Zones

Types of protection
Marking
Verifications
Selection of equipment

Edition November 2018

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tion. No part of the publication may be reproduced in any form (by photocopying, micro-
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1 Zones
Hazardous areas are classified into zones based on the frequency
of the occurrence and duration of an explosive atmosphere.

1.1 Flammable gases, vapours and mists

A place in which an explosive atmosphere consisting of a mixture
with air of flammable substances in the form of a gas or vapour is
present continuously or for long periods or frequently.

1.1.2 Zone 1
A place in which an explosive atmosphere consisting of a mixture
with air of flammable substances in the form of a gas or vapour is
likely to occur in normal operation occasionally.

Classification of areas

Filling (e.g. filling station, transfer by pumping)

Mixing installation (e.g. stirring, mixing)

1m
open container

5 m

Zone 0 Zone 1 extraction

Figure 1

1.1.3 Zone 2
A place in which an explosive atmosphere consisting of a mixture
with air of flammable substances in the form of gas or vapour is not
likely to occur in normal operation but, if it does occur, will persist
for a short period only (usually no longer than 2 hours).

1.2 Combustible dusts1

1.2.1 Zone 20
Area in which an explosive atmosphere in the form of a combustible
dust in air is present continuously or for long periods or frequently.

1
In the case of combustible dusts, layers, deposits and accumulations shall be taken
into consideration as the possible cause of explosive atmospheres. Normal operation
is the state where installations are used within their design data.
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1.2.2 Zone 21
Area in which an explosive atmosphere in the form of a cloud of
combustible dust in air is likely to occur occasionally in normal oper-
ation.

1.2.3 Zone 22
Area in which an explosive atmosphere in the form of a cloud of
combustible dust in air is not likely to occur in normal operation but,
if it does occur, will persist for a short period only.

Classification of areas
1m
Filling (e.g. filling openings) and
1m emptying (e.g. bagging stations)
without deposits

1m
extraction

1m Zone 20 Zone 22

Figure 2

2. Types of protection for gas and dusts

2.1 General requirements IEC 60079-0
2.1.1 Electrostatic charges
The requirements regarding electrostatic charges must be met with
one of the following measures:

a) by suitable selection of the material to keep the surface resis-

tance of the enclosure from exceeding 109 Ohm (tested
according IEC 60079-0, section 26.13)

b) by limitation of the surface area of enclosures and enclosure

parts of plastics (projected in any direction), the layer thick-
ness of plastic sheets, and the width or diameter of long insu-
lating parts.

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 Surfaces [mm2]
Category EPL
IIA IIB IIC
1G Ga 5000 2500 400
2G Gb 10000 10000 2000
3G Gc 10000 10000 2000

Table 1 Limitation of the surfaces

Layer thickness [mm]

Category EPL
IIA IIB IIC
1G Ga 2 2 0,2
2G Gb 2 2 0,2
3G Gc 2 2 0,2

Table 2 Maximum admissible layer thickness

Width or diameter [mm]

Category EPL
IIA IIB IIC
1G Ga 3 3 1
2G Gb 30 30 20
3G Gc 30 30 20

Table 3 Maximum admissible width or diameter of long

insulating parts

2.1.2 Thermal test for non-metallic enclosures and non-metallic

parts of enclosures (gaskets)
[Link] Thermal endurance to heat
Service Test conditions* (Ga/Gb and Da/Db)
temperature TS*
672 +300 h at (90 ± 5) % rF, at TS + (20 ± 2) K
TS ≤ 70 °C
(but not less than 80 °C test temperature)
0
70 °C < TS ≤ 75 °C 672 +30 h at (90 ± 5) % rF, at TS + (20 ± 2) K
0
336 h bei (90 ± 5) % rF bei (95 ± 2) °C,
+30
TS > 75 °C 0
followed by 336 +30 h dry at TS + (20 ± 2) K
* TS + (10 ± 2) K applies for Gc and Dc
Table 4 Test of thermal endurance to heat

