Every year explosions endanger people, systems and plants around the world.
Several industrial environments are classified as hazardous areas: places where explosion risks exist, or may exist, due to the presence of combustible, flammable substances and potential sources of ignition. In addition, electronic systems used on process plants are always at risk from surges caused by power faults or nearby lighting strikes. These surges could also affect systems located in or connected to hazardous areas as well as those in safe areas.
Electronic systems rely on high performance of electronic components that have to be designed considering aspects like faster operation, smaller dimensions and lower power consumption. These factors reduce the ability to dissipate any significant applied energy and increase the exposure to overvoltage and surge currents. So, a surge protection is needed to ensure safety and availability of a plant.
Surge arresters fulfill explosion protection requirements, ensure coordination with terminal equipment and meet the requirements resulting from the operating parameters of measuring and control circuits. Equipment and/or systems in potentially explosive atmosphere or contributing to safety within these atmospheres require a surge arrester suitably tested and ATEX approved. Intrinsically safe surge protection devices, in intrinsically safe circuits, have to meet the same standards of design and construction as the intrinsically safe equipment.
GM International D9000 Series provides surge protection for all kinds of applications in different industries such as oil & gas, petrochemical, steel, etc. avoiding signal interruption and protecting control room equipment. D9000 Series surge arresters are ATEX approved in accordance with 2014/34/EU directive and can be installed in potentially explosive atmospheres. Since all GM International surge arresters for intrinsically safe circuits are classified in the "Ex ia" category, they offer the highest level of safety.