Explosive atmospheres -- Part 28: Protection of equipment and transmission systems using optical radiation

This part of IEC 60079 explains the potential ignition hazard from equipment using optical radiation intended for use in explosive gas atmospheres. It also covers equipment, which itself is located outside but its emitted optical radiation enters such atmospheres. It describes precautions and requirements to be taken when using optical radiation transmitting equipment in explosive gas atmospheres. It also outlines a test method, which can be used to verify a beam is not ignition capable under selected test conditions, if the optical limit values cannot be guaranteed by assessment or beam strength measurement. This standard contains requirements for optical radiation.

Explosionsfähige Atmosphäre -- Teil 28: Schutz von Einrichtungen und Übertragungssystemen, die mit optischer Strahlung arbeiten

Atmosphères explosives -- Partie 28: Protection du matériel et des systèmes de transmission utilisant le rayonnement optique

La présente partie de la CEI 60079 explique le risque d'inflammation potentiel à partir de matériel utilisant un rayonnement optique et destiné à être utilisé en atmosphères explosives gazeuses. Elle couvre également le matériel, lui-même situé à l'extérieur mais dont les rayonnements optiques pénètrent de telles atmosphères. Elle décrit les précautions à prendre et les exigences lors de l'utilisation de matériels transmettant des rayonnements optiques dans des atmosphères explosives gazeuses.

Eksplozivne atmosfere - 28. del: Zaščita opreme, ki uporablja optično sevanje, in sistemov za prenos optičnega sevanja (IEC 60079-28:2006)

General Information

Status
Withdrawn
Publication Date
11-Oct-2007
Withdrawal Date
04-May-2023
Current Stage
9900 - Withdrawal (Adopted Project)
Start Date
05-May-2023
Due Date
28-May-2023
Completion Date
05-May-2023

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Standards Content (Sample)

SLOVENSKI STANDARD
SIST EN 60079-28:2007
01-november-2007
(NVSOR]LYQHDWPRVIHUHGHO=DãþLWDRSUHPHNLXSRUDEOMDRSWLþQRVHYDQMHLQ
VLVWHPRY]DSUHQRVRSWLþQHJDVHYDQMD ,(&
Explosive atmospheres - Part 28: Protection of equipment and transmission systems
using optical radiation
Explosionsfähige Atmosphäre - Teil 28: Schutz von Einrichtungen und
Übertragungssystemen, die mit optischer Strahlung arbeiten
Atmospheres explosives - Partie 28: Protection du matériel et des systemes de
transmission utilisant le rayonnement optique
Ta slovenski standard je istoveten z: EN 60079-28:2007
ICS:
29.260.20 (OHNWULþQLDSDUDWL]D Electrical apparatus for
HNVSOR]LYQDR]UDþMD explosive atmospheres
SIST EN 60079-28:2007 en,fr,de
2003-01.Slovenski inštitut za standardizacijo. Razmnoževanje celote ali delov tega standarda ni dovoljeno.

---------------------- Page: 1 ----------------------

EUROPEAN STANDARD
EN 60079-28

NORME EUROPÉENNE
March 2007
EUROPÄISCHE NORM

ICS 29.260.20


English version


Explosive atmospheres -
Part 28: Protection of equipment and transmission systems
using optical radiation
(IEC 60079-28:2006)


Atmosphères explosives -  Explosionsfähige Atmosphäre -
Partie 28: Protection du matériel Teil 28: Schutz von Einrichtungen
et des systèmes de transmission und Übertragungssystemen,
utilisant le rayonnement optique die mit optischer Strahlung arbeiten
(CEI 60079-28:2006) (IEC 60079-28:2006)




This European Standard was approved by CENELEC on 2006-10-01. CENELEC members are bound to comply
with the CEN/CENELEC Internal Regulations which stipulate the conditions for giving this European Standard
the status of a national standard without any alteration.

Up-to-date lists and bibliographical references concerning such national standards may be obtained on
application to the Central Secretariat or to any CENELEC member.

This European Standard exists in three official versions (English, French, German). A version in any other
language made by translation under the responsibility of a CENELEC member into its own language and notified
to the Central Secretariat has the same status as the official versions.

CENELEC members are the national electrotechnical committees of Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, the
Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia,
Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain,
Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.

CENELEC
European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization
Comité Européen de Normalisation Electrotechnique
Europäisches Komitee für Elektrotechnische Normung

Central Secretariat: rue de Stassart 35, B - 1050 Brussels


© 2007 CENELEC - All rights of exploitation in any form and by any means reserved worldwide for CENELEC members.
Ref. No. EN 60079-28:2007 E

---------------------- Page: 2 ----------------------

EN 60079-28:2007 - 2 -
Foreword
The text of document 31/631/FDIS, future edition 1 of IEC 60079-28, prepared by IEC TC 31, Equipment
for explosive atmospheres, was submitted to the IEC-CENELEC parallel vote and was approved by
CENELEC as EN 60079-28 on 2006-10-01.
The following dates were fixed:
– latest date by which the EN has to be implemented
at national level by publication of an identical
national standard or by endorsement (dop) 2007-10-01
– latest date by which the national standards conflicting
with the EN have to be withdrawn (dow) 2009-10-01
This European Standard has been prepared under a mandate given to CENELEC by the European
Commission and the European Free Trade Association and covers essential requirements of
EC Directive 94/9/EC. See Annex ZZ.
Annexes ZA and ZZ have been added by CENELEC.
__________
Endorsement notice
The text of the International Standard IEC 60079-28:2006 was approved by CENELEC as a European
Standard without any modification.
In the official version, for Bibliography, the following notes have to be added for the standards indicated:
IEC 60079-1 NOTE Harmonized as EN 60079-1:2004 (not modified).
IEC 60079-2 NOTE Harmonized as EN 60079-2:2004 (not modified).
IEC 60079-7 NOTE Harmonized as EN 60079-7:2007 (not modified).
IEC 60079-14 NOTE Harmonized as EN 60079-14:2003 (not modified).
IEC 60079-15 NOTE Harmonized as EN 60079-15:2005 (not modified).
IEC 60079-26 NOTE Harmonized as EN 60079-26:2004 (not modified).
IEC 61241-0 NOTE Harmonized as EN 61241-0:2006 (modified).
IEC 61241-4 NOTE Harmonized as EN 61241-4:2006 (not modified).
IEC 61241-10 NOTE Harmonized as EN 61241-10:2004 (not modified).
IEC 61241-11 NOTE Harmonized as EN 61241-11:2006 (not modified).
IEC 61241-18 NOTE Harmonized as EN 61241-18:2004 (not modified).
__________