[Link] Thermal endurance to cold

The thermal endurance to cold is determined by submitting enclo-
sures and parts of enclosures made of non-metallic materials, on
which the integrity of the type of protection depends, to storage at
an ambient temperature (24+20 h) corresponding to the minimum ser-
vice temperature reduced according to EN 60079-0 section 26.7.2.
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2.1.3 Resistance to impact
IEC 60079-0 Clause 26.4.2
(0.4 m* marked with the symbol ‘X’)
0.7 m* Enclosures and external accessible parts of enclosures (other than
light-transmitting parts)

(0.4 m* marked with the symbol ‘X’)

0.7 m*
Guards, protective covers, fan hoods, cable glands

(0.2 m* marked with the symbol ‘X’)

0.4 m*
Light-transmitting parts without guard

(0.1 m* marked with the symbol ‘X’)

0.2 m* Light-transmitting parts with guard having individual openings from
625 mm2 to 2500 mm2: see 21.1 (tested without guard)

*drop height h with a mass of 1 kg

The test must be carried out at an ambient temperature of (20±5)°C, except
where the material data indicate a reduction of the impact strength at lower
temperatures within the prescribed ambient temperature range. In this case the
test must be carried out between 5 K and 10 K below the lowest temperature of
the prescribed range.

Table 5 Resistance to impact

2.1.4 IP Degree of Protection

IEC 60529 Degrees of protection provided by enclosures (IP-Code)
First numeral Second numeral
(against penetration of solid (against penetration of water with
foreign objects / prevention of harmful effects)
access to hazardous parts)
0 not protected not protected
1 ≥ 50,0 mm diameter / back of hand vertically falling water drops
2 ≥ 12,5 mm diameter / finger water drops (enclosure tilted 15°)
3 ≥ 2,5 mm diameter / tool spraying water
4 ≥ 1,0 mm diameter / wire splashing water
5 dust-protected / wire water jets
6 dust-tight / wire powerful water jets
7 temporary immersion in water
8 continuous immersion in water
Example: IP 54 dust-protected / protected against splashing water

Table 6 IP Degree of Protection

2.2 Equipment protection by flameproof enclosure ‘d’

IEC 60079-1
Equipment and components that may ignite an explosive atmo-
sphere are housed in an enclosure which, in the event of the explo-
sion of an ignitable mixture inside the enclosure, will withstand the
pressure and prevent propagation of the explosion to the explosive
atmosphere surrounding the enclosure (spark ignition).
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2.3 Equipment protection by pressurized enclosure ‘p’
IEC 60079-2
The pressurized enclosure type of protection is based on the idea
of employing permanent pressurization with air or an inert gas to
prevent an explosive mixture from coming into contact with the
devices inside a ventilated enclosure.
Prior to start-up, the ventilated enclosure must be pre-purged with
a preestablished quantity of air equal to several times its free vol-
ume in order to drive out any residual incendive (explosible) mix-
ture.

2.4 Equipment protection by powder filling ‘q’

IEC 60079-5
A type of protection in which the parts at risk are surrounded with
sand in an enclosure in such a way that ignition of an explosive
atmosphere as a result of arcs or excessive heating is rendered
impossible.

2.5 Equipment protection by liquid immersion ‘o’

IEC 60079-6
A type of protection in which the electrical equipment or parts of the
electrical equipment are immersed in oil in such a way that an
explosive atmosphere outside the oil cannot be ignited by arcs,
sparks or hot gases occurring under the oil.

2.6 Equipment protection by increased safety ‘e’

IEC 60079-7
Type of protection where additional measures are applied to give
increased safety against the possibility of excessive temperatures
and against the occurrence of arcs and sparks on the inside or on
external parts during the intended operation and under given
extraordinary conditions.

2.7 Equipment protection by intrinsic safety ‘i’

IEC 60079-11
Type of protection based on the limitation of electrical energy (cur-
rent and voltage) relating to resistive loads, inductances and capac-
itances within equipment and of interconnecting wiring exposed to
the explosive atmosphere to a level below that which can cause
ignition be either sparking or heating effects.

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2.8 Equipment protection by type of protection ‘n’ – ‘non
sparking’ IEC 60079-15
Type of protection for electrical equipment that is not capable of
igniting a surrounding explosive atmosphere during normal opera-
tion or under given fault conditions.

