WorldWide Drilling Resource

24 SEPTEMBER 2022 WorldWide Drilling Resource® by Tim Rasmussen Some readers know that for two years, Water for Life has been trying out a new kind of pump. It is produced by a nonprofit engineering organization in Ohio called Design Outreach and sold under the name of LifePump™. It is a newer design produced especially for remote areas of the world with low static water levels. It has been installed with great success in many locations in Africa and the Caribbean. Some pumps have been in continuous operation for over eight years. The pump is designed to minimize wear on parts. The users turn handles somewhat like bicycle pedals mounted on a right-angle gearbox. This rotates a drive rod which is connected to the helix-shaped rotor underwater at the bottom of the hole. Also, at the bottom of the hole, is the elastomeric stator within which the stainless steel rotor turns. These two combined make what is called a progressive cavity pump (PCP). The ingenious design is extremely durable and as the rotor turns relative to the stator, pockets of water are pushed to the service by the rotation. The entire assembly that contacts water is made of stainless steel components. Water for Life has installed 12 of these pumps in very deep wells. Because of the design, the user does not have to lift the entire column of water as in more traditional pumps. The traditional pumps provide a higher volume of water, but are not useful with deeper wells where there is a lower static water level. Water for Life has contributed to the development of the design of the pumps by testing and using Schedule 120 PVC pipe instead of stainless steel. This reduces cost considerably. Design Outreach is very interested in what we have done and several of the engineers traveled to Guatemala to observe our installations and to see their pumps are working well for us. LifePump also has an optional remote monitoring device, named LifePumpLink™, with a satellite link which can be installed so purchasers can get pump usage reports and alerts via a mobile app for pumps in remote villages. Design Outreach has installed some of these devices so they can monitor the pumps as they are being used. Water for life is very happy to have partnered with them and encouraged by the success of the installations. They seem to solve the problems we have had in several areas where the pumps required rebuilding every two or three years. We will continue to install these pumps in villages where we can use them. They are more expensive, but the longevity and increased depth capacity far outweigh the cost increase. Water for Life wants to thank all our contributors and volunteers who have a heart to help others and make this work possible. If you would like to help, contact Gary Bartholomew at 509-939-1941 Tim Tim Rasmussen may be contacted via e-mail to michele@worldwidedrillingresource.com WTR September 21-22, 2022 ~ Make plans to attend the Increasing the Water Supply in the Colorado Basin Conference at the Franciscan Renewal Center in Scottsdale, Arizona. This conference will focus on bringing ocean water onto land for the purpose of revitalizing, in this instance, Arizona and the Colorado River Basin. To address global water issues, this conference will focus on all kinds of technologies and innovations to help bring ocean water onto land (desalination, water filtration, waste-to-energy plants, and more). Anyone interested in being part of this solution including, governments, financial institutions, engineers, lawyers, accountants, pipe companies, desalination plants and operators, real estate companies, agricultural companies, and all others who are able to see this future should attend. Register at www.intwater.org Are you planning to go? WorldWide will be looking for you!

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