---------------------- Page: 3 ----------------------

- 3 - EN 60079-28:2007

Annex ZA
(normative)

Normative references to international publications
with their corresponding European publications

The following referenced documents are indispensable for the application of this document. For dated
references, only the edition cited applies. For undated references, the latest edition of the referenced
document (including any amendments) applies.

NOTE  When an international publication has been modified by common modifications, indicated by (mod), the relevant EN/HD
applies.

Publication Year Title EN/HD Year
IEC 60079 Series Electrical apparatus for explosive gas EN 60079 Series
atmospheres


1) 2)
IEC 60079-0 (mod) - Electrical apparatus for explosive gas EN 60079-0 2006
atmospheres -
Part 0: General requirements


1) 2)
IEC 60079-10 - Electrical apparatus for explosive gas EN 60079-10 2003
atmospheres -
Part 10: Classification of hazardous areas


1) 2)
IEC 60079-11 - Explosive atmospheres - EN 60079-11 2007
Part 11: Equipment protection by intrinsic
safety "i"


1) 2)
IEC 60825-2 - Safety of laser products - EN 60825-2 2004
Part 2: Safety of optical fibre communication
systems (OFCS)


IEC 61508 Series Functional safety of EN 61508 Series
electrical/electronic/programmable electronic
safety-related systems


IEC 61511 Series Functional safety - Safety instrumented EN 61511 Series
systems for the process industry sector




1)
Undated reference.
2)
Valid edition at date of issue.

---------------------- Page: 4 ----------------------

EN 60079-28:2007 - 4 -
Annex ZZ
(informative)

Coverage of Essential Requirements of EC Directives
This European Standard has been prepared under a mandate given to CENELEC by the European
Commission and the European Free Trade Association and within its scope the standard covers only the
following essential requirements out of those given in Annex II of the EC Directive 94/9/EC:
– ER 1.0.1 to ER 1.0.4, ER 1.0.5 (partly)
– ER 1.2.1, ER 1.2.6, ER 1.2.8 to ER 1.2.9
– ER 1.3.1
– ER 1.5.1
– ER 2.1.1 (partly)
– ER 2.2.1 (partly)
– ER 2.3.1 (partly)
Compliance with this standard provides one means of conformity with the specified essential
requirements of the Directive concerned.
WARNING: Other requirements and other EC Directives may be applicable to the products falling within
the scope of this standard.

---------------------- Page: 5 ----------------------

NORME CEI
INTERNATIONALE
IEC



60079-28
INTERNATIONAL


Première édition
STANDARD

First edition

2006-08


Atmosphères explosives –
Partie 28:
Protection du matériel et des systèmes de
transmission utilisant le rayonnement optique

Explosive atmospheres –
Part 28:
Protection of equipment and transmission
systems using optical radiation

 IEC 2006 Droits de reproduction réservés  Copyright - all rights reserved
Aucune partie de cette publication ne peut être reproduite ni No part of this publication may be reproduced or utilized in any
utilisée sous quelque forme que ce soit et par aucun procédé, form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including
électronique ou mécanique, y compris la photocopie et les photocopying and microfilm, without permission in writing from
microfilms, sans l'accord écrit de l'éditeur. the publisher.
International Electrotechnical Commission, 3, rue de Varembé, PO Box 131, CH-1211 Geneva 20, Switzerland
Telephone: +41 22 919 02 11 Telefax: +41 22 919 03 00 E-mail: inmail@iec.ch Web: www.iec.ch
CODE PRIX
W
PRICE CODE
Commission Electrotechnique Internationale
International Electrotechnical Commission
МеждународнаяЭлектротехническаяКомиссия
Pour prix, voir catalogue en vigueur
For price, see current catalogue

---------------------- Page: 6 ----------------------

60079-28  IEC:2006 – 3 –
CONTENTS
FOREWORD.7
INTRODUCTION.11
1 Scope.13
2 Normative references .15
3 Terms and definitions .15
4 General requirements .21
4.1 Optical equipment .21
4.2 Risk levels.21
5 Types of protection.23
5.1 General .23
5.2 Requirements for inherently safe optical radiation “op is” .23
5.3 Requirements for protected optical radiation “op pr” .27
5.4 Optical radiation interlock with optical fibre breakage “op sh” .29
5.5 Suitability of types of protection.29
6 Type verifications and tests .31
6.1 Test set-up for ignition tests .31
6.2 Reference test.33
6.3 Test mixtures .35
6.4 Tests for pulse trains and pulses between 1 ms and 1 s duration .35
7 Marking .35
7.1 General .35
7.2 Marking information.37
7.3 Examples of marking .37

Annex A (normative) Reference test data.39
Annex B (informative) Ignition mechanisms .41
Annex C (normative) Ignition hazard assessment.53
Annex D (informative)  Typical optical fibre cable design .57
Annex E (informative) Introduction of an alternative risk assessment method
encompassing “equipment protection levels” for Ex equipment .59

