Hazardous Area Electrical Standards
Hazardous area standards govern electrical equipment and installations in locations where flammable gases, vapors, dusts, or fibers may be present. Two parallel systems exist — the IEC Zone system (international) and the NEC Class/Division system (US).
Classification Systems
| System | Standard | Zones/Classes | Used In |
|---|---|---|---|
| IEC Zone (gas) | IEC 60079-10-1 | Zone 0, 1, 2 | International, US Art. 505 |
| IEC Zone (dust) | IEC 60079-10-2 | Zone 20, 21, 22 | International |
| NEC Division (gas/dust) | NEC Art. 500–503 | Class I/II/III, Division 1/2 | US (traditional) |
| NEC Zone (IEC-aligned) | NEC Art. 505–506 | Zone 0/1/2, Zone 20/21/22 | US (IEC-aligned) |
Both systems are valid in the US. IEC Zone is preferred for projects using ATEX/IECEx certified equipment.
Standards in This Family
| Standard | Scope | Corpus Status |
|---|---|---|
| IEC 60079 (6 parts) | Explosive atmosphere equipment and installation | Complete |
| NEC Art. 500–505 | US hazardous location wiring | See NEC page |
This site is a personal-use paraphrase and navigation reference for industrial automation standards. It is not a substitute for authoritative standards documents, professional engineering judgment, or legal review. All content is sourced from a local RAG corpus and has not been independently verified against current published editions.
Items marked TO VERIFY have limited or unconfirmed local coverage. Items marked NOT IN CORPUS are not covered in the local repository. Do not rely on this site for compliance determinations, safety-critical design decisions, or legal interpretation.