IEC 60079
Explosive atmospheres
Type of protections
Peter Thurnherr
thuba Ltd., Switzerland
IEC 60079
Explosive atmospheres – Part 0:
General requirements
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Test of enclosures
Test for enclosures shall be performed in the
following order:
• thermal endurance test to heat
• thermal endurance test to cold
• drop test, if applicable
• tests for resistance to impact
• tests for degree of protection
• any other tests required by this standard
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Thermal endurance test to heat
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Thermal endurance test to cold
The thermal endurance test to cold shall be
determined by submitting the enclosures and parts
of enclosures of non-metallic materials, on which the
type of protection depends, to storage for 24 h in an
ambient temperature corresponding to the minimum
service temperature.
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Resistance to impact
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IEC 60079
Explosive atmospheres – Part 1:
Equipment protection by
flameproof «d»
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General requirements
Enclosure must withstand resulting explosion
pressure without any deformation
Transmission of the flame prevented by the
toleranced flame paths
Gas group IIA, IIB or IIC depending on the MESG
Temperature class dependent on max. surface
temperature due to the heat loss of all components
T1-T6
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Width of joint and gap
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Design of the flameproof gaps
Width of
Gap
joint
Gas group IIA and IIB Gas group IIA, IIB and IIC Gas group IIA, IIB and IIC
(IIC not possible, since the gap is
widened in the event of an
explosion.
Ref. to 5.2.7 from IEC 60079-1)
Flat joint Cylindrical joint Threaded joint
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Flameproof enclosure IIC
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Width of joint and gap for IIC
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Cylindrical threaded joints
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Surface roughness < 6.3 μm
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IEC 60079
Explosive atmospheres - Part 2:
Equipment protection by
pressurization ‘p’
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Pressurization “p”
Gas
• Enclosure with industrial components
• Pre-purging according to gas measurement
(CO2 and helium) or 5 times the enclosure volume
• Switch on after pre-purging
• Continuous monitoring of the minimum pressure
• Minimum requirement 0.5 mbar)
• Switch-off corresponds to voltage cut-off
(max. values 1.5 Volt, 100 mA, 25 mW)
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Touch Screen TIF13
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IEC 60079
Explosive atmospheres - Part 7:
Equipment protection by
increased safety “e”
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Increased safety “e”
• No sparks or arcs in normal operation
• Maintenance of clearances and creepage distances
• No hot spots exceeding the temperature class
• Protection min. IP 54 (IP 44)
• Verification of dissipation power
• Requirements to be met by terminals
• Enclosure alloys
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Relationship between equipment
protection levels (EPLs) and zones
Zone Equipment protection levels (EPL)
0 Ga
1 Gb or Ga
2 Gc, Gb or Ga
EPL . . . Equipment Protection Level (EPL)
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Increased safety “e”
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Increased safety “e”
High mechanical stability No hot spots
No sparks or which exceed
arcs in normal the temperature
operation class
Minimum
Increased
protection
air gaps
IP 54
and creepage
distances
Terminals providing protection against self-loosening
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Clearances and creepage distances
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Clearance and creepage distances
Clearance distance
Shortest distance between conductive parts.
Creepage distance
shortest distance between conductive parts along an
insulating material surface.
When dimensioning the creepage distance, the CTI
value of the material and the surface structure are to
be taken into account.
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Dissipation heat
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Dissipation heat
• Nominal currents
• Cross-section
• Capacity utilization of the cross-sections
• Dimension of the terminal boxes
• Number of conductors and terminal connections
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Max. number of conductors in relation to
the cross section and continuous current
Current Cross-section in [mm²]
[A] 1,5 2,5 4 6 10 16 25 35
6 102
10 68 102
16 23 45 84
20 9 26 51 64
25 12 28 24 52
35 8 5 52 44
50 10 44
63 16
80
100
max.
number of 51 51 42 32 26 22
terminals
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Max. number of conductors in relation to
the cross section and continuous current
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Max. number of conductors in relation to
the cross section and continuous current
Cross section Current Quantity Utilization
mm² A
1.5 10 20 (von 68) = 30.0 %
2.5 16 4 (von 45) = 9.0 %
4.0 20 4 (von 51) = 8.0 %
Total 100 % = 47.0 %
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IEC 60079
Explosive Atmospheres – Part 11:
Equipment protection by
intrinsic safety “i”
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Standards
Standards regarding intrinsic safety:
• IEC 60079-11:2023 (equipment)
• IEC 60079-14:2013
(design, selection and installation)
• IEC 60079-25:2020 (intrinsically safe systems)
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Power and energy
Prevention of spark ignition by means of:
• limitation of the provided power by specific
barriers
• limitation of the stored energy in cables and field
devices
• prevention of an inadmissible increase of energy
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Elements of intrinsically safe circuits
Intrinsically safe circuits consist of:
• an associated apparatus (power supply - source)
• an intrinsically safe apparatus (field device - load)
• a cable
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Associated apparatus
Characteristics of an associated apparatus:
• comprises both intrinsically safe and non-
intrinsically safe circuits
• typically the power supply in the cabinet outside
the hazardous area
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Installation of associated apparatus
Associated apparatus are usually installed outside the
hazardous area:
• non-intrinsically safe circuits (e.g. contacts of relay
outputs, 4-20 mA signal etc.) might create ignition
capable sparks
• exception: the associated apparatus is protected
by an additional, appropriate type of protection
(e.g. by mounting in a flameproof enclosure „d“)
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Intrinsically safe apparatus
Typical data in the documentation:
– max. input voltage Ui
– max. input current Ii
– max. input power Pi
– effective internal inductance Li
– effective internal capacitance Ci
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Cables
Cables appear as energy
storages:
• inductance per unit length L’
(e.g. in mH/km)
• capacitance per unit length C’
(e.g. in nF/km)
• manufacturer information,
measurement of the actual
cable or reference value from
IEC 60079-14
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Cables
Prevention of inadmissible
increase of energy:
• Protection against
electromagnetic coupling
• Protection against damage
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