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Third-Party Certifications and Compliances

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Classes

According to the National Electrical Code (NEC), there are three types of hazardous locations, Class I, Class II and Class III.

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Divisions

The Division defines the probability of hazardous material being present in an ignitable concentration in the surrounding atmosphere.

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Groups

Nature of Hazardous Substances. The group defines the hazardous material in the surrounding atmosphere.

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Summary

Hazardous locations are classified in three ways by NEC: Class, Division and Group. There are three types of hazardous Classes:

  • Class I – gas and vapor.
  • Class II – dust.
  • Class III – fibers and flyings.

There are two kinds of hazardous Divisions:

  • Division 1 – hazardous (substance present during normal operation).
  • Division 2 – hazardous (substance present during abnormal operation)

Finally, there is the nature of the hazardous substance Groups:

Groups A, B, C, and D in Class I locations, and Groups E, F, and G in Class II locations. An example is the classification of a storage area where LP gas is contained in closed tanks. LP gas is a Class I substance (gas or vapor). It’s Division 2 because it would only be in the atmosphere if an accidental rupture or leakage occurred, and it is Group D material.

NFPA496 purge/pressurization of a Control Room allows the use of equipment that is either non-hazardous or has a lower hazloc rating than the environment that it is operating in. An example would be if a non-hazardous device were to be used in a room that would normally be rated Class I, Division 2: our equipment could create and maintain a safe environment in the room for the operation of that device and others like it.