Bibliography.69

Figure 1 – Figure B.1 with limit lines for intermediate areas for non-combustible
targets, T1 – T4 atmospheres, apparatus group IIA, IIB or IIC.25
Figure B.1 – Minimum radiant igniting power with inert absorber target (α
1
=83 %, α =93 %) and continuous wave-radiation of 1 064 nm.47
064 nm 805 nm
Figure B.2 – Minimum radiant igniting power with inert absorber target (α
1
=83 %, α =93 %) and continuous wave-radiation (PTB: 1 064 nm, HSL:
064 nm 805 nm
805 nm, [24]: 803 nm) for some n-alkanes .49
Figure C.1 – Ignition hazard assessment .53
Figure D.1 – Example multi-fibre optical cable design for heavy duty applications.57
Figure D.2 – Typical single optical fibre cable design.57

---------------------- Page: 7 ----------------------

60079-28  IEC:2006 – 5 –
Table 1 – Relationship between EPL and the probability of an ignition source.21
Table 2 – Safe optical power and irradiance for hazardous locations categorized by
apparatus group and temperature class .23
Table 3 – Optical interlock availability or ignition risk reduction factor by EPL.29
Table 4 – Application of types of protection for optic systems based on EPLs .31
Table A.1 – Reference values for ignition tests with a mixture of propane in air at
40 °C mixture temperature .39
Table B.1 – AIT (auto ignition temperature), MESG (maximum experimental safe gap)
and measured ignition powers of the chosen combustibles for inert absorbers as the
target material (α =83 %, α =93) .45
1 064 nm 805 nm
i,min
Table B.2 – Comparison of measured minimum igniting optical pulse energy (Q )
e,p
at 90 µm beam diameter with auto ignition temperatures (AIT) and minimum ignition
energies (MIE) from literature [25] at concentrations in percent by volume (ϕ) .51
Table E.1 – Traditional relationship of EPLs to zones (no additional risk assessment) .63
Table E.2 – Description of risk of ignition protection provided .65

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60079-28  IEC:2006 – 7 –
INTERNATIONAL ELECTROTECHNICAL COMMISSION
____________

EXPLOSIVE ATMOSPHERES –

Part 28: Protection of equipment and transmission systems
using optical radiation


FOREWORD
1) The International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) is a worldwide organization for standardization comprising
all national electrotechnical committees (IEC National Committees). The object of IEC is to promote
international co-operation on all questions concerning standardization in the electrical and electronic fields. To
this end and in addition to other activities, IEC publishes International Standards, Technical Specifications,
Technical Reports, Publicly Available Specifications (PAS) and Guides (hereafter referred to as
“IEC Publication(s)”). Their preparation is entrusted to technical committees; any IEC National Committee
interested in the subject dealt with may participate in this preparatory work. International, governmental and
non-governmental organizations liaising with the IEC also participate in this preparation. IEC collaborates
closely with the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) in accordance with conditions determined
by agreement between the two organizations.
2) The formal decisions or agreements of IEC on technical matters express, as nearly as possible, an international
consensus of opinion on the relevant subjects since each technical committee has representation from all
interested IEC National Committees.
3) IEC Publications have the form of recommendations for international use and are accepted by IEC National
Committees in that sense. While all reasonable efforts are made to ensure that the technical content of
IEC Publications is accurate, IEC cannot be held responsible for the way in which they are used or for any
misinterpretation by any end user.
4) In order to promote international uniformity, IEC National Committees undertake to apply IEC Publications
transparently to the maximum extent possible in their national and regional publications. Any divergence
between any IEC Publication and the corresponding national or regional publication shall be clearly indicated in
the latter.
5) IEC provides no marking procedure to indicate its approval and cannot be rendered responsible for any
equipment declared to be in conformity with an IEC Publication.
6) All users should ensure that they have the latest edition of this publication.
7) No liability shall attach to IEC or its directors, employees, servants or agents including individual experts and
members of its technical committees and IEC National Committees for any personal injury, property damage or
other damage of any nature whatsoever, whether direct or indirect, or for costs (including legal fees) and
expenses arising out of the publication, use of, or reliance upon, this IEC Publication or any other
IEC Publications.
8) Attention is drawn to the Normative references cited in this publication. Use of the referenced publications is
indispensable for the correct application of this publication.
9) Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this IEC Publication may be the subject of
patent rights. IEC shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights.
International Standard IEC 60079-28 has been prepared by IEC technical committee 31:
Equipment for explosive atmospheres.
The text of this standard is based on the following documents:
FDIS Report on voting
31/631/FDIS 31/650/RVD

Full information on the voting for the approval of this standard can be found in the report on
voting indicated in the above table.
This publication has been drafted in accordance with the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2.

---------------------- Page: 9 ----------------------

60079-28  IEC:2006 – 9 –
A list of all parts of the IEC 60079 series, under the general title Explosives atmospheres, can
be found on the IEC website.
The committee has decided that the contents of this publication will remain unchanged until
the maintenance result date indicated on the IEC web site under "http://webstore.iec.ch" in
the data related to the specific publication. At this date, the publication will be
• reconfirmed;
• withdrawn;
• replaced by a revised edition, or
• amended.

---------------------- Page: 10 ----------------------

60079-28  IEC:2006 – 11 –
INTRODUCTION
Optical equipment in the form of lamps, lasers, LEDs, optical fibers, etc. is increasingly used
for communications, surveying, sensing and measurement. In material processing, optical
radiation of high irradiance is used. Often the installation is inside or close to potentially
explosive atmospheres, and radiation from such equipment may pass through these
atmospheres. Depending on the characteristics of the radiation it might then be able to ignite
a surrounding explosive atmosphere. The presence or absence of an additional absorber
significantly influences the ignition.
There are four possible ignition mechanisms.
a) Optical radiation is absorbed by surfaces or particles, causing them to heat up, and, under
certain circumstances, this may allow them to attain a temperature which will ignite a
surrounding explosive atmosphere.
b) Thermal ignition of a gas volume, where the optical wavelength matches an absorption
band of the gas.
c) Photochemical ignition due to photo dissociation of oxygen molecules by radiation in the
ultraviolet wavelength range.
d) Direct laser induced breakdown of the gas at the focus of a strong beam, producing
plasma and a shock wave both eventually acting as the ignition source. These processes
can be supported by a solid material close to the breakdown point.
The most likely case of ignition occurring in practice with lowest radiation power of ignition
capability is case a). Under some conditions for pulsed radiation, case d) also will become
relevant.
Optical equipment is used in most cases in conjunction with electrical equipment, for which
clear and detailed requirements and standards for use in potentially explosive atmospheres
exist. One purpose of this standard is to inform industry about potential ignition hazards
associated with the use of optical systems in hazardous locations as defined in IEC 60079-10
and the adequate protection methods.
This standard details the integrated system used to control the ignition hazard from equipment
using optical radiation in hazardous locations.

