TSE and Fusible Plugs
- Lucas Comeaux
- Feb 24
- 1 min read
If you're new to tubing fitting and get tasked with running "TSE lines", here's some info that might be helpful:
1. TSE stands for Temperature Safety Element. TSE lines are often pneumatic fire loops, common on offshore O&G platforms and onshore facilities.
-These are sometimes in hydraulic circuits for onshore wellhead and pipeline shutdown valve applications.
2. Fusible plugs are angled downward over main equipment (wellheads, separators, pump motors on chemical injection skids, etc.) that could potentially catch fire. BSEE / API RP14C has requirements for quantity and placement.
3. In the event of a fire, a low-melting point alloy melts and the control circuit bleeds down, which then shuts in production and/or stops the equipment.
4. These are typically run with 3/8" stainless steel tubing (one main line tee'ing off to several fuse plugs) and common temperature ranges in Fahrenheit are 160, 212, 255, and 281.
-Various ranges are used because the plug's melting point must be above the highest expected operating temperature of the specific equipment, and some may be heated.
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