bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Deep Drilling Practice in California
Authors: Garrison Robert H. 
Published: June 2014

The Miley Oil Co.'s Athens No. 6, completed at 7591 ft., is the deepestproducing oil well in the world as well as the deepest hole ever drilled withthe rotary. The importance of this well lies in the fact that it was not afreak hole drilled with special equipment at terrific cost to break records, but that it was just a part of the day's work. The derrick and machinery weresimilar to dozens of other rigs, the drillers were the same men that had beendigging 4000-ft. holes, and the careful supervision of Superintendent Allisonwas the same that the rotary seems to require at all depths. The formationspenetrated were not particularly hard and were of the same type found in mostof the fields in the Los Angeles Basin. Drilling was completed in LowerPliocene, with no indication of approaching the Miocene. This tends to showthat the ultimate depth of drilling in many parts of the Los Angeles Basin willbe determined by mechanical rather than geological considerations.

Details of Equipment and Procedure
Two hundred and thirty days were consumed in completing Athens No. 6, ofwhich 172 were actual drilling days, thus maintaining an average of 44 ft. perdrilling day. Only Hughes "Simplex" rock bits were used below 4526 ft., no twist-offs occurring past this point. One hundred and fifty-four cores weretaken, yielding a total of 1067 ft. drilled, an average of 6.9 ft. per run.Seven hundred and forty feet of core were extracted, an average of 4.8 ft. perrun, the percentage of recovery being 69.2 per cent. The Elliott Core DrillingCo. Alco type barrel was used. The average time per round trip at depths in theneighborhood of 7000 to 7500 ft. was 7 hr. The minimum time recorded for acomplete round trip was 5 hr. 20 min. at a depth of about 7300 ft. The totalcost of the well, including tanks, traps and all production equipment, was $170,423.67.
Production difficulties proved to be mostly imaginary. Seventy-five hundredfeet of 2 1/2-in. tubing with a flow device at 7000 ft., through which dry gasis infused at a pressure of 300 lb., is sufficient to lift the 100 bbl. of 36.0gravity oil of which the well is at present capable.
The Gas Lift Method of Pumping Oil Wells
Authors: McLaughlin R.P. 
Published: June 2014

The name "gas lift" has a new and unfamiliar sound in oil-fieldpractice and may, therefore, require an introduction or definition. The processshould become the subject of engineering discussions in order to dispel generalmisunderstanding.
The gas lift is simply a modified form of the air lift, which has been usedfor many years in raising water from wells, is familiar to Gulf Coast oiloperators and was used considerably in California a number of years ago. Thegas lift differs from the air lift in that natural gas is used as the liftingmedium instead of air.
Gas is used instead of air chiefly because it helps to save and recovernatural gasoline and such natural gas as accompanies the oil. The gasoline, ornatural gas, would be wasted if carried out of an oil well by air because itwould be diluted with the air and form an explosive mixture which could not behandled by compressors. The saving of gasoline is one of the reasons upon whichthe patent covering the process was granted to Philip Jones in 1914.
Gas has a further advantage of not oxidizing or corroding the casing andtubing as air does, especially in the presence of sulfur.

What It Does
The gas lift is able to raise more oil from a well than any kind of a pump.Wells pumping 300 or 400 bbl. daily have been caused to produce more than 1000bbl. per day by the gas lift without injury to the wells.