---------------------- Page: 11 ----------------------

60079-28  IEC:2006 – 13 –
EXPLOSIVE ATMOSPHERES –

Part 28: Protection of equipment and transmission systems
using optical radiation



1 Scope
This part of IEC 60079 explains the potential ignition hazard from equipment using optical
radiation intended for use in explosive gas atmospheres. It also covers equipment, which
itself is located outside but its emitted optical radiation enters such atmospheres. It describes
precautions and requirements to be taken when using optical radiation transmitting equipment
in explosive gas atmospheres. It also outlines a test method, which can be used to verify a
beam is not ignition capable under selected test conditions, if the optical limit values cannot
be guaranteed by assessment or beam strength measurement.
This standard contains requirements for optical radiation in the wavelength range from
380 nm to 10 µm. It covers the following ignition mechanisms:
• optical radiation is absorbed by surfaces or particles, causing them to heat up and, under
certain circumstances, this may allow them to attain a temperature which will ignite a
surrounding explosive atmosphere;
• direct laser induced breakdown of the gas at the focus of a strong beam, producing
plasma and a shock wave both eventually acting as the ignition source. These processes
can be supported by a solid material close to the breakdown point.
NOTE 1 See items a) and d) of the introduction.
This standard does not cover ignition by ultraviolet radiation and by absorption of the radiation
in the explosive mixture itself. Explosive absorbers or absorbers that contain their own
oxidizer as well as catalytic absorbers are also outside the scope of this standard.
This standard specifies requirements for equipment intended for use under atmospheric
conditions.
This standard supplements and modifies the general requirements of IEC 60079-0. Where a
requirement of this standard conflicts with a requirement of IEC 60079-0, the requirement of
this standard willll take precedence.
NOTE 2 Although one should be aware of ignition mechanism b) and c) explained in the introduction, they are not
addressed in this standard due to the very special situation with ultraviolet radiation and with the absorption
properties of most gases (see Annex B).
NOTE 3 Safety requirements to reduce human exposure hazards from fibre optic communication systems are
found in IEC 60825-2:2000.
NOTE 4 Types of protection "op is", "op pr", and "op sh" can provide equipment protection levels (EPL) Ga, Gb,
or Gc. For further information, see Annex E.

---------------------- Page: 12 ----------------------

60079-28  IEC:2006 – 15 –
2 Normative references
The following referenced documents are indispensable for the application of this document.
For dated references, only the edition cited applies. For undated references, the latest edition
of the referenced document (including any amendments) applies.
IEC 60079 (all parts), Electrical apparatus for explosive gas atmospheres
IEC 60079-0, Electrical apparatus for explosive gas atmospheres – Part 0: General
requirements
IEC 60079-10, Electrical apparatus for explosive gas atmospheres – Part 10: Classification of
hazardous areas
IEC 60079-11, Explosive atmospheres – Part 11: Equipment protection by intrinsic safety "i"
IEC 60825-2, Safety of laser products – Part 2: Safety of optical fibre communication systems
IEC 61508 (all parts), Functional safety of electrical/electronic/programmable electronic
safety-related systems
IEC 61511 (all parts), Functional safety – Safety instrumented systems for the process
industry sector
3 Terms and definitions
For the purposes of this document, the terms and definitions given in IEC IEC 60079-0 and
the following apply.
1
NOTE Additional definitions applicable to explosive atmospheres can be found in IEC 60050-426 [1] .
3.1
absorption
in a propagation medium, the conversion of electromagnetic wave energy into another form of
energy, for instance heat
[IEV 731-03-14]
3.2
beam diameter (or beam width)
the distance between two diametrically opposed points where the irradiance is a specified
fraction of the beam’s peak irradiance
[IEV 731-01-35]
NOTE Most commonly applied to beams that are circular or nearly circular in cross section.
3.3
beam strength
a general term used in this standard referring to an optical beam’s power, irradiance, energy,
or radiant exposure
—————————

1
Figures in square brackets refer to the bibliography.

---------------------- Page: 13 ----------------------

60079-28  IEC:2006 – 17 –
3.4
core
the central region of an optical fibre through which most of the optical power is transmitted
[IEV 731-02-04]
3.5
cladding
that dielectric material of an optical fibre surrounding the core
[IEV 731-02-05]
3.6
fibre bundle
an assembly of unbuffered optical fibres
[IEV 731-04-09]
3.7
fibre optic terminal device
an assembly including one or more opto-electronic devices which converts an electrical signal
into an optical signal, and/or vice versa, which is designed to be connected to at least one
optical fibre
[IEV 731-06-44]
NOTE A fibre optic terminal device always has one or more integral fibre optic connector(s) or optical fibre
pigtails(s).
3.8
inherently safe optical radiation
visible or infrared radiation that is incapable of producing sufficient energy under normal or
specified fault conditions to ignite a specific hazardous atmospheric mixture
NOTE This definition is analogous to the term “intrinsically safe ” applied to electrical circuits.
3.9
irradiance
the radiant power incident on an element of a surface divided by the area of that element
[IEV 731-01-25]
3.10
light (or visible radiation)
any optical radiation capable of causing a visual sensation directly on a human being
[IEV 731-01-04]
NOTE 1 Nominally covering the wavelength in vacuum range of 380 nm to 800 nm.
NOTE 2 In the laser and optical communication fields, custom and practice in the English language have
extended usage of the term light to include the much broader portion of the electromagnetic spectrum that can be
handled by the basic optical techniques used for the visible spectrum.