2.9 Equipment protection by encapsulation ‘m’

IEC 60079-18
Type of protection whereby parts that are capable of igniting an
explosive atmosphere by sparking or heating are either fully
enclosed in a compound or other permitted non-metallic enclosure
with adhesion in such a way as to avoid ignition of a dust layer or
explosive atmosphere under operating conditions.

2.10 Protection of equipment and transmission systems using

optical radiation IEC 60079-28
Types of protection for the prevention of an ignition of an explosive
gas or dust atmosphere due to optical radiation.

Types of protection:

– Inherently safe optical radiation ‘op is’ (Philosophy of intrinsic

safety)
– Protected optical radiation ‘op pr’ (no escape of radiation
along the transmission medium)
– Optical system with interlock ‘op sh’ (System to confine visible
or infrared radiation along the transmission medium with inter-
lock or cut-off for the event that the radiation becomes uncon-
fined)

2.11 Equipment dust ignition protection by enclosure ‘t’

IEC 60079-31
Dust ignition protection by enclosure ‘t’ is a type of protection for
explosive dust atmospheres where electrical equipment is provided
with an enclosure providing dust ingress protection and means to
limit surface temperatures.

3. Marking
Each piece of equipment and each protective system must be
marked legibly and indelibly with the following minimum particulars:

1. name and address, or registered trademark, of the manufac-

turer

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2. CE marking (with the identification number of the conformity
assessment body that monitors the quality management), the
specific mark followed by the symbol of the category, and for
equipment group II the letter ‘G’ (areas in which explosive
atmospheres caused by gases, vapours or mists are present)

thuba Ltd.
1 CH-40 02 Basel
Switzerland

2 C 0158 II 2(1)G
Ex
Ex eb
db mb [ia Ga
eb [ia Ga]] IIC T6
T6 Gb 4
3 BVS
PTB18
17ATEX
ATEXE1098
069 X
X 5
Leistung
6 Puissance 16
16kW
kW
Power
Spannung
7 Tension 33xx400
400Volt
Volt
Voltage
Strom
8 Courant 2424
AA
Current
Typ
9 Type SAeb 1 1 7 1AK81
Sad 6654 60 60 30
Type
Nummer
Numéro 4123.2018
2244.2018 11
Number

‒20 °C ≤ Tamb ≤ 60 °C 10

3. number of the EU type examination certificate

4. Ex classification stating the types of protection (complete list
in alphabetic order), the equipment group, the temperature
class and the mandatory Equipment Protection Level EPL)
5. the additional designation ‘X’ or ‘U’ where required
If certificates have the symbol ‘X’ after the certificate number,
'Special conditions for use' apply.
The symbol ‘U’ after the certificate number indicates that the
certificate is for components or incomplete equipment. The
components cannot be used on their own. Together with the
complete equipment, components have to be subjected to a
further conformity assessment procedure.
6. power rating
7. voltage
8. possibly the amperage (important for proper choice of fuses)
9. name or type of the piece of equipment

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10. the expanded or narrowed ambient temperature range
(If there is no expanded or narrowed ambient temperature
range marked, the equipment can only be used within –20 °C
to 40 °C.)
11. year of construction, where not clearly evident from the serial
number

4. Verifications
4.1 General information
Clause 4.3 of IEC 60079-14 ‘Electrical installations design, selec-
tion and erection’ requires verification documents for every piece of
explosionproof equipment used in electrical installations. This
requirement is also in line with Directive 1999/92/EC, (SUVA Publi-
cation 2153.d in Switzerland), which requires these documents in
the context the explosion protection document.
The verification documents for all explosionproof equipment shall
include
– an operating instructions in the respective language of the
country,
– a declaration of conformity in accordance with the list of har-
monized standards (presumption of conformity), published in
the Official Journal of the EU and,
– on a voluntary basis, the certificate according to Directive
2014/34/EU (up to 19. April 2016 Directive 94/9/EC)

The certificates according to the ATEX directive are important,

because requirements of the testing bodies are often not included
in the operating instructions. These requirements are listed under
Item 17 in the certificate. A further difficulty with the certificates is
that a large number of supplements have to be taken into consider-
ation. Changes that lead to supplements are not evident in the oper-
ating instructions. In certain cases it is even necessary to determine
when individual supplements were in effect based on the delivery
date.
The verification documents are required
– for the selection of equipment,
– for the installation,
– for the initial inspection,
– for the recurrent tests and
– for maintenance work.

