DISCHARGE PRESSURE
(a) POWER TUBING
(DISCHARGE PRESSURE)
CASING
(BOTTOM HOLE PRODUCING PRESSURE)
(D) CONSTRICTION AND SEATING
'NIPPLE FOR CONSTRICTION
GAS VENT FOR
EQUAL FILL-UP

_~:I"---WORKING FLUID LEVEL

(e) RETURN BEND OF

ACCUMULATION CHAMBER
(d) WIRE-LINE REMOVABLE
STANDING VALVE OPEN RETURN BEND

,~X~~~~~~~L--~i~~D~~~EV~~~~VABLE
FIG. I .~ CLOSED FIG. 2
 BALL POP-T~ )UGH LIFT CONDITION

~~GAS BLEED
VERTICAL VALVE CLOSED
N---- VERTICAL VALVE CLOSED
-. HORIZONTAL VALVE OPEN
r- I HORIZONTAL VALVE CLOSED
INTERMITTER OPEN
INTERMITTER CLOSED
'vn;j J~

SUPPLY PRESSURE

41 POP-THROUGH PRESSURE

2~'" BALL HALFWAY DOWN

DISCHARGE PRESSURE

.. I POP- THROUGH PRESSURE

DISCHARGE PRESSURE

BALL START ING BALL APPROACHING

CONSTRICTION
lr.-~ THROUGH CONSTRICTION
-.:=:I::-_-:..~-- --

__ : =I:-:J:.: _-1"::
_.. ':=:1:"~1::: ...
_ .::' ~L-_-"':I:::1;:
STANDING VALVE CLOSED

STANDING VALVE CLOSED

FIG. 3 FIG.4
 ACCUMULATION CHAMBER CONTINUOUS LIFT
FOR BALL PUMP

- ---.-....=--=:JoI--- PRODUCT ION

POWER TUBING
1.1 I PRODUCTION TUBING
. - - - BLEED VALVE
REMOVABLE CONSTRICTION
INTERMITTER OPENS
/~AND CLOSES FREaUENTLY
/
.--- POWER TUBING
ENDS HERE

~S SUPPLY
DIA.= 2.5 X TUBING DIA.

~-+-~ I I SHORT COLUMNS OF L I au I 0

LARGE DIA. TUBE MERGES INTO

THE PRODUCTION TUBING IN A
180 0 BEND

STAND ING VALVE OPEN

FIG. 5 --/ FIG. 6