---------------------- Page: 14 ----------------------

60079-28  IEC:2006 – 19 –
3.11
minimum ignition energy
MIE
lowest electrical energy stored in a capacitor which upon discharge is sufficient to effect
ignition of the most ignitable explosive atmosphere under specified test conditions
3.12
optical fibre
filament shaped optical waveguide made of dielectric materials
[IEV 731-02-01]
3.13
optical fibre cable
an assembly comprising one or more optical fibres or fibre bundles inside a common covering
designed to protect them against mechanical stresses and other environmental influences
while retaining the transmission qualities of the fibres
[IEV 731-04-01]
3.14
optical fibre communication system
OFCS
engineered, end-to-end assembly for the generation, transference and reception of optical
radiation arising from lasers, LEDs or optical amplifiers, in which the transference is by means
of optical fibre for communication and/or control purposes
3.15
free space optical communication system
FSOCS
an installed, portable, or temporarily mounted, through-the-air system typically used, intended
or promoted for voice, data or multimedia communications and/or control purposes via the use
of modulated optical radiation produced by a laser or IR-LED. "Free space" means indoor and
outdoor optical wireless applications with both non-directed and directed transmission.
Emitting and detecting assemblies may or may not be separated.
NOTE The above definitions are from IEC TC 76. This standard is not only dealing with “communication systems”,
so a more general definition could be useful.
3.16
optical (or radiant) power
the time rate of flow of radiant energy with time
[IEV 731-01-22]
3.17
optical radiation
electromagnetic radiation at wavelengths in vacuum between the region of transition to X-rays
and the region of transition to radio waves, that is approximately between 1 nm and 1 000 µm
[IEV 731-01-03]
NOT
...

SLOVENSKI oSIST prEN 60079-28:2005

PREDSTANDARD
junij 2005
Električne naprave za potencialno eksplozivne atmosfere – 28. del: Zaščita
opreme in prenosnih sistemov z optičnim sevanjem
Electrical apparatus for explosive atmospheres – Part 28: Protection of equipment
and transmission systems using optical radiation
ICS 29.260.20 Referenčna številka
oSIST prEN 60079-28:2005(en)
©  Standard je založil in izdal Slovenski inštitut za standardizacijo. Razmnoževanje ali kopiranje celote ali delov tega dokumenta ni dovoljeno

---------------------- Page: 1 ----------------------
31/571/CDV
COMMITTEE DRAFT FOR VOTE (CDV)
PROJET DE COMITÉ POUR VOTE (CDV)

Project number IEC 60079-28 Ed 1.0
Numéro de projet
IEC/TC or SC: Date of circulation Closing date for voting (Voting
TC 31
Date de diffusion mandatory for P-members)

CEI/CE ou SC:

Date de clôture du vote (Vote
2005-02-25
obligatoire pour les membres (P))
2005-07-29
Titre du CE/SC: Matériel électrique pour Electrical apparatus for explosive
TC/SC Title:
atmosphères explosives gazeuses atmospheres
Secretary: UK — G F Thompson
Secrétaire:
Also of interest to the following committees Supersedes document
Intéresse également les comités suivants Remplace le document
TC18 31/479/CD 31/515/CC
Functions concerned
Fonctions concernées
Safety EMC Environment Quality assurance
Sécurité
CEM Environnement Assurance qualité
CE DOCUMENT EST TOUJOURS À L'ÉTUDE ET SUSCEPTIBLE DE THIS DOCUMENT IS STILL UNDER STUDY AND SUBJECT TO CHANGE. IT
MODIFICATION. IL NE PEUT SERVIR DE RÉFÉRENCE. SHOULD NOT BE USED FOR REFERENCE PURPOSES.
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Titre : CEI 60079-28 Ed. 1.0: Matériel électrique Title : IEC 60079-28 Ed. 1.0: Electrical apparatus
pour atmosphères explosives gazeuses Partie for explosive gas atmospheres Part 28:
28: Protection de l’équipement et des systèmes Protection of equipment and transmission
de transmission utilisant le rayonnement optique systems using optical radiation


Note d'introduction: Introductory note:

An "Introduction" has been provided to allow an
Une introduction a été ajoutée afin de faciliter la
understanding of the considerations made
compréhension des remarques faites lors de la
during the preparation of the draft for IEC
préparation du projet de norme CEI 60079-28
60079-28.




ATTENTION ATTENTION

CDV soumis en parallèle au vote (CEI) Parallel IEC CDV/CENELEC Enquiry
et à l’enquête (CENELEC)

Copyright © 2005 International Electrotechnical Commission, IEC. All rights reserved. It is
permitted to download this electronic file, to make a copy and to print out the content for the sole
purpose of preparing National Committee positions. You may not copy or "mirror" the file or
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writing from IEC.
FORM CDV (IEC)

2002-08-09

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CONTENTS

1 Scope .7
2 Normative references.7
3 Definitions.8
4 General requirements .10
4.1 Optical equipment.10
4.2 Risk levels.10
5 Protection concepts .10
5.1 General .10
5.2 Requirements for inherently safe optical radiation.10
5.2.1 General.10
5.2.2 Continuous wave radiation .11
5.2.3 Pulsed radiation .12
5.2.4 Ignition tests .12
5.2.5 Optical devices incorporating the inherently safe concept .13
5.3 Requirements for protected optical radiation .13
5.3.1 Radiation inside fibre etc. (No mechanical damage to be expected) .13
5.3.2 Radiation inside enclosures .13
5.4 Optical radiation interlock with optical fibre breakage.13
5.5 Suitability of protection concepts .14
6 Type verifications and tests.14
6.1 Test set-up for ignition tests .14
6.1.1 Test vessel .14
6.1.2 Energy and power measurements .14
6.1.3 Ignition criterion .15
6.1.4 Mixture temperature .15
6.1.5 Mixture pressure .15
6.1.6 Safety factor .15
6.2 Reference test .15
6.2.1 Reference gas.15
6.2.2 Reference absorber.15
6.2.3 Reference test for continuous wave radiation and pulses above 1s
duration .15
6.2.4 Reference test for pulsed radiation below 1 ms pulse duration .15
6.3 Ignition tests with continuous wave radiation and pulses above 1s duration .16
6.3.1 Test mixtures .16
6.4 Ignition tests with single pulses below 1 ms duration .16
6.4.1 Test mixtures .16
6.5 Tests for pulse trains and pulses between 1 ms and 1 s duration .16
7 Marking.16
7.1 General .16
7.2 Marking Information .16
7.3 Examples of marking.17
Annex A (Normative) Reference test data .18
Annex B (informative)  Ignition mechanisms (The information provided in this annex is
taken from [1]).19