A regular finding during inspections is that significantly more than

50% of the verification documents do not meet the requirements of
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Directive 2014/34/EU. Also existing and obsolete verification docu-
ments are often submitted for new equipment, although the stan-
dards and, consequently, the certificate of conformity have long
since changed.

4.2 Operating instructions

Equipment covered by the EU directive shall always be supplied
with a copy of the operating instructions (as well as any supplemen-
tary documents).
The operator may expect to find the following information in the
operating instructions:
– intended use
– technical description
– conformity to standards
– technical data
– Installation
– commissioning
– maintenance
– servicing
– checking of performance
– troubleshooting
– appropriate safety
– disposal

4.3 EU Declaration of conformity

4.3.1 Declaration of Conformity
In addition to the operating instructions, the manufacturer shall also
provide the operator with a declaration of conformity in accordance
with Directive 2014/34/EU, Annex X, for every piece of explosion-
proof equipment. Among other things the declaration of conformity
shall state the relevant harmonized standards or other technical
specifications.
It goes without saying that the operator does not have to carry out
a detail test of the declaration of conformity. Nevertheless, however,
it is necessary to note that more than 50% of the declarations of
conformity contain substantial errors. Such errors should be identi-
fied by the operator and a rectification of the declaration of confor-
mity requested.

Typical errors in declarations of conformity:

– Obsolete standards that have long since been withdrawn,

such as, for example, IEC 50014 and following.

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– A list of Ex standards, but no industrial standards. The direc-
tive requires that the standards of the low voltage directive be
met under the ATEX Directive no Ex equipment can be
designed and manufactured only with Ex standards and with-
out taking the industrial standards into consideration.
– The absence of further directives such as, for example, the
EMC Directive or the RoHS Directive. The legislator expects
the manufacturer to provide a declaration of conformity with a
list of all the relevant directives.

The harmonised standards shall comply with the list published in

the Official Journal of the European Union (‘OJ’). Only those har-
monized standards that are valid at the time of placing products on
the market can be applied for the presumption of conformity

The manufacturer is responsible for ensuring that, in the event of

new versions of the standards, changes in the harmonised stan-
dards by reference to which the conformity of a product is declared
shall be adequately taken into account and a relevant update of the
declaration of conformity issued. If a new IEC standard is issued,
the respective old IEC standard can generally be applied for 3
years. This transition period is also stated in the OJ.

For some years now each standard has been required to include a
list stating details of minor editorial amendments, enhancements or
significant technical changes. This list can be used for the compar-
ative analysis.

It might, for example, be possible that an item of explosionproof

equipment is not affected by the new version of the standard. In this
case the manufacturer can apply the new standard for the presump-
tion of conformity although the EU type examination certificate
states the preceding standard. Here the manufacturer is obliged to
carry out an analysis and evaluation of the two versions of the stan-
dard and to check whether his equipment is affected by the
changes. If this is not the case, the operator can, for example, find
the following statement on the Declaration of Conformity:

‘The comparison of the versions of the standards IEC 60079-1:2007

and IEC 60079-1:2014 has shown that there are no relevant
changes with regard to the explosionproof equipment under consid-
eration. Thus it is ensured that the equipment complies with the cur-
rent state of technical knowledge in accordance with Directive
2014/34/EU.’

In each case the Official Journal of the European Union (OJ) first
lists the CEN standards and then the CENELEC standards. The list
includes the harmonised standards and gives information on the
date from which the preceding standard may no longer be applied
for the presumption of conformity.
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The complete list can be found under the following link:

[Link]
harmonised-standards/equipment-explosive-atmosphere_en

4.4 EU-Type Examination Certificate

4.4.1 Equipment
The operator expects an EU type examination certificate that is
mandatorily based on a conformity assessment procedure carried
out by a notified European testing body for all Category 1 (Zones 0
and 20) and Category 2 (Zones 1 and 21) explosionproof equip-
ment. A conformity assessment procedure can be carried out on a
voluntary basis for Category 3 equipment and a type examination
certificate or conformity statement issued. However, the manufac-
turer can also apply an internal production control procedure. This
means that the manufacturer carries out all the tests according to
the relevant standards at his own responsibility and then ‘only’
issues a conformity statement.
To the advantage of the operators, renowned manufacturers have
long since been making use of the voluntary conformity assessment
procedure by a notified European testing body.
The EU Type Examination Certificate contains essential information
for the operator:

