DSB Part B: Important Items for Realizing a High Quality Electrical Installation

Part B3: The four important choices related to the electrical installation
Choice No. 2: The cables

Line 1
Line 2
Line 3
Neutral
Positive
Negative

AC Conductor Terminal

DC Conductor Terminal
Protective Conductor Terminal
PEN Conductor Terminal

Unspecified
Earthed
Unearthed

Protective Bonding
Conductor Terminal

Alphanumeric
L1
L2
L3
N
L+
LPE
PEN
PB
PBE
PBU

Functional Earthing Conductor

Terminal**
*Light blue

Identification of Conductors
Color Identification
Black
Brown
Gray
Blue*
None
None
Green/Yellow
GN/YE/BU*

FE
**For System Earth Terminals

DSBs advice
None
Red
Black

None
Green/Yellow
None

Green/Yellow
Refer to IEC 60445 (2010-08)

Part B3: The four important choices related to the electrical installation
Choice No. 3: The cable glands
Guidance table for selection of cable glands related to basic cable type:
Basic cable type

Circuit Type

Normal run through

type gland

Screen type gland

Exe run through

type gland*

Exd gland

Copper braided (Realizing

the maintenance-free PE
system)

Power

**

Instrument
Power

Only for real Exd

cable entries

Steel wire braided

Instrument
Power

Only for real Exd

cable entries

Un-braided cable
Instrument

To be used
Maybe used
*Some owners use this type as a standard also for non-Ex equipment
**Not accepted by DSB when copper braiding is used for earthing of equipment

Part B3: The four important choices related to the electrical installation
Choice No. 3: The cable glands
Type of enclosure
Plastic enclosures (relevant for field cables)
Plastic enclosures, reinforced with metal gland plate for
supply of large supply- and multi-core cables
Metal enclosures (except aluminium)
Aluminium enclosures
Only sea water resistant aluminium shall be used
Plastic glands shall not be used for armoured cables

Only for real Exd

cable entries

Type of gland
Plastic for size below M32
Brass
Brass/stainless steel
Stainless steel/nickel plated brass

Not to be used

For cable glands for explosion protected equipment, see IEC 61892-7
Shroud and similar should not be used on cable glands

Refer to IEC 61892-6 (2007):5.6 table 2

Photo left: Remove gland plates, - this will reduce the
possibility for earth faults! When run through type metal glands
are used
in a non-metallic enclosure, they will not be looked
upon as any
exposed conductive part according to DSBs
decision.
This will make the installation (and maintenance) work easier!

Part B3: The four important choices related to the electrical installation
Choice No. 3: The cable glands: Cable entry, gland type and cable type
Guidance table for selection of cable glands in non-ex enclosures:
Cable entry
Cable gland:
Cable basic
(enclosure):
Type:
Plastic
Metal

Normal
Normal

Unbraided

Type

<M32

Braided

Size

Plastic

All
sizes
Metal

Materia
l

Normal
Photo right: Normal Misuse
of EXd glands! Exd glands
should not have been used
in this case

To be used

Maybe used

Photo left:
Correct:
Stuffing (run through)
type glands have been
used in this thin-plate
stainless steel enclosure

Not to be used

Cable entry
(enclosure):

Normal

Exe

Exd

Exde
*

Unbraided:

Exe

Metal

Braided:

Normal
Type:
Exi
Exi

All sizes

Exe

<M32

Exe

Cable
Entry:
Exd
Exe
Exe
Exe

Metal

Marking on
Signboard:
Exd
Exe
Exde
Exdes

Plastic

Cable basic
Type

Guidance table for selection of cable glands in explosion protected enclosures:

Plastic

Cable entry type:

Size:

Choice No. 3: The cable glands

Material:

Part B3: The four important choices related to the electrical

installation

Cable gland:

Exd

Above: A typical mistake:

Exd
be used
In Exe entries!

glands
should not

To be used

Maybe used

Not to be used

*May only be used for limited volumes (< 2 litre) in Exd enclosures

Part B3: The four important choices related to the electrical installation
Choice No. 4: The termination methods

Method 1 is the preferable termination method to use:

+ Direct termination of the full cross- section of the braiding to earth
bus-bar (If the cross-section is insufficient, an earth conductor
in the cable should be considered.
+ Simple- and low cost cable penetration
+ Accepted by DSB for realizing the maintenance-free PE system
+ The possible copper braiding is used for PE- you save an earth
conductor in the cable!
+ Very easy to install

IMPORTANT: Method 1 is the basic

termination
method recommended for general use!