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Annex C (normative)  Ignition hazard assessment .24
Annex D (informative)  Typical optical fibre cable design .26
Annex E (informative) Literature .27

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INTERNATIONAL ELECTROTECHNICAL COMMISSION
____________

ELECTRICAL APPARATUS FOR EXPLOSIVE GAS ATMOSPHERES –

Part 28: Protection of equipment and transmission systems using optical
radiation

FOREWORD
1) The International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) is a worldwide organization for standardization comprising
all national electrotechnical committees (IEC National Committees). The object of IEC is to promote
international co-operation on all questions concerning standardization in the electrical and electronic fields. To
this end and in addition to other activities, IEC publishes International Standards, Technical Specifications,
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technical committees; any IEC National Committee interested in the subject dealt with may participate in this
preparatory work. International, governmental and non-governmental organizations liaising with the IEC also
participate in this preparation. IEC collaborates closely with the International Organization for Standardization
(ISO) in accordance with conditions determined by agreement between the two organizations.
2) The formal decisions or agreements of IEC on technical matters express, as nearly as possible, an international
consensus of opinion on the relevant subjects since each technical committee has representation from all
interested IEC National Committees.
3) IEC Publications have the form of recommendations for international use and are accepted by IEC National
Committees in that sense. While all reasonable efforts are made to ensure that the technical content of IEC
Publications is accurate, IEC cannot be held responsible for the way in which they are used or for any
misinterpretation by any end user.
4) In order to promote international uniformity, IEC National Committees undertake to apply IEC Publications
transparently to the maximum extent possible in their national and regional publications. Any divergence
between any IEC Publication and the corresponding national or regional publication shall be clearly indicated in
the latter.
5) IEC provides no marking procedure to indicate its approval and cannot be rendered responsible for any
equipment declared to be in conformity with an IEC Publication.
6) All users should ensure that they have the latest edition of this publication.
7) No liability shall attach to IEC or its directors, employees, servants or agents including individual experts and
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Publications.
8) Attention is drawn to the Normative references cited in this publication. Use of the referenced publications is
indispensable for the correct application of this publication.
9) Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this IEC Publication may be the subject of
patent rights. IEC shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights.
International Standard IEC 60079-28 has been prepared by IEC technical committee 31:
Electrical apparatus for explosive atmospheres.
The text of this standard is based on the following documents:
FDIS Report on voting
XX/XX/FDIS XX/XX/RVD

Full information on the voting for the approval of this standard can be found in the report on
voting indicated in the above table.
This publication has been drafted in accordance with the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2.
The committee has decided that the contents of this publication will remain unchanged until
2XXX. At this date, the publication will be

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• reconfirmed;
• withdrawn;
• replaced by a revised edition, or
• amended.

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INTRODUCTION

Optical equipment in the form of lamps, lasers, LEDs, optical fibers etc. is increasingly used
for communications; surveying, sensing and measurement. In material processing optical
radiation of high irradiance is used. Often the installation is inside or close to potentially
explosive atmospheres, and radiation from such equipment may pass through these
atmospheres. Depending on the characteristics of the radiation it might then be able to ignite
a surrounding explosive atmosphere. The presence or absence of an additional absorber
significantly influences the ignition.
There are four possible ignition mechanisms:
a) Optical radiation is absorbed by surfaces or particles, causing them to heat up, and under
certain circumstances this may allow them to attain a temperature which will ignite a
surrounding explosive atmosphere.
b) Thermal ignition of a gas volume, where the optical wavelength matches an absorption
band of the gas.
c) Photochemical ignition due to photo dissociation of oxygen molecules by radiation in the
ultraviolet wavelength range.
d) Direct laser induced breakdown of the gas at the focus of a strong beam, producing
plasma and a shock wave both eventually acting as ignition source. These processes can
be supported by a solid material close to the breakdown point.
The most likely case of ignition occurring in practice with lowest radiation power of ignition
capability is case a). Under some conditions for pulsed radiation case d) also will become
relevant.
Optical equipment is used in most cases in conjunction with electrical equipment, for which
clear and detailed requirements and standards for use in potentially explosive atmospheres
exist. One purpose of this Standard is to inform industry about potential ignition hazards
associated with the use of optical systems in hazardous locations as defined in IEC 60079-10
and the adequate protection methods.
This Standard details engineering and installation practices to control the ignition hazard from
equipment using optical radiation in hazardous locations.