– The standards applied and fulfilled during the conformity

assessment procedure
– A description of the equipment and the technical data
– The ‘Special conditions for use’ (often not given in full in the
operating instructions)

Legend
1 EU-Type Examination Certificate
2 Equipment intended for use in hazardous areas Directive
2014/34/EU
3 Certificate number (according to equipment, with symbol ‘X’)
(The symbol ‘X’ after the certificate number indicates that
‘Special conditions for use’ apply for the respective equip-
ment.)
4 Exact product designation
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 5 Name of the manufacturer or certificate owner
6 Address of the manufacturer
7 Relevant information
8 Details of the conformity assessment body
9 Standard that acts as basis for compliance with the Essential
Health and Safety Requirements
10 Information on symbol ‘X’
11 Information that, in addition to t e conformity assessment pro-
cedure, further requirements apply with regard to the manu-
facturing process

Figure 3 EU-Type Examination Certificate Symbol ‘X’

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12 Marking
13/14 Enclosures to the EU-Type Examination Certificate
15 Description of the product / equipment incl. technical data
16 Test report number
17 Special conditions for use
18 Confirmation of compliance with the essential and safety
requirements
19 Confirmation that the drawings and documents are listed in
the confidential test report

4.4.2 Components
EU-Type Examination Certificates for components always have the
symbol ‘U’ after the certificate number. The use of components by
either the installer or the operator is also prohibited. Components
can only be used in conjunction with fully certified equipment and,
for this reason, they do not feature their own temperature class. The
temperature class is only marked on fully certified equipment.

Exception: Defective components may be replaced as part of main-

tenance measures provided that the replacement part is an identical
original component.

Legend (Differences compared to certificates for complete equip-

ment)

2 Components intended for installation and protective systems

according to Directive 2014/34/EU
3 Certificate for components with the symbol ‘U’
(The symbol ‘U’ after the certificate number indicates that the
certificate has been issued for components or incomplete
equipment. The components must not be used on their own.
Together with the complete equipment, components have to
be submitted to a further conformity assessment procedure.)
10 Information on the symbol ‘U’, that indicates that the certificate
must not be mistaken for a certificate for complete equipment.
The certificate may only be used as a basis for the certifica-
tion of equipment.
17 Instructions for use (for the manufacturer of the complete
equipment).

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Figure 4 EU-Type Examination Certificate Symbol ‘U’

5. Selection of equipment
5.1 Information requirements
In order to be able to select and specify the appropriate electrical
equipment, the documentation and area classification drawings
shall include the following information:

– classification of hazardous areas including equipment

protection level (EPL)

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– the equipment groups for gases, vapours and mists IIA, IIB or
IIC or the equipment groups for combustible dusts IIIA, IIIB or
IIIC respectively
– for gases, vapours or mists: the temperature class or the igni-
tion temperature
– for combustible dusts: the minimum ignition temperature of
the combustible dust cloud, the minimum ignition temperature
of the combustible dust layer (smouldering temperature) or
the minimum ignition energy of the combustible cloud of dust
– ambient temperatures
– external influences

The requirements described above only pertain to the explosion

protection. In addition, it goes without saying that the requisite data
of the equipment is available for its correct use.

5.2 Relationship between zones and equipment protection

levels (EPLs)
Where only the zones are specified in the area classification or
installation documentation, the required EPLs can be determined in
accordance with table 7.
Zone Equipment Protection Levels (EPL)
0 Ga
1 Gb and Ga
2 Gc, Gb and Ga
20 Da
21 Db and Da
22 Dc, Db and Da

Table 7 Equipment protection levels according to zones

5.3 Selection of equipment according to EPLs

5.3.1 Hazardous gas atmospheres – Equipment group II
The standardized types of protection for explosive gas atmospheres
in accordance with the IEC standards have been allocated EPLs
according to table 8.

