Unit 8: Other methods of protection EEx o, EEx q, EExm &Exs Objectives: On completion of this unit, ‘Other methods of protection EEx 0, EEx q, EEX m & Exs’ apparatus, you should know: a) the principle of operation of each type of protection; b) typical applications for each type of protection. Nov fp 00g” (CPS0O1 Unit 08 Rev.1 Feb ®.doe.1 Feb 2008 Page 10F10, ‘Asects Training - SingavoseOther methods of protection Oil-immersion EEx 0 Oil-immersion is not a popular method of explosion protection but is typically used for heavy duty transformers and switchgear. Standards BS ENSO 01: BS 5501-2: 1977 Oil immersion ‘o” Oil immersion ‘o” IEC 60079-6: 1995 Oil-immersed apparatus Installation and maintenance requirements BS 5345: Part 9 * for electrical apparatus with type of protection ‘o” oil-immersed apy * Since BS EN60079-14 and BS FN60079-17 do not provide selection, installation, inspection and maintenance requirements for oil-immersed apparatus, BS 5345 Part 9 remains the only reference for guidance in these areas for the present. Definition ‘The definition for this type of protection is: ‘A type of protection in which the electrical apparatus or parts of the electrical apparatus are immersed in protective liquid in such a way that an explosive atmosphere, which may be above the liquid or outside the enclosure, cannot be ignited’, Breathing ¢ —— Oit-illing 7 oe point oN Oiklevel indicator Drain plug NX (PSO Unit OB Rev. Feb Ob.doe.1 Feb 2009 Page20f10 ‘Assets Training - SingaporeZones of Use: 1&2 Principle ‘The oil level is used to completely cover the components within the apparatus which arc/spark or produce hot surfaces during normal operation, thereby effectively establishing a barrier between the components below the oil and any flammable gases which may be present above the oil or outside the enclosure. A particular advantage of this method of protection is that circulation of the oil, by convection, enables hot- spots to be dispersed. One function of the oil is to quench ares occurring at the contacts and, where mineral oil is used, a by-product of this process is the production of hydrogen and acetylene. This condition was considered to be undesirable for apparatus intended for use in hazardous locations, which may explain why, until recently, its use was limited to Zone 2 in the UK. The revised standards, however, have stricter specifications and this type of protection is now permitted in Zone 1. Construction ‘The construction standard requires a breather to be fitted to the apparatus to allow release of the flammable gases produced during arc quenching, and thereby preventing the build-up of these gases in the space above the oil, whilst simultaneously preventing the ingress of dust or moisture, and hence, contamination of the oil. The enclosure ingress protection will be IP66. ILis also a requirement that the apparatus is fitted with a gauge which can display the highest and lowest levels of oil, and that the apparatus is installed in such a way that the gauge can be easily read while the apparatus is in service. In the event of breakage of the gauge, even at it’s lowest point, the minimum depth of oil remaining above the arc/heat producing components, after leakage of oil at this point, should not, be less than 25 mm. ‘The standard specifies unused mineral oil which complies with IEC 60296 for the protective liquid, but other types may be used, e.g. unused silicone insulating liquids. Silicone liquids are required to have specific properties, which include: a) a minimum fire point of 300°C in accordance with the test method given in HD 565 SI (IEC 60836); b) aminimum flash point (closed) 200°C in accordance with ISO 2719; c) a maximum kinematic viscosity of 100 cSt at 25°C in accordance with TSO 3104; 4) a minimum electrical breakdown strength of 27 KV in accordance with EN 60156; ¢) a minimum volume resistivity of 10'* ohm.cm in accordance with TEC 60247; 1) pour point maximum of -30°C in accordance with ISO 3016; (CPS0O1 Uni 08 -Rev.1 Feb 0 do. Feb 2008 Page of 10 "Ansa Tralalon .Sieemcne2) 2 maximum neutralisation value of acidity of 0.03mg KOH/g in accordance with IEC 60588-2 (Note: reference to this standard is for the test method only and not to permit the use of materials banned by legislation.) hh) causing no degradation to the characteristics of materials it makes contact with. ‘A label indicating the maximum and minimum levels of the protective liquid must be visible, which take into account level variations due to expansion/contraction of the protective liquid over the entire ambient temperature range. The free surface temperature of the protective liquid is required to be 25 K less than the specified minimum flashpoint for the protective liquid. Internal and external fasteners, fluid level indicators and parts for filling and draining the protective liquid