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ELECTRICAL APPARATUS FOR EXPLOSIVE GAS ATMOSPHERES –

Part 28: Protection of equipment and transmission systems using optical
radiation
1 Scope
This Standard explains the potential ignition hazard from equipment using optical radiation
intended for use in explosive gas atmospheres. It also covers equipment, which itself is
located outside but its emitted optical radiation enters such atmospheres. It describes
precautions and requirements to be taken when using optical radiation transmitting equipment
in explosive gas atmospheres. It also outlines a test method, which can be used to verify a
beam is not ignition capable under selected test conditions, if the optical limit values cannot
be guaranteed by assessment or beam strength measurement.
This standard contains requirements for optical radiation in the wavelength range from 380
nm to 10 µm. It covers the following ignition mechanisms
• Optical radiation is absorbed by surfaces or particles, causing them to heat up, and under
certain circumstances this may allow them to attain a temperature which will ignite a
surrounding explosive atmosphere.
• Direct laser induced breakdown of the gas at the focus of a strong beam, producing
plasma and a shock wave both eventually acting as ignition source. These processes can
be supported by a solid material close to the breakdown point.
NOTE 1: a) and d) of the introduction.
This standard does not cover ignition by ultraviolet radiation and by absorption of the radiation
in the explosive mixture itself. Explosive absorbers or absorbers that contain their own
oxidizer as well as catalytic absorbers are also outside the scope of this Standard.
This Standard specifies requirements for equipment intended for use under atmospheric
conditions.
NOTE 2: Although one should be aware of ignition mechanism b) and c) explained in the introduction, they are not
addressed in this Standard due the very special situation with ultraviolet radiation and with the absorption
properties of most gases (see annex B).
NOTE 3: Safety requirements to reduce human exposure hazards from fibre optic communication systems are
found in IEC 60825-2:2000: Safety of laser products - Part 2: Safety of optical fibre communication systems.
2 Normative references
The following referenced documents are indispensable for the application of this document.
For dated references, only the edition cited applies. For undated references, the latest edition
of the referenced document (including any amendments) applies.
IEC 60050-426: 1990: International Electrotechnical Vocabulary. Chapter 426: Electrical
apparatus for explosive atmospheres
IEC 60079-0 2004: Electrical apparatus for explosive gas atmospheres Part 0: General
requirements
IEC 60079-10: 2002: Electrical apparatus for explosive gas atmospheres - Part 10:
Classification of hazardous areas
IEC 60079-11:1999: Electrical apparatus for explosive gas atmospheres - Part 11: Intrinsic
safety
IEC 60825-2:2000: Safety of laser products - Part 2: Safety of optical fibre communication
systems
IEC 60050-731:1991: International electrotechnical vocabulary Chapter 731: Optical fibre
communication

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IEC 61508: Parts 1 through 7: Functional safety of electrical/electronic/programmable
electronic safety-related systems
IEC 61511:2003: Part 1 and 3: Functional safety - Safety instrumented systems for the
process industry sector
3 Definitions
For the purposes of this document, the terms and definitions given in IEC 60050-426, IEC
60050-731, IEC 60079-0 and the following apply.
3.1
absorption:
in a propagation medium, the conversion of electromagnetic wave energy into another form of
energy, for instance heat. (IEC 60050-731:1991-10)
3.2
beam diameter (or beam width):
the distance between two diametrically opposed points where the irradiance is a specified
fraction of the beams peak irradiance. (IEC 60050-731:1991-10)
NOTE — Most commonly applied to beams that are circular or nearly circular in cross section.
3.3
beam strength:
a general term used in this Standard referring to an optical beam’s power, irradiance, energy,
or radiant exposure.
3.4
core:
the central region of an optical fibre through which most of the optical power is transmitted.
(IEC 60050-731:1991-10)
3.5
cladding:
that dielectric material of an optical fibre surrounding the core. (IEC 60050-731:1991-10)
3.6
fibre bundle:
an assembly of unbuffered optical fibres. (IEC 60050-731:1991-10)
3.7
fibre optic terminal device:
an assembly including one or more opto-electronic devices which converts an electrical signal
into an optical signal, and/or vice versa, which is designed to be connected to at least one
optical fibre. (IEC 60050-731:1991-10)
NOTE — A fibre optic terminal device always has one or more integral fibre optic connector(s) or optical fibre
pigtails(s).
3.8
inherently safe optical radiation:
visible or infrared radiation that is incapable of producing sufficient energy under normal or
specified fault conditions to ignite a specific hazardous atmospheric mixture.
NOTE — This definition is analogous to the term “intrinsically safe ” applied to electrical circuits.
3.9
irradiance:
the radiant power incident on an element of a surface divided by the area of that element.
(IEC 60050-731:1991-10)
3.10
light (or visible radiation):
any optical radiation capable of causing a visual sensation directly on a human being. (IEC
60050-731:1991-10)

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60079-28 Ed. 1/CDV  IEC – 9 –
NOTE 1 — Nominally covering the wavelength in vacuum range of 380 nm to 800 nm.
NOTE 2 — In the laser and optical communication fields, custom and practice in the English language have
extended usage of the term light to include the much broader portion of the electromagnetic spectrum that can be
handled by the basic optical techniques used for the visible spectrum.
3.11
minimum ignition energy (MIE)
lowest electrical energy stored in a capacitor which upon discharge is sufficient to effect
ignition of the most ignitable explosive atmosphere under specified test conditions.
3.12
optical fibre:
filament shaped optical waveguide made of dielectric materials. (IEC 60050-731:1991-10)
3.13
optical fibre cable:
an assembly comprising one or more optical fibres or fibre bundles inside a common covering
designed to protect them against mechanical stresses and other environmental influences
while retaining the transmission qualities of the fibres. (IEC 60050-731:1991-10, see Annex D)
3.14
optical fibre communication system (OFCS)
engineered, end-to-end assembly for the generation, transference and reception of optical
radiation arising from lasers, LEDs or optical amplifiers, in which the transference is by means
of optical fibre for communication and/or control purposes
3.15
free space optical communication system (FSOCS).
An installed, portable, or temporarily mounted, through-the-air system typically used, intended
or promoted for voice, data or multimedia communications and/or control purposes via the use
of modulated optical radiation produced by a laser or IR-LED.  "Free space" means indoor
and outdoor optical wireless applications with both non-directed and directed transmission.
Emitting and detecting assemblies may or may not be separated.
NOTE: The above definitions are from IEC TC 76. This standard is not only dealing with 'communication systems',
so a more general definition could be useful.
3.16
optical (or radiant) power:
the time rate of flow of radiant energy with time. (IEC 60050-731:1991-10)
3.17
optical radiation:
electromagnetic radiation at wavelengths in vacuum between the region of transition to X-rays
and the region of transition to radio waves, that is approximately between 1 nm and 1000 µm.
(IEC 60050-731:1991-10)
NOTE — In the context of this Standard, the term “optical” refers to wavelengths ranging from 380 nm to 10 µm.
3.18
protected optical fibre cable:
optical fibre cable protected from releasing optical radiation into the atmosphere during
normal operating conditions and foreseeable malfunctions by additional armouring, conduit,
cable tray or raceway.
3.19
radiant energy:
energy that is emitted, transmitted or received via electromagnetic waves. (IEC 60050-
731:1991-10)
3.20
radiant exposure:
the radiant energy incident on an element of a surface divided by the area of that element.
(IEC Dictionary Pub. 50-393-04-89 and 845-01-42)