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 Electrical apparatus for explosive gas atmospheres
(Equipment-group II [chemicals])

EPL Standards Type of protection

IEC 60079-0 General requirements

Equipment protection by flameproof
IEC 60079-1 da
enclosures ‘d’
IEC 60079-11 ia Equipment protection by intrinsic safety ‘i’

Ga IEC 60079-18 ma Equipment protection by encapsulation ‘m’

Equipment with
IEC 60079-26
equipment protection level (EPL) Ga
Protection of equipment and transmission
IEC 60079-28 op is
systems using optical radiation
d Equipment protection by
IEC 60079-1
db flameproof enclosures ‘d’
p
Equipment protection by
IEC 60079-2 pxb
pressurized enclosure ‘p’
pyb
IEC 60079-5 q Equipment protection by powder filling ‘q’
IEC 60079-6 ob Equipment protection by liquid immersion ‘o’
Gb IEC 60079-7 e
Equipment protection by increased safety ‘e’
eb
IEC 60079-11 ib Equipment protection by intrinsic safety ‘i’
IEC 60079-18 mb Equipment protection by encapsulation ‘m’
IEC 60079-25 Intrinsically safe electrical systems
op is
Protection of equipment and transmission
IEC 60079-28 op pr
systems using optical radiation
op sh
Equipment protection by
IEC 60079-1 dc
flameproof enclosures ‘d’
Equipment protection by
IEC 60079-2 pzc
pressurized enclosure ‘p’
IEC 60079-6 oc Equipment protection by liquid immersion ‘o’
IEC 60079-7 ec Equipment protection by increased safety ‘e’
IEC 60079-11 ic Equipment protection by intrinsic safety ‘i’
Equipment protection by type of protection
IEC 60079-15 nA
‘n’ – ‘non sparking’
Gc
Equipment protection by type of protection
IEC 60079-15 nR
‘n’ – ‘restricted breathing’
Equipment protection by type of protection
IEC 60079-15 nL
‘n’ – ‘limited energy’
Equipment protection by type of protection
IEC 60079-15 nC
‘n’ – enclosed-break device
IEC 60079-18 mc Equipment protection by encapsulation ‘m’
op is
Protection of equipment and transmission
IEC 60079-28 op pr
systems using optical radiation
op sh

Table 8 Type of protection (Gas)

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5.3.2 Explosive dust atmospheres – Equipment group III
The standardized types of protection for explosive dust atmo-
spheres in accordance with the IEC standards have been allocated
EPLs according to table 9.

Electrical equipment for use in areas with combustible dust

(Equipment-group III)

EPL Standards Type of protection

IEC 60079-0 General requirements

IEC 60079-11 ia Equipment protection by intrinsic safety ‘i’
IEC 60079-18 ma Equipment protection by encapsulation ‘m’
Da IEC 60079-28 op is Protection of equipment and transmission
systems using optical radiation
Equipment dust ignition protection
IEC 60079-31 ta
by enclosure ‘t’
Equipment protection by
IEC 60079-2 pxb
pressurized enclosure ‘p’
IEC 60079-11 ib Equipment protection by intrinsic safety ‘i’
IEC 60079-18 mb Equipment protection by encapsulation ‘m’
Db
op is
Protection of equipment and transmission
IEC 60079-28 op pr
systems using optical radiation
op sh
Equipment dust ignition protection
IEC 60079-31 tb
by enclosure ‘t’
Equipment protection by pressurized
IEC 60079-2 pzc
enclosure ‘p’
IEC 60079-11 ic Equipment protection by intrinsic safety ‘i’
IEC 60079-18 mc Equipment protection by encapsulation ‘m’
Dc
op is
Protection of equipment and transmission
IEC 60079-28 op pr
systems using optical radiation
op sh
Equipment dust ignition protection
IEC 60079-31 tc
by enclosure ‘t’

Table 9 Type of protection (Dust)

5.4 Selection according to the grouping of electrical

equipment
5.4.1 Flammable gases, vapours and mists
Equipment groups (Gas)
IIA Aceton, ethane, Benzene, petrol, butane, propane, methane
IIB Ethylene, town gas
IIC Hydrogen, acetylene

Table 10 Equipment groups (Gas)

