Le direttive ATEX:

Aggiornamenti normativi, responsabilit,

modi di protezione e organismi notificati
Giovanni Zocchi R. Stahl

Verona 25 ottobre 2011 SAVE

AIS Associazione Italiana Strumentisti - ISA Italy Section

Via Giulio Carcano 24 20141 Milano
Tel. +39 02 54123816 Fax +39 02 541 14628 www.aisisa.it
 The basics
of explosion protection
Chemical plants
Refineries
Platforms
Mills
Pharmaceutical Industry
Oil Platform Piper Alpha
Ammonium nitrate explosion
Explosion of a tank truck
 Basic Principle of Explosion
Protection

Ignition source

Flammable
Air (Oxygen)
material

An explosion can only occur, when these three factors come together
Selection of electrical equipment
 Gases are divided into explosion
groups

IIA
Propane

IIB
Ethylene

IIC
Hydrogen
Dusts are divided into explosion
groups

IIA
combustible flyings

IIB
non-conductive dust

IIC
conductive dust
 Ignition temperature

The ignition temperature of a flammable gas or

liquid is the lowest temperature of a heated
surface at which the gas/air or vapour/air mixture
ignites.

It represents virtually the lowest temperature at

which a hot surface can ignite a respective
explosive atmosphere.
 Explosion Groups &Temperature
Classes
T1 T2 T3 T4 T5 T6
I Methane
II A Acetic acid Ethyl Petrol Acetaldehyde
Ammonia alcohol Diesel
Benzene Butane Kerosene
Acetone Butyl- Fuel oil
Ethan alcohol Hexane
Ethyl
Acetate
Carbon
monoxide
Methanol
Propane
Toluene
II B Coal gas Ethylene Ethylether
(Town gas)
II C Hydrogen Acetylene Carbon
disulphide
 Zone classification - Gas
Zone 0
Zone 1
Zone 2

Zone 0
A place in which an explosive atmosphere consisting of a mixture with air
of flammable substances in the form of gas, vapour or mist is present
continuously or for long periods or frequently

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

Zone 2
A place in which an explosive atmosphere consisting of a mixture with air
of flammable substances in the form of gas, vapour or mist is not likely
to occur in normal operation but, if it does occur, will persist for a short
period only
Example of zone classification

Zone 0
Zone 2 Zone 1
Zone 2
Zone 0 Zone 1

Zone 0
 Zone classification - Dust
Zone 20
Zone 21
Zone 22

Zone 20
A place in which an explosive atmosphere consisting in the form of a
cloud of combustible dust is present continuously or for long periods
or frequently

Zone 21
A place in which an explosive atmosphere consisting in the form of a
cloud of combustable dust is likely to occur in normal operation
occasionally

Zone 22
A place in which an explosive atmosphere consisting in the form of a
cloud of combustible dust is not likely to occur in normal operation but,
if it does occur, will persist for a short period only
Example of a zone classification

Zone 20
Zone 22 Zone 21
Zone 22
Zone 21
Zone 20
 Area Classification
North America
Identifying Type of Hazard

Class I :Flammable Gases and Vapours

Class II: Combustible Dusts
Class III: Easily Ingnites Fibres and Flyings
 Area Classification
North America
Identifying Severity of Hazard
Division I:
Normal Condition
Hazard IS expect to be present

Division II:
Abnormal Condition
Hazard IS NOT expect to be present
 How the Systems Compare
Frequency of CEC / NEC IEC/CENELEC/CEC
Occurrence Division System /NEC Zone System

Continuous
Zona 0
Intermittent Zone 1
Class I, Division 1
Periodically
Abnormal
Class 1, Division 2 Zone 2
Condition
 Types of Protection
for electrical equipment
Oil immersion Ex o EN / IEC 60079-6
Encapsulation Ex ma, mb, mc EN / IEC 60079-18
Powder filling Ex q EN / IEC 60079-5
Pressurized apparatus Ex px, py, pz EN / IEC 60079-2
Increased safety Ex e EN / IEC 60079-7
Flameproof enclosure Ex d EN / IEC 60079-1
Intrinsic safety Ex ia, ib, ic EN / IEC 60079-11
Optical radiation Ex op_ EN / IEC 60079-28
Type of protection n Ex n_ EN / IEC 60079-15
 Oil Immersion Ex o

Principle:
The electrical apparatus or parts of the
electrical apparatus are immersed in oil in
such a way that an explosive atmosphere
which may be above the oil or outside the
enclosure cannot be ignited.

Applications:

Transformers
(hardly used any more)
 Encapsulation Ex m

Principle:
Parts that are capable of igniting an explosive
atmosphere by either sparking or heating are
enclosed in a compound in such a way as to
avoid ignition of an explosive atmosphere.

Applications:
switchgear for low power,
cameras,
display devices,
sensors
 Powder Filling Ex q
Principle:
The enclosure of an electrical apparatus
is filled with a material in a finely
granulated state so that, in the intended
conditions of service, any arc occurring
within the enclosure will not ignite the
surrounding atmosphere. No ignition
shall be caused either by flame or by
excessive temperature of the surface of
the enclosure

Applications:
Tranformers, capacitors,
electronic parts,
(not often used)
 Pressurized Apparatus Ex p
Principle:
The entry of a surrounding atmosphere
into the enclosure of the electrical
apparatus is prevented by maintaining,
inside the enclosure, a protective gas at a
higher pressure than that of the surrounding
atmosphere. The overpressure is maintained
either with or without a continuous flow of the
protective gas
Applications:
Control stations for the installation of
large equipment, whole rooms for
electrical installations,
diagnostic equipment, PCs
 Pressurized Apparatus Ex p

