Avoid Common Purge
and Pressurization
Pitfalls
Chris Romano
Product Portfolio Manager
for Purge and Pressurization
Pepperl+Fuchs, Inc.
Avoid These Eight
Common Mistakes
When Purging
and Pressurizing
Enclosures
Purge and pressurization is a method
of protection that allows nonhazardous
enclosures and equipment to be located
in hazardous areas. It uses air or an inert
2. Forgetting to Purge Before Pressurizing
gas to keep a positive pressure within the Many times in a hazardous gas atmosphere, purging is neglected,
enclosure and prevent hazardous gases or and the enclosure is just pressurized. Users neglect the fact that
the atmosphere inside the enclosure, before pressurizing, may
combustible dust from entering. contain hazardous gas. Industrial enclosures rated Type 4x or
IP66 are not gas tight, so hazardous gases can still leak into the
enclosure.
For hazardous gas environments, air or inert gas is used to 3. Not Knowing the Required Volume Exchange
purge the inside of the enclosure before it can be energized. To ensure all hazardous gas is removed when purging an
For combustible dust environments, dust is physically enclosure, standards exist that specify the number of volume
removed and the enclosure pressurized before it can be changes required before the enclosure is considered safe.
energized. As long as the enclosure is pressurized, the Uninformed users will not know how much safe gas is entering
equipment within the enclosure can operate normally in those the enclosure, which means they will not know the proper volume
environments. exchange. A flow measurement is required to determine the
necessary time that must pass for a successful purging. Some
The purge and pressurization technique is a simple concept purging systems will
if done properly, but too often this method is implemented measure the flow for
without knowing the required standards or the system’s determing purge time.
characteristic gas flow. Even if the protection components are
certified, users might implement them incorrectly. Here are 4. Failure to Address
eight common mistakes: Combustible Dust
Another common and
1. Failure to Include a Pressure-Relief Vent dangerous mistake
Many times, the designer will neglect to include a pressure is not recognizing
relief vent in an enclosure. In hazardous gas atmospheres, that dust being
purging is required and a pressure relief vent is necessary. produced in the plant
The cabinet’s atmosphere must be purged of any hazardous is combustible. A raw
gases and pressurized before the equipment inside can be material used during
energized. Without a vent, the enclosure’s internal atmosphere the manufacturing
has nowhere to escape; the increasing pressure within the process might not be
enclosure will prevent proper purging. listed as combustible,
but dust formed during
In hazardous dust environments, purging is not required, but the process itself
the enclosure must be cleaned before pressurizing. Most could be combustible.
users do not use a pressure relief device, which is acceptable
under normal use. However, if the regulator being used to
pressurize the enclosure fails, a large increase of flow into the
Purge and pressurization technology helps meet
enclosure could damage the enclosure if a pressure-relief vent the demand for general-purpose equipment with
is not present. standard enclosures inside hazardous locations.
For example, in an accident at a pharmaceutical plant that 8. Not Knowing the Standard
manufactured pill casings, the material for the casings was Putting a certified purge system onto an enclosure and
not combustible, but the process of making them produced populating that enclosure with equipment does not necessarily
a very fine dust that collected over the support beams make the complete enclosure a certified system. The applicable
and machinery. When a maintenance worker using a torch standards for purging/pressurization may require further system
accidentally ignited the dust, a small explosion suspended testing to make sure it complies with the area classification.
the dust into the air. The fire followed the dust path, which
then caused a larger explosion. Additional testing is normally required for full and complete
certification, including heat measurements from the equipment
for T-codes, overpressure testing of the enclosure to ensure
5. Failure to Recognize Temperature Changes it does not break or permanently deform, and flow checks to
Extreme heat produced in the enclosure could also ignite in ensure all points within the enclosure are purged and pressurized
a hazardous atmosphere. Even after an enclosure is de- properly.
energized, the enclosure door might need to be kept closed
for a fixed period of time until the surface temperature is Other standards and requirements might apply to other parts
below the ignition temperature of the hazardous gas. of the system, including wiring, terminations, gas handling
elements, and alarm management. By using certified purge
6. Ignoring Shutdown Procedures and pressurization components, the implementation and final
When everything is operating properly, the purge and certification of the system will be easier, faster, and hopefully less
pressurization system is transparent to the operator. When expensive.
the enclosure pressure drops below its safe level, depending
on the area classification, an alarm or power-off is required. Although the area classification is important in identifying the
type of purge system required for the application, the above
Some operators make this danger worse by bypassing issues apply to both NFPA 496 Type Y, Z, X (North American
the purge system so the process can operate without requirements), and EN/IEC 60079-2, Type pyb, pxb, pzc
interruption. Because the protection system is deemed (European and International requirements), as well as local codes.
to be a nuisance to operations, the bypassed system is
now operating in an unsafe condition and the threat of a An understanding of the applicable standards and the hazardous
catastrophic event is imminent. area classification is important in applying any hazardous area
protection method. Safety is the ultimate goal and should always
7. Using a Non-Certified Enclosure be the first consideration in operating equipment in hazardous
The system being purchased might not be certified by a areas.
recognized testing laboratory. ETL, FM, CSA, and UL are
some of the most recognized testing labs that can certify Pepperl+Fuchs, Inc. is located in Twinsburg, Ohio and is a
a purge and pressurization system using the current and developer and manufacturer of hazardous location protection
relevant standards. These certification agencies offer products and components for electronics used in the global
assurance that the system is safe when used properly as process automation market.
described in the manufacturer’s instructions.
For more information on purge and pressurization, visit
www.pepperl-fuchs.com
www.pepperl-fuchs.com
Subject to modifications · © Pepperl+Fuchs
Printed in USA · 05/18
