I cannot comment on the requriements of UL for the use of cell phones in a hazardous (classified) location, but I can provide some background information on the work being done on this topic by manufacturers, users, and certification bodies dealing with the petrochemical industries.
The issue of cell phone (and other portable electronic product) usage in hazardous (classified) locations has been the subject of work initiated by the American Chemistry Council (ACC) in 1999 and recently resulted in a Recommended Practice 12.12.03 published by ISA. This document is currently undergoing revision and a draft for review can be obtained from ISA Staff Liaison Vic Gournas mailto:[email protected] An article was published last year in the ISA magazine InTech addressing the possible risks of cell phone usage in hazardous (classified) locations. The author is the Chair of the ISA sub-committee that published the recommended practice http://www.isa.org/journals/intech/feature/1,1162,292,00.html (Sorry for delay in responding. I was away at standards meetings last week (on hazardous locations), and I can read the postings but cannot respond via the listserver as I am using a different domain while travelling.) Bill Lawrence Senior Engineer Hazardous Locations Electrical Group Approvals Division Factory Mutual Research 781-255-4822 [email protected]