including plugs must have measures applied to prevent them becoming loose. Such measures include: a) locking washers; b) cementing of threads; ©) wiring of bolt heads. Sealed enclosures are required to be fitted with a pressure-relief device, and non- sealed enclosures with an expansion device which incorporates a mechanism for automatic tripping of the electrical supply on detection of gas evolution from the protective liquid as a result of a fault within the enclosure. The trip mechanism may only be manually reset. P5001 Unit 08 Rev.1 Feb dos Feb 2009 Page 4 of 10 ‘Assets Training - SingmporePowder filling EEX q = ———* Quarta ‘The explosion protection concept powder filling is not widely used and typical applications are, for example, capacitors in Increased Safety EEx ‘edq’ lighting fittings, and telecommunications equipment in some European countries. Standards BS ENS0017: 1998 | Powder filling ‘q” BS 5501-4: 1977 Powder filling °q” TEC 60079-5: 1997 | Sand-filled apparatus Tnstallation and maintenance requirements BS 5345: Part 9 * for electrical apparatus with type of protection ‘q’ sand filled apparatus Since BS EN60079-14 and BS EN60079-17 do not provide selection, installation, inspection and maintenance requirements for oil-immersed apparatus, BS 5345 Part 9 remains the only reference for guidance in these areas for the present. Definition The definition for this type of protection is: “A type of protection in which the parts capable of igniting an explosive atmosphere are fixed in position and completely surrounded by filling material to prevent the ignition of an external explosive atmosphere.” Source of ignition eg. (capaciter) Powder filling Zone of Use: 1&2 (P5001 Unit 08 - Rev. Feb doe eb 2008 Page $ of 10 eePrinciple The filling, which may be quartz or glass particles, achieves safety by what is known as “suppression of flame propagation”. It is inevitable that a flammable gas or vapour may permeate the granules and reach the parts producing ares/sparks or hot surfaces. ‘The quantity of gas or vapour, however, will be too small to support an expl within the inert powder. The depth of granules is influenced by the level and duration of the of the are current produced by the components within the filling material, and tests specified in the construction standard enable a safe correlation between these two parameters to be established. This method of protection is suitable for use in all group II gases or vapours. Construction ‘The minimum ingress protection for this type of protection is IP54, but apparatus constructed to provide IPSS must be fitted with a breathing device. Where use is in clean, dry environments only, the ingress protection must be at least IP43, which requires the apparatus to be marked with the suffix *X”. ‘The size of granules for the filling material must be in accordance with the sieve limits specified in the standard ISO S65. ‘The upper limit for the granules may be achieved using a sieve manufactured from metal wire cloth or a perforated metal plate with a nominal perforation size of | mm. For the lower limit, metal wire cloth with a nominal perforation size 0.5 mm may be used. The filling material is required to Withstand an eleetrie strength test where the leakage current must not be in excess of 10°A. The minimum clearance distances between electrically conducting parts and insulated components or the inner surface of the enclosure wall are given below. ‘Operating voltage U Minimum distance 6000 < Components having a free volume less than 3 cm’, for example relays, which are surrounded by the filling material, must have minimum clearance distances between the component and the inner wall ofthe enclosure in accordance with the table above For free volumes in the range 3 em? - 30 cm’ the above distances apply but should not be less than 15 mm. (CPS0O1 Unit 08 Rev.1 Feb P.doc.1 Feb 2009 Page 6 of 10 ‘Assets Training - SingaporeEncapsulation EEx m The method of protection, encapsulation, is used mainly for smaller items of equipment such as solenoid coils and electronic components. Standards BS EN60079-18 Encapsulation ‘m’ EN5O 028: 1987 Encapsulation ‘m’ BS 5501-8: 1987 Encapsulation ‘m’ IEC 60079-18: 2004 Encapsulated apparatus Definition The definition for this type of protection is: *A type of protection whereby parts that are capable of igniting an explosive atmosphere by either sparking or heating are enclosed in a compound in such a way that the explosive atmosphere cannot be ignited under operating or installation conditions.” Zone of Use: 1&2 (P5001 Unit 08 Rev. Feb doc! Feb 2009 Page 7 of 10 ‘vccets Training -SinganorePy ciple With this type of protection, the encapsulant, typically a thermosetting, thermoplastic, epoxy resin or elastomeric material, establishes a complete barrier between any surrounding flammable gas or vapour and