Part B3: The four important choices related to the electrical installation
Choice No. 4: The termination methods
Method 1: Stuffing type (Run
through type)
+ Available as nylon type
+ Gives direct and electrically the best
termination of the cables braiding

Method 2: Screen termination

type
+ Available as Exe
+ May be used for ending PE braiding in field
instrument equipment (final sub-circuit)

Method 3: Exd type (Explosion

proof)
+ Intended for Exd cable entries (should not
be used in other cases)

+ Accepted by DSB for realizing the

maintenance-free PE system
+ The possible copper braiding is used for
PE you save an earth conductor!
+ Very easy to install
+ Low cost

Part B4: Protective earth

maintenance-free protective earth system

Gives 4 joints with different metal surfaces when terminating the braiding
Gives serial earth according to IEC
More a mechanical assembly than a good, electrical connection
Possibility for corrosion problems between different metal surfaces
Not easy to install
Medium cost
The glands shall be firmly attached

Complicated to install
High cost (certified)
The glands shall be firmly attached

The

Part B6: Arrangement of earth bus-bar (DB)

A very unpractical location of the earth bar... Not

according to IEC requirements

Part B6:
Arrangement of
earth bus-bar
(MCC)
Install the complete cable right up to the level of the actual starter,
and then terminate the braiding and/or earth conductor to the
vertical sub earth bar at this level!
At the photos below all the copper braidings have been terminated at
the lower part of the vertical bar. (And, the upper part has not been
used at all) This will make trouble shooting and modification work
more difficult!

Part B6: Arrangement of earth bus-bars

PE-busbar is located behind the in- and outgoing cables. The access
to the earth bar and its terminals is blocked!

PE- and IE-bus-bar and earth

Connections nicely arranged
inside the enclosure!

Part B7: Colour-coding in different earthing systems

Protective earth (PE) bus-bars are to be colour-coded green/yellow and/or with the letters PE.
Instrument earth
(IE) bus-bars should be colour-coded green/yellow with additional red marking and/or with the letters IE. Intrinsically safe earth (IS) busbars should be colour-coded green/yellow with additional light blue marking and/or with the letters IS.

Refer to NORSOK standard Rev. 3 item 12.5.3.

PE:

IE:

Yellow / Green

IS:

Yellow / Green/ Red

Yellow / Green/ Light blue

Part B8: Separation of circuits

Practical advices
Avoid terminating wires and cables with diferent voltage to the same terminal block or at least not to the same section of a terminal block
Keep components with different voltage in separate sections on a mounting plate in a cabinet
Take EMC- requirements into consideration
Intrinsically safe circuits need special attention! Refer to IEC 61832-7 (2007):7.9

Part B8: Separation of circuits

Practical advices

Left: Exi barrier and circuit(s) must be

sufficiently separated from other circuits.
In this case they must be moved to a
separate enclosure.
IEC 61892-2 (2012):6.1.2

Left: This minus-bar may not be used as

a PE-bar! Only one yellow / green
Functional Earth-connection (FE) may be
terminated to it!
IEC 61892-2 (2012):6.1.2

Left: Earth conductors to be terminated

one by one to PE-bar!
IEC 61892-2 (2012):6.1.2

This may partly be a subcontractor- and a yard

problem. The subcontractor arranges the
cabinet with a too small
termination space. The
yard specifies the control
cables with many spare
conductors to increase
the problem. Both of them
must proceed to reach a
better result than shown at
these photos!

Part C9: Termination Problems

Part B7: Instrument- and intrinsically safe earth