Blackhawk pneumatic lifts quality groundwater samples from 700 feet (215 meters) below landfill surface
High standards are imperative when you’re operating a municipal solid-waste landfill handling 325,000 tons of waste generated annually by a population of more than 115,000 people living in a region famed for its highly scenic environment. After years of trying, the bar for quality performance at Deschutes County’s Knott Landfill in Bend, Oregon, was raised by finding the means to pump reliable groundwater samples from 700 feet (215 meters) below the surface with consistent results.
Deschutes originally used the baling method for purging and sampling groundwater. The results were inconsistent, with frequent "hits" in samples involving oil and debris. Since the groundwater is sampled every six months and monitored for compliance to an extensive list of requirements, this method proved problematic and time-consuming. There was no pump available on the market that could do the job. Electric pumps were too difficult to use; pneumatic pumps could not pump from 700 feet down. Consultants were brought in to analyze the situation and recommended that Blackhawk Technology be contacted to custom design and develop a pump for this difficult application.
Along with the Blackhawk came a new project manager. One of his first priorities was to conduct the first groundwater sampling using the new pneumatic. Unfortunately, during the initial sampling events, the pump hung up. Working in tandem, the landfill manager and Blackhawk worked toward a solution. "Blackhawk was very cooperative and the pump improved with each new round of sampling. Blackhawk was determined to give us a functional pump that would do what we required. They even did research on deep wells, which are primarily used in the petroleum industry and came up with new ideas for our situation. Blackhawk completely re-designed the drive motor, resulting in a substantially improved, easier to control unit. Now, the new pump installed does the job!"
The pump inlet is at the bottom of the pump, so that the pump acts like a syringe, sucking liquid into the pump with every stroke for highly reliable and consistent sampling. Liquid is pulled into the pump intake, and the pump operates consistently whether the pumping application is clean or dirty. The positive displacement action resists slowdown or stoppage even in the most sticky or oily situations. The pump drive mechanism is positioned on top of the wellhead enabling the operator to see whether the pump is running or not.
"The simplicity of the improved pump is excellent. There are so few moving parts in the well to cause problems. The controls on the top are very important, making it easy to install, inspect, trouble shoot, maintain and repair. The system is lightweight and easy to handle. We move the above-well drive motor from well to well. There is a dedicated downhole portion of the pump in each individual well, which eliminates any potential for cross-contamination. I’m actually looking forward to the next groundwater sampling event. After the last round I was very pleased," the manager said.
Blackhawk Technology Company’s pneumatic is specially designed to lift liquid from depths exceeding 800 feet deep and is ideal for pumping hot, dirty, silty, slimy materials...particularly oil, leachate and landfill gas condensate. Unlike other pumps, where discharge performances are limited to the inlet air pressure, the Blackhawk is designed to pump to the lowest possible level and can be installed in wells as small as 2" in diameter.
The Blackhawk pneumatic is a plunger pump, with a reciprocation action that mechanically recovers fluid from the well bottom, independent of the well’s liquid level, while maintaining a constant flow recovery rate. It features a top head drive oil well sucker rod pump that effectively recovers thick oily liquid. Its smooth controlled flow recovery has the ability to tune speed and strength of the recovery to the yield of the formation being pumped.
The Blackhawk pneumatic can be set for a flow range of 0 to 11 US GPM. Anchor Pumps feature top head mechanical-drive mechanisms and uncomplicated controls, making installation and on-site maintenance simple — even under the toughest conditions.