Circuit breakers offer protection in hazardous locations

Hazardous locations exist across a wide array of industries from oil and gas applications to wastewater treatment plants, mining, chemical plants and pharmaceutical production, grain handling, mills, paint shops, and more.

Potentially explosive areas are subject to stringent requirements that ensure the reliability and safety of electrical equipment installed within them. Equipment installed in hazardous locations must be approved for installation in these areas.

Hazardous (classified) locations, as defined in the National Electric Code (NEC), are locations where fire or explosion hazards may exist due to the presence of flammable gases, vapours, flammable liquids, combustible dusts, ignitable fibers, or flying matter.

Article 500 of the NEC divides all hazardous (classified) locations into Classes, Divisions, and Groups. Many of the existing CAPAROC system part numbers have been tested and approved for Class I, Division 2 Groups A, B, C, D. These Class I, Division 2 rated parts are designed for use in North America.

The triple-rated modules are approved for CID2, ATEX, and IECEx locations and cover all other countries around the globe. The status-reset power module and the 2-channel modules are available with the triple rating and have part numbers with the EX in the type description. The EX 2-channel programmable circuit breaker modules are Listed to UL 508 and Recognised to UL 2367, making the devices ideal for 24 V DC applications requiring high density and effective protected power distribution to multiple common loads.

With an adjustable range from 1 A to 4 A and 2 A to 1 A, the 2‐channel CAPAROC circuit breakers cover a wide range of applications with a single part number. The 1 A to 4 A breaker is also rated for NEC Class 2, providing protection against fire and electrical shock.

The circuit breakers are available from Digi-Key in the EMEA, Americas and Asia/Pacific regions.