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5.4.2 Combustible dusts
Equipment groups (dust)
IIIA Fibres (> 500 µm)
IIIB Non-conductive dust (> 103 Ω)
IIIC Conductive dust (≤ 103 Ω)

Table 11 Equipment groups (Dust)

5.5 Selection of ignition temperature of the gas or vapour

Temperature class Ignition

Permissible temperature
required by the area temperature
class of equipment
classification of gas or vapour
T1 > 450 °C T1–T6
T2 > 300 °C T2–T6
T3 > 200 °C T3–T6
T4 > 135 °C T4–T6
T5 > 100 °C T5–T6
T6 > 85 °C T6

Table 12 Temperature classes

5.6 Selection of cable entries

Protection technique Glands, adapters and

blanking element
for the equipment protection technique
Ex ‘d’ Ex ‘e’ Ex ‘n’ Ex ‘t’
Ex ‘d’ X
Ex ‘e’ X X
Ex ‘i’ – Goup II X X
Ex ‘i’ – Group III X
Ex ‘n’ X X X
Ex ‘pxb’, Ex ‘pzc’ – Group II X X
Ex ‘pxb’, Ex ‘pzc’ – Group III X
Ex ‘t’ X
X denotes permitted use

Table 13 Selection of glands, adapters and blanking elements

The symbol ‘X’ after the certificate number for cable glands can mean that:
– the fitter must install a strain relief;
– a mechanically protected installation is required (lower impact resistance);
– restrictions (electrostatics) for use in explosive dust atmosphere.

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Your partner for internationally
certified solutions
in explosion protection
Design and Production Pipe and tank trace heating systems

Explosionproof multipurpose distribution, – heating cables

switching and control units · heating cables with fixed resistors
· mineral-insulated heating cables
Equipment protection level EPL Gb · self-limiting heating cables
– flameproof enclosure ‘db’ – site installation
– increased safety ‘eb’ – temperature monitoring systems
– pressurized enclosure ‘pxb’ · thermostats and safety temperature
limiters
Equipment protection EPL level Gc
· electronic temperature controllers
– increased safety ‘ec’
and
– restricted breathing enclosure ‘nR’
safety cutouts
– pressurized enclosure ‘pzc’
· remote controls for temperature
Equipment protection level EPL Db controller
and Dc – resistance temperature detectors
for areas at risk of dust explosions Pt-100
– protection by enclosure ‘tb’, ‘tc’ Equipment protection level EPL Ga
– pressurized enclosure ‘pxb’, ‘pzc’ and Gb

Accessories
– digital displays Installation material
– disconnect amplifiers – temporary bonding
– transmitter power packs – earth monitoring systems
– safety barriers – terminals and junction boxes
– keyboard and mouse – motor protecting switches up to 63 A
– monitor – safety switches 10 to 180 A
– industrial PC (indirect and direct tripping)
– plug-and-socket devices
– clean room power outlets
Lamps
– control and indicating devices
Equipment protection level EPL Ga, Gb, – customized control stations
Gc and EPL Da, Db, Dc – cable reels (max. 3 flange sockets)
– LED hand lamps and tube lights – cable glands
5 to 58 W – fastening material
– LED linear luminaires 18 to 58 W
(also with integrated emergency
lighting) Accredited inspection body (SIS 145)
– flameproof LED-tubes (Retrofit for Extremely strict inspections are carried
linear luminaires) out to guarantee the correct operation and
– signal towers safety of installations in hazardous areas.
– reflector lamps We carry out both professional initial
– safety lighting inspections and periodic inspections.
– flashing lamps These consist of a documentation and
– boiler flange lamps organisation check and a technical
inspection.
Electric heaters for industrial applications
– heating of air and gases Service Facilities according
(up to 100 bar) to IECEx Scheme
– heating of liquids As an IECEx Scheme service facility we
– reactor heating systems are qualified to carry out repairs, over-
(HT installations) hauling and regeneration work all over the
– heating of solids world – even on equipment from other
– special solutions manufacturers.
thuba Ltd.
CH-4002 Basel
Switzerland
Phone +41 61 307 80 00
Fax +41 61 307 80 10
[Link]@[Link]
[Link]

ISBN 978-3-905850-31-4