The Performance of Sucker Rod Pump Based Artificial Lift System in Oil Reservoirs: A Review

Abstract

In many oil reservoirs worldwide, the downhole pressure may not be enough to lift the reservoir fluids up to the surface, especially with time progesses and the oil reservoir becomes more matured. In order to produce such reservoir fluids, pumps are often installed to artificially lift such oils; such techniques are called as artificial lift methods. More than 70% of all currently producing oil wells are being produced by artificial lift methods. Sucker rod pump is considered as one of the most used artificial lift techniques due to many reasons. Sucker rod pumps are easy to apply, quite common worldwide, and low in capital and operational costs. Moreover, many advancements in this technology have been applied to improve the performance and the applicability of sucker rod pumps.With such advancements, it is important to conduct an updated review and guide to optimize and better understanding the performance of the sucker rod pumps. This research provides an updated comprehensive review of sucker rod pump components, diagnostics methods, and the screening criteria for the application conditions. In addition,  several field cases studies from oil wells worldwide are discussed in this research to highlight some of the key features of sucker rod pumps. Furthermore, the advantages and limitations of sucker rod pumps are investigated based on the updated review. The findings of this study can help in understanding the different types of sucker rod pumps, their properties, modeling and cost.