Purging: The pressure inside Operation: The pressure in

Preparation :
the enclosure causes the orifice the enclosure prevents
Inert gas flows into the
plate to open. The inert gas ingress of explosive
enclosure, internal pressure
purges the enclosure. atmospheres
in enclosure rises.
Pressurized Apparatus Ex p
Pressurized Apparatus type px
Pressurized Apparatus, which reduces the classification within the
pressurised apparatus of Zone 1 on non-explosive atmosphere

Pressurized Apparatus type py

Pressurized Apparatus, which reduces the classification within the
pressurised apparatus of Zone 1 on Zone 2

Pressurized Apparatus type pz

Pressurized Apparatus, which reduces the classification within the
pressurised apparatus of Zone 2 on non-explosive atmosphere
Pressurized Apparatus Ex p

Application
 Increased Safety Ex e
Principle:
Increased safety is a type of protection by which
measures are applied to prevent with a major degree of
safety the possibility of excessive temperatures and of
the occurrence of arcs and sparks in the interior and on
the external parts of electrical apparatus which does not
produce them in normal operation

Applications:
Terminal boxes,
control stations (in combination with
flameproof enclosures),
squirrel-cage motors, lighting fittings
 Flameproof enclosure Ex d
Principle:
Parts which can ignite an explosive atmosphere are
enclosed in an enclosure, that withstands the explosion
pressure in its inside and prevents the transfer of the
explosion to the environment

Applications:
Switchgear, control equipment, control
panels, motors, lighting fittings and other
arcing parts
Flameproof enclosure Ex d

Flameproof gap

Pressure
resistance
limited surface temperature
Flameproof enclosure Ex d

Applications
 Intrinsic Safety Ex i
Principle:
The electrical equipment which is installed in the
hazardous area has to have only intrinsically safe
circuits.
A circuit is intrinsically safe, when no spark or heat is
able to ignite an explosive atmosphere under fixed
conditions. These predefined conditions include the
normal operation and certain failure modes

Applications:
Instrumentation,
Information technology
 Intrinsic Safety Ex i
A circuit in which
With intrinsic safety we are always looking at the whole circuit.

A circuit typically consists of a device (consumer), a supply (source) and the

connection cables.

cables
consumer source
 Intrinsically safe and
associated electrical apparatus
Intrinsically safe electrical
apparatus
Electrical apparatus in which
all circuits are intrinsically
safe.
mounting in hazardous areas:
zone 0, 1, 2
Hazardous area
Associated electrical
apparatus
Electrical apparatus containing
both I.S. and non-I.S.circuits
and constructed in such a way
that the non-I.S. circuits cannot
adversely affect the I.S. circuits.
mounting in safe areas
UN
Safe area
 Intrinsically safe and
associated electrical apparatus

Transmitter Galvanic isolator

Proxi switch
Fieldbus barrier
 Optical radiation Ex op

Principle:
Appropriate measures prevent
ignition of an explosive
atmosphere by optical radiation
 Optical protection types
a) inherently safe optical radiation "op is"
EN 60079-28, 5.2 ~ Intrinsic safety I.S.

b) protected optical radiation "op pr

EN 60079-28, 5.3 ~ Ex d / Ex de

c) optical systems with interlock "op sh"

EN 60079-28, 5.4 ~ Functional safety
Type of protection n Ex n

Ex nA Non-sparking equipments
Ex nC Equipment with protected contacts
- enclosed equipment
- non-incendive component
- hermetically sealed equipment
- sealed equipment
- encapsulated equipment
Ex nR Restricted Breathing

Ex nL Energy Limited (Canada &Europe) => ic

Ex nZ Pressurization => pz
 Non-sparking equipments Ex nA
Equipment which is so designed that the risk of the occurrence of
arcs, sparks or hot surfaces, which can let a danger of ignition
develop during the normal use is minimized. The normal use
excludes a removing or a bringing in of construction units, while
the electric circuit is energized

Electric motors Terminal boxes

(cage motor) Plugs and sockets
Fuses Light fittings
Equipments Batteries
with lower energy Transformers
 Equipment with protected contacts
Ex nC
Device incorporating electrical contacts that make and break that will withstand an
internal explosion of flammable gas or vapour which may enter it without suffering
damage and without communicating the internal explosion to the external flammable
gas or vapour

Ex-Atmosphere
 Restricted Breathing Enclosure
Ex nR
Enclosure that is designed to restrict the entry of gas.
A cloud of gas or vapour which exists only a short period
will not enter the interior of the enclosure during this short time

Ex-
Atmosphere
 Types of protection
for dust atmospheres

Protection by enclosures t EN 60079-31 / IEC 60079-31

Pressurization pD EN 61241-4/IEC 61241-4

Intrinsic Safety iD EN 61241-11/IEC 61241-11

 Protection by enclosure t
Principle:
All relevant measures specified in this standard
(e.g. dust ingress protection and surface
temperature limitation) applied to electrical
apparatus protected by enclosure to avoid
ignition of a dust layer or cloud
 Protection by enclosure pD
Principle:
The entry of a surrounding atmosphere
into the enclosure of the electrical
apparatus is prevented by maintaining,
inside the enclosure, a protective gas at a
higher pressure than that of the surrounding
atmosphere. The overpressure is maintained
either with or without a continuous flow of
the protective gas
 Intrinsic Safety Ex iD
Principle:

The electrical equipment which is installed in the

hazardous area has to have only intrinsically safe
circuits.
A circuit is intrinsically safe, when no spark or heat is
able to ignite an explosive atmosphere under fixed
conditions. These predefined conditions include the
normal operation and certain failure modes.
 Combination of types of protection

Control equipment

Ex e Ex e
Ex ed

Ex ed

Ex e
Ex e
Grazie per la cortese attenzione