the source of ignition within the compound, Construction The construction standards state that the encapsulant must be free of voids and, therefore, this method of protection is unsuitable where components have exposed moving parts. Very small components which have enclosed moving parts, e.g. a reed relay, may be protected by encapsulation, Encapsulated apparatus may be manufactured with one of two protection levels, i.c. ‘ma’ or ‘mb’. Switching contacts, however, are not permitted in protection level ‘ma’. Encapsulation with the level of protection ‘ma’ must not have an operating voltage in excess of 1 kV and be incapable of causing ignition during: a) normal operation and installation conditions; b) any specified abnormal conditions; ©) defined failure conditions. Encapsulation with the level of protection ‘mb’ must be incapable of causing ignition during: a) normal operation and installation conditions; b) defined failure conditions. ‘The encapsulant must be capable of remaining intact during electrical input variations in the range 90% - 110% of the specified rating, adverse load conditions and any internal electrical fault. The apparatus is required to remain safe with one internal fault for the level of protection’mb’ and two faults for the level of protection ‘ma’. This applies to a short-circuit occurring in any component, failure of any component, ora fault in the printed circuit boards. Minimum clearance distances within the encapsulant will be dependent on the construction of the apparatus, ic. within a metallic enclosure which is either closed or unclosed on all sides, or has 100% free surface area. As these requirements are extensive, the table below shows some of the applicable distances for apparatus with 100% free surface area. Protection level mb ee Free surface < 2 cm’ |_Free surface < 2 cm Free surface > 2 cm’ * ‘The depth of encapsulant will also be influenced by the rated voltage as given in Table | of the standard. ‘CPSOOL Unit 8 Rev.1 Feb OB doc. Feb 2009 Page 8 of 10, "Ansote Toninion. SinnanoreSpecial protection Ex s Apparatus which has not quite met the requirements of a particular construction standard will have been additionally certified under the BASEEFA Standard ‘Special Protection Ex s’ provided it had been established that, after close scrutiny of the design and testing of the apparatus, it was capable of operating safely in the hazard for which it was designed. Special Protection is not included in the BS ENSO series of harmonised construction standards, or in the installation, inspection and maintenance series of standards, BS EN60079-14 and BS EN60079- 17 respectively. Standards SFA 3009 Special protection BS 5345: Part 8 Installation and maintenance requirements for electrical apparatus with type of protection ‘s” special protection Principle The constructional requirements of this standard, in terms of test and acceptance criteria, were intended to be unspecific in order to allow a broad range of designs to be considered for certification. Because apparatus may be of unorthodox design, the experience of test-house staff plays an important part in contriving appropriate tests and acceptance criteria, Special protection is not an easy option for obtaining c quite meeting the requirements of a given standard, nor is this type of protection inferior to other more popular methods of explosion protection. Indeed the tests on apparatus presented for certification under Special Protection are likely to be more onerous than the tests for other types of explosion protection ification for apparatus not A hand torch is a typical example of apparatus certified under Special Protection. Thorough testing will have established that the construction is robust enough to withstand a specified impact without causing, for example, a short-circuit of the battery, and breakage of the bulb, its holder and the glass cover are unlikely. A further requirement is that opening of the torch, i.e. to replace the battery, is only possible with the aid of a special tool, which is required to be kept in a non-hazardous (P5001 Unit 08 - Rev.1 Feb doe. Feb 2009, Page 9 of 10 “Asacts Training -SinwaporeAnother known example of apparatus certified under Special Protection Ex s is a 6.6 KV poly-phase cage induction pump motor in which the method of explosion protection is basically dependent on the interior of the motor being completely filled with water. Any free space within the motor is occupied by water, and hence, the entry of a flammable gas is prevented. Clearly, itis imperative that the interior of the motor remains completely full of water at all times, and this is ensured by a header tank to compensate for expansion due to thermo-eycling. The motor, which drives a pump, is intended for use in Zone 1 (CPS0O! Unit 08 Rev.1 Feb doe | Fed 2009 Page 100f 10 anets Training -5