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4 General requirements
4.1 Optical equipment
All electrical parts and circuits inside and outside optical equipment shall comply with the
appropriate standards for electrical apparatus.
4.2 Risk levels
Three different risk levels, based on the zones defined in IEC 60079-10 (alternatively
Equipment Protection Levels Ga, Gb, Gc) are applicable. The Table 1 shows the relationship
between the zone (EPL) and the probability of an ignition source:

Zone (or EPL) Protection required:
0 (Ga) Ignition not possible with one fault and two
independent faults or in the case of rare
malfunctions
1 (Gb) Ignition not possible with one fault or in the
case of expected malfunctions
2 (Gc) Ignition not possible in normal operation
Table 1: Relationship between zone (or EPL) and the required probability of an ignition
source
An ignition hazard assessment, as given in Annex C, has to be carried out to identify the
ignition mechanisms and ignition sources caused by the specific working principle of the
equipment using optical radiation.
The protection concepts selected from section 5 to protect the specific equipment depend on
this ignition hazard assessment considering the table of ignition probabilities given above for
the different zones (or EPLs) .
Note: In IEC TC31, the introduction of "Equipment Protection Levels (EPL) Ga,Gb,Gc" was decided. Therefore, the
zones in the table could be replaced by levels Ga, Gb, Gc in the final version of this draft standard.
5 Protection concepts
5.1 General
Three protection concepts can be applied to prevent ignitions by optical radiation in potentially
explosive atmospheres.
a) Inherently safe optical radiation
b) Protected optical radiation
c) Interlock with optical fibre breakage in fibre optic systems
5.2 Requirements for inherently safe optical radiation
5.2.1 General
Inherently safe optical radiation means visible or infrared radiation that is incapable of
supplying sufficient energy under normal or specified fault conditions to ignite a specific
explosive atmosphere. The concept is a beam strength limitation approach to safety. Ignition
by an optically irradiated target absorber requires the least amount of energy, power, or
irradiance of the identified ignition mechanisms in the visible and infrared spectrum. The
inherently safe concept applies to unconfined radiation and does not require maintaining an
absorber-free environment.
Note: Research to date [1-6] has concluded the following values of visible and infrared beam strength are safe for
explosive gas atmospheres. The safe values incorporate a modest safety factor on observed ignition values

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obtained under severe test conditions. Ignition of a carbon disulfide-air mixture has been reported recently using
24 mW optical power.
5.2.2 Continuous wave radiation
Optical powers or optical irradiance shall not exceed the values listed in Table 2, categorized
by apparatus group and temperature class. The irradiance values are safe up to a maximum
irradiated surface area of 400 mm². For irradiated surface areas above 400 mm² the
temperature limits of the relevant temperature class apply. Table 2 contains information on
combustible and on non-combustible absorbers.

I and
Apparatus Group IIA IIB IIC IIC
IIA
T1- T1- T1- T1-
Temperature Class T4
T3 T4 T4 T6
Power (mW) 150 35 35 35 15
2
Irradiance (mW/mm )
a
(surface area not 20 5 5 5 5
b
exceeding 400 mm²)

a 2
For irradiated areas greater than 30 mm where combustible materials may intercept the
2
beam, the 5 mW/mm irradiance limit applies.
Table 2. Safe optical power and irradiance for hazardous locations categorized by
1
Apparatus Group and Temperature Class
As an alternative to table 2, for intermediate target surface areas where combustible solid
targets can be excluded safe power values can be drawn from Figure 1.

1
Apparatus groups and temperature classes are defined in IEC 60079-0

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hydrogen ethine carbon disulfide
2000
Adler CS [1] methane n-pentane
2
iso-propylic alcohol propane
mW
diethyl ether ethene THF
dimethyl ether
1000
800
600
ignition
400
200
100
80
60
40
35 mW
non-ignition
20
-4 -3 -2 -1 0 1 2 2
10 10 10 10 10 10 mm 10
irradiated area

Figure 1: Figure B-1 from Annex B with limit lines for intermediate areas for IIA, IIB, IIC
T1 - T4 atmospheres
5.2.3 Pulsed radiation
For optical pulse duration of less than 1 ms the optical pulse energy shall not exceed the
minimum spark ignition energy (MIE) of the respective explosive gas atmosphere.
For optical pulse duration between 1 ms and 1 s, an optical pulse energy equal to 10 times
the minimum spark ignition energy (MIE) of the explosive gas atmosphere shall not be
exceeded.
For optical pulse duration greater than 1 s, the peak power shall not exceed the safety levels
for continuous wave radiation (5.2.2. Table 2). Such pulses are considered as continuous
wave radiation.
For optical pulse trains the single pulse criterion applies for each pulse. With repetition rates
above 100 Hz the average power shall not exceed the safety levels for continuous wave
radiation. With repetition rates below 100 Hz a higher average power may be applicable if
demonstrated by tests according to 6.
5.2.4 Ignition tests
Ignition tests to demonstrate inherent safety may be performed in special cases such as:
• Beams of intermediate dimensions or duration that may exceed the minimum optical
ignition criteria but are still incapable of causing ignition.
• Beams with complex time waveforms such that pulse energies and/or average power are
not easily resolved.
• Specific atmospheres, targets, or other specific applications that are demonstrably less
...

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