A flashlight that is “safety rated” can be safely operated in an area where explosive gases, liquids, dusts or fibers are present or may be present.  In short, safety rated flashlights are designed to not be a source of ignition in potentially hazardous environments.  These flashlights are generally tested by a certification company such as Underwriters Labs (UL).  The rating system is composed of Classes, Divisions, Groups and Temperature codes.  Classes identify the type of hazardous material present in the air.  Divisions designate the probability that an ignitable concentration of that hazardous material is present.  Groups identify what elements are present that have the potential to cause an explosion.  Temperature codes list the maximum surface area temperature of the equipment.Get more news about Buy Explosion Proof Flashlight,you can vist our website!
Divisions designate the probability that an explosion will occur.  When a hazardous material is expected to be present in everyday operations, the condition is called normal (Division 1).  When a hazardous material will be present only through an accidental rupture or faulty operation, that condition is call abnormal (Division 2).

Ignitable gases or combustible dusts can ignite when they come into contact with a hot surface. For example, the ignition temperature of gasoline is 536°F, whereas the ignition temperature for charcoal is 660°F.   Temperature codes indicate the maximum surface area temperature of the equipment that can come into contact with the hazardous materials. Temperature codes only apply to Class I and Class II locations.

Finally, there is the maximum surface temperature of the equipment.  In certain environments if the equipment gets too hot, it could cause the hazardous material to ignite on contact.

Let’s illustrate our Code “translation” with an example. How would we classify a storage area where gasoline is contained in closed tanks? Gasoline is a Class I substance (gas, liquid, or vapor). It’s Division 2 because it would only be in the atmosphere if an accidental rupture or leakage occurred.  It is Group D material (Propane group) with a T2A Temperature Code  (gasoline has an autoignition temperature of 536°F).
When a flashlight is referred to as “intrinsically safe,” this means a couple of things.  First of all, it means that the flashlight is designed not to produce sparks, or at least not to produce sparks that have enough energy to ignite the surrounding material.

Intrinsic safety also protects against abnormally high temperatures of small components inside the flashlight.  If there was an internal short inside the light, the temperature of that component could rise well above the normal operating temperature.  In intrinsically safe flashlights, safety measures are put in place to ensure that no one component of the flashlight can reach a temperature that would ignite the hazardous materials in the surrounding atmosphere.

What is the difference between a UL safety rated flashlight and a flashlight deemed intrinsically safe?  Many people use the term “intrinsically safe” in a general way to mean any flashlight that has safety approvals.  The reality is that a flashlight is only intrinsically safe for the specific environment it was tested for.  For example, a Class I, Div 1 flashlight is intrinsically safe for a Class I, Div 1 environment, but it is not necessarily intrinsically safe for a Class II, Div 1 environment.