Method of Action
In order to understand the method of operation and the limitations ofthe-gas-lift process, some consideration must be given to theories that havebeen investigated in connection with the air lift.
Problems of Pumping Deep Wells
Authors: Uren Lester  C. 
Published: June 2014

With the depletion of our older, and relatively shallow, oilfields and thenecessity for securing new production from deeper horizons, much attention isbeing given to the improvement of oil-well pumps in order that they mayfunction satisfactorily under the more difficult conditions imposed byincreased depth. Until recently, practically all of the world's petroleum wassecured from wells less than 3000 ft. deep, whereas horizons are now beingexplored to depths of from 5000 to 7000 ft. in some of the more prolificfields, and it seems probable that the greater part of the future supply mustcome from depths in excess of 3000 ft. While much of the early production in anew field is obtained by natural-flow methods, when the stimulus of high gaspressure fails, recourse must be had to some method of pumping. The perfectionof a pump capable of economically and efficiently lifting oil from depthsranging from 3000 to 7000 ft. is therefore a matter of prime importance to theoil-producing industry. This paper is offered as an estimate of the presentstate of development of the oil-well plunger pump and as a review of thegeneral principles involved in its operation in deep-well pumping. A design fora new type of oil-well pump embodying several novel features, is alsodescribed.

Essential Parts of Oil-Well Plunger Pump
The pump commonly used in lifting oil from wells in American practice is ofthe simple displacement type, in which a plunger equipped with a working, ortraveling, valve is given a vertical reciprocating motion in a stationaryworking barrel. The latter is suspended from the surface by tubing, submergedin the well fluid, and is equipped at its lower end with a stationary standingvalve; Figs. 1 and 2 illustrate two common types of oil-well pumps. The simplecup-leather packed plunger of Fig. 1 has its counterpart in the long, hollow, cylindrical, polished steel plunger of Fig. 2; otherwise the two types areidentical in the form and arrangement of their essential parts.
Cleaning Oil Wells by Compressed Air
Authors: Beard A.A. , Bonnell R.A. 
Published: June 2014

About three years ago, I.L. Dunn, of Marietta, Ohio, found that wells couldbe cleaned by blowing with compressed air; this method has been used with greatsuccess on many wells in the Marietta, Ohio, district, where compressed air isbeing used to increase production by forcing oil through the depleted sands.About a year ago, the process was successfully used to clean out wells in theLenapah pool in Oklahoma, where an air plant had been installed, under thesupervision of I.L. Dunn. Wells from 900 to 1000 ft. deep, with 40 ft. of sandand cavings in them, were cleaned out in from two to three days.
The use of this process had, so far, been limited to properties using theSmith-Dunn process, where compressed air, under suitable pressure and volume, was available. For other properties, a portable compressor seemed essential;this was built and successfully demonstrated by Mr. Dunn, for the Tidal Oil Co.in September, 1924.
The process of cleaning out with air has been described. It consists oflowering the tubing into the well, with a shoe or nipple of heavy pipesubstituted for the perforated anchor on the bottom. Into the tubing, compressed air is introduced through a rotary swivel hose at the top, or bymeans of swing connections. The tubing is lowered to the top of the cave to becleaned out, several barrels of water are put into the hole, and the compressedair is turned on. This blows out the material between the casing and thetubing, the tubing being lowered as the material is removed.
By this means, the shale cavings, loose sand, rocks, paraffin and othersubstance can be blown out in a surprisingly short time, and more completelythan is possible by drilling tools and sand pumps. Any rocks large enough topass out of the hole will be ejected and larger rocks can usually be crushed bymeans of the heavy nipple or shoe, on the bottom of the tubing, which can beraised and lowered by a winch. For the shallowest wells, 100-lb. pressure canbe used, though not with entire satisfaction. For deeper wells, greaterpressure and volume are needed, though not in direct proportion to the depth.Wells as deep as 2800 ft. were cleaned out in Wyoming by high-pressure air.
Cleaning Oil Wells by Heated Oil
Authors: Knox William J. 
Published: June 2014

There are over 200,000 oil wells in the United States that average less thana barrel of oil a day. Many of these wells are old - 25 years and over - yetthey penetrate and give access to unmined reserves of great potential value.The leading men in the industry in recent years have regarded as inevitable animprovement in producing methods by which a more satisfactory recovery could behad.

