Megalex™ Composite Sucker Rods
Application
Sucker Rods for Oil pumping. Sucker rods are long, thin rods extending down into an oil well, attached at the surface to a pumping unit. They connect to a pump at the bottom of the well, often more than two (2) miles below the surface.
Previous Limiting Technology
Most sucker rods are made from heavy steel, steel rods are limited in fatigue strength— particularly in tension— and can limit how deep of a well can be pumped, simply due to the weight of the rods. Fiberglass rods are used in some applications, but they are limited in their load carrying capability and can only be used down to certain depths before their low stiffness becomes an issue.
Challenge
Our customer wanted to invent a sucker rod that was dramatically lighter, stronger, and more corrosion resistant than the steel or fiberglass rods in use today. Carbon fiber was an obvious candidate material due to its much lower density and high strength and stiffness. The challenge was devising a fitting that allows the carbon rods to be easily connected to form a long chain of rods. The fitting had to be as strong as the carbon rods and slender in shape to fit in the tube of the well.
Solution
Megalex™ Lightweight, High Strength Sucker Rods. After several design and test iterations we found a fitting that was strong enough as well as slender enough to fit in the narrow tubes that comprise the well. The rods are now being sold as Megalex™ and in are use in several wells across the US.