Conditions in Settled Fields
The rock pressure in settled fields has become practically nil, the "paysand" is fine-grained with porosities of capillary size, the rocktemperature is such that the oil is thick and viscous, the capillary resistancealmost equals the force of gravity and it is a wonder that any oil at allreaches the well.
The average spacing of wells is about one well to eight acres. This is about 600 ft. apart. The sand immediately around the bore of the well, which hasacted as a strainer for all the oil produced from the eight acres, in thecourse of time becomes clogged up by the heavy compounds in the oil passingthrough it. If there is a flow or tendency of movement of the oil in thestratum, why should the oil flow through this small clogged area into the well? Still with the initial flush production and years of dribbling, an average of 20 per cent of the oil is recovered.

Method of Cleaning Wells
Most methods of cleaning oil wells have had for their objective thedeparaffining of the wells. The so-called paraffin base oils, as of Pennsylvania, leave a deposit of paraffin wax in the face of the sand andparaffin wax accumulates in the well itself and on the face of the pay sand, sensibly retarding the flow of oil. Almost no attempts have been made to cleanwells producing an asphalt base oil.
All methods of cleaning, however, are beneficial and temporarily greatlyincrease the production, but they are all costly and of temporary value. The chief objection is that in every case the well must be shut down, the pumptubing and rods pulled and the treatment given. Then the well is restoredphysically to a producing condition and left to get dirty and plugged upagain.
History of Production of Salt Creek Oil Field, Wyoming
Authors: Estabrook Edward L. , Rader Clarence M. 
Published: June 2014

The Salt Creek oil field in Natrona County, Wyo., is the largest pool thathas been found in the Rocky Mountain region and one of the largest in theUnited States. Many features of its production records are of peculiarinterest, because of the unusual slowness with which it has been developed.This paper is published by the permission of the Midwest Refining Co., whoserecords have been freely drawn upon. Many members of the Midwest organizationhave assisted in the collection of the material, but Messrs. F. E. Wood and L.E. Smith have been particularly helpful.
The Salt Creek oil field is situated on a great dome with a closure of about1500 ft., which rises at the northern end of along anticline extendingnorth-northwest by south-southeast for fully 25 miles. The productive areaincludes parts of townships 39 and 40 north and ranges 78 and 79 west of thesixth principal meridian. The Teapot oil field occupies a minor dome at aboutthe center of the same anticline and adjoins the Salt Creek oil field on thesoutheast. The Teapot Naval Reserve includes the Teapot Dome and about 760acres of the Salt Creek dome. In this paper, the Salt Creek oil field will beconsidered as including all of the dome, except that part which lies within theTeapot Naval Reserve and the area west of the dome where oil is produced fromshale crevices.

Geology
The geology of the Salt Creek oil field has been fully described byWegemann. The dome is outlined by an escarpment of Shannon sandstone with bedsof the Colorado shale, Upper Cretaceous, outcropping in the center.
Mining Petroleum in France and Germany
Authors: Rice George S. , Davis John A. 
Published: June 2014

The Pechelbronn Oil Field
The Pechelbronn oil field is located in the province of Alsace, in the RhineValley, about 30 miles north of Strasbourg. It is approximately 4 miles wideand 12 miles long, extending from the villages of Lobsann on the north toWintershausen and Ohlungen near Haguenau on the south. (See Fig. 1.) Theproductive area includes about 44,000 hectares (107,680 acres). The namePechelbronn signifies "pitchspring" or "pitch-fountain."
The first exploratory galleries were driven in from the hillside in 1735;and in 1745 the first official concession was granted by the French governmentand the first pit sunk to a depth of about 30 ft. Extraction by drilled wellswas begun in 1879, supplementing the mining operations, and during the next 10 years 200 wells were drilled to an average depth of 172 m. (568 ft.). Thebringing in of two "gusher" wells, in 1882 and 1888, respectively, wasfollowed by the abandonment of all underground work.
Underground mining, with a view to increasing the production of petroleum byrecovering the oil left in the sands after drilling wells, was resumed in 1916.This mining operation started by sinking shaft No. 1 to a depth of 150 m. (495ft.). The underground developments were pushed during 1917 and 1918 and theannual production of the Pechelbronn field was increased to about 50,000 metrictons or 350,000 bbl.
On the signing of the Versailles Treaty the province of Alsace, which hadbeen taken by Germany as the result of the war of 1870, was returned to France, and the proprietary rights were taken over by the French Government.Concessions or leases, which embraced all the known oil-bearing territory ofthe field were granted to the present operating company, Mines de Pechelbronn.This company followed both the drilling and the mining methods of the previouscompany.
Capillary Retention of Petroleum in Unconsolidated Sands
Authors: Uren L.C. , El-Difrawi A.H. 
Published: June 2014

Petroleum retained in oil-reservoir rocks after ordinary methods of recoveryhave ceased to be effective is held by capillarity and adhesion, both of whichresist its displacement. Capillarity retains minute filaments of oil in thesmaller pore spaces and acute interfacial angles between the sand grains.Adhesion results in the retention of a film of oil that completely encases eachindividual sand grain. In fine-grained sands and with the more viscous oils, high percentages of the original oil content of the reservoir rock may thus beretained by the operation of these two forces, after the expelling force due toexpanding natural gas has been dissipated. Improved processes designed torecover a larger percentage of the oil content of the reservoir sand must bepredicated on a proper understanding of the magnitude and mode of operation ofthese two forces.
This paper records the results of a theoretical and experimental study ofthe retentive effects of capillarity on crude petroleum in unconsolidatedsands. The physical factors responsible for the capillary attraction of sandfor oil are first reviewed. The results of a series of laboratory experiments, designed to disclose the magnitude of the capillary force operative undervarying sand conditions and with different types of oils, are then presented.The experimental data are next used in the development and evaluation of amathematical formula which theoretically provides a means of computing themagnitude of the capillary force under any prescribed conditions. Finally, several practical applications for such a formula are discussed.

Physical and Mathematical Concepts of Capillarity
Capillarity may be defined as a natural phenomenon by virtue of which aliquid is drawn into and held by minute cavities in a solid substance. It is aforce which is developed by the combined action of the surface tension andcohesion of the liquid and the molecular attractions existing between theliquid and the solid substance composing the walls of the capillarycavities.
It is convenient to explain capillary force with reference to the rise of aliquid in a tube of capillary size.
Some New Aspects of the Gas Lift
Authors: Bennett E.O. , Sclater K.C. 
Published: June 2014

This paper is not intended as a theoretical treatise on the gas lift for oilwells, but is written with the object of pointing out a few new ideas whichhave been found practicable and economical for use in this much discussed butlittle used method of producing oil wells. Most of the ideas discussed wereworked out in the Panhandle field of Texas where the problems confrontinggas-lift operation are more numerous and difficult than those found in most oilfields of the United States. One of the principal reasons for the oilindustry's slowness to adopt gas-lift methods is due to the poor results firstobtained in trying to use methods of air lift for raising water in producingoil.
There are so many variables which enter into the design of a gas lift thateach well must be considered as an individual problem and analyzed accordingly.A careful study of results obtained by varying the controllable conditions willfurnish data for increasing the efficiency of an installation that cannot besuccessfully worked out by theoretical equations. The term"submergence" will not be used in this paper. "Submergence" hasbeen used to denote the depth of the lower end of the tubing or flow line belowthe static fluid level in the well. "Working submergence" has been usedto denote the submergence of the tubing or flow line during actual liftingoperations. Both of these have been quantitatively expressed in feet of fluidas required by their definition. The consensus of opinion of many productionengineers is that the term "working submergence" for water lifting withair is inadequate and meaningless when used in petroleum production, since"submergence" never actually exists in a flowing oil well. Theessential factors to be defined are the pressure involved and the rate of flowof fluid into the hole under these pressures. The pressures of importance arethe pressure in the formation, commonly called the "rock pressure," thegas-working pressure, and the pressure on the pay sand due to the fluid belowthe bottom of the tubing plus the working pressure required for the injectionof extraneous gas into the well. The differential pressure causing the flow offluid into the well bore is the difference between the static rock pressure andthe summation of the two variable pressures imposed upon the sand.
The Application of Pressure to the Elliott Pool, Nowata County, Oklahoma
Authors: Roth J.E. 
Published: June 2014

Because of the great vogue the pressure application to oil sands isundergoing now, it is interesting to follow the history of the first major airinstallation in the Mid-Continent field. In the spring of 1924 when this plantwas built there were no successful air plants operating in Oklahoma, althoughthree small gas drives were making a success. In Texas it had not been tried atall and so far as we know there were only five successful plants in Kansas.There were 12 failures in Kansas in the Chanute area at this time.
Now, just 2 years later, one finds upwards of 80 plants operating orbuilding in Oklahoma. In Kansas there are 22 successful plants, 7 failures (notmentioning the abandoned plants near Chanute) and 6 building, while Texas hasentered the race and now boasts 10 operating plants.
History of Elliott Pool Up to Time of Air Installation
The Elliott pool of some 605 productive acres of Bartlesville sand, liesmainly in Sec. 3, T. 27, R. 15 E. This is 4 miles west of the village ofLenapah on the Nowata-Coffeyville road and lies just north of the Delawareextension of the Nowata field.
From available records the discovery well was brought in during October,1909, with an initial production of 275 bbl., per day. The pool was drilled upduring the fall of 1910 and the spring of 1911. During this time 111 wells weredrilled, averaging about 250 bbl., per day, initial production. There was agood uniform gas pressure over the pool and some of the wells flowed.
In 1913 vacuum was applied and was probably successful, as it was continueduntil July 22, 1924, when air broke through into two wells causing the vacuumpumps to go down. They were never used after that date.
At the start of 1924 we find 82 producing wells averaging about 0.53 bbl. perday. It might be well to show here how close to the economic limit ofexhaustion this property had come. From a perusal of the available logs we findan average sand thickness of 38.8 ft. divided as follows: gas sand 15 ft., oilsand 20 ft., unproductive sand 3.8 ft.
Summarized Engineering Report on the Powell Field, Navarro County, Texas, with Special Reference to Water Problems and Corrective Work
Authors: Hill H.B. , Sutton Chase E. 
Published: June 2014

The detailed study of this field was made primarily to obtain a betterworking knowledge of the major features, involving structural conditions, character, and nature of the Woodbine pay sand, and the source of water.
The outstanding features in the development of the Powell field are:Rapidity of development;close spacing of wells;high initial yield ofwells;high peak production of field;sharp decline, andearly andrapid encroachment of water.
The nature of the field is also of special interest in that the Woodbineproduction is found at an average depth of approximately 3000 ft. in acomparatively narrow strip, approximately 7% miles long with an average widthof half a mile, or probably 10 locations wide. The surface elevations vary from300 to 440 ft. above sea level.
The oil is trapped between the fault on the west side, edge water on theeast, north and south, and a bottom water of high head and large volume on thehigh part of the structure. To recover this oil is a problem of great interestand importance in the development and operation of this type of field.
The subsea depth to which wells can be drilled with safety during thedevelopment period, is usually well defined by early completions and variesonly slightly over the entire productive area of each field. Controlling andhandling the water during the later producing period is the major problem ofthe operator.
Powell field shows primarily the effect of flooding by water incomparatively loose sands in a high flush production field.
This field offered an excellent example not only for studying the effects ofrapid drilling and development and the far more difficult problem ofencroachment and migration of water through a productive sand, but also forobserving and calculating with certain assumptions the percentage of recovery.It is not possible to determine the part of the high yield per acre thatproperly might be credited to rapid drilling versus the part recovered byflooding or washing the sand.