Arc Flash Boundary Calculator
Use an incident-energy value from a validated study as the reference point, then scale by distance and calculate a boundary. This is not a full IEEE 1584 calculation.
Calculation method
This tool starts from an incident-energy value that has already been obtained from a validated study. It scales energy with distance using E2 = E1 × (D1/D2)^x. The boundary is found by rearranging the same relationship for the entered boundary-energy criterion. The distance exponent is deliberately user-entered because it must come from the applicable validated method or study basis.
How to use the result
Use the result when you need to translate an existing study value to another working distance or reproduce the distance-based boundary from a known energy result. Keep the original study assumptions, electrode configuration, enclosure and clearing time unchanged when using this scaling.
Engineering limits
This is not an arc-flash incident-energy model and does not implement the full IEEE 1584 equations. Do not enter fault current and expect a compliant study result. Equipment condition, arcing current, protective-device clearing time, enclosure geometry, conductor gap and voltage are part of the upstream study and must be established separately.
Before design release
Record the source and revision of every project input used in this calculation, then compare the result with the next practical equipment or conductor size rather than treating the numerical minimum as an automatic selection. Check tolerances, environmental derating, duty cycle, protection settings, installation constraints and manufacturer limits that are outside the simplified model. Where the result feeds another study, carry the same voltage, current, power-factor, fault-level and timing assumptions forward so the design chain remains traceable. Save the governing case and the reason for the final engineering choice. ElectroDesigner is intended to make the calculation path visible; it does not replace the project engineer’s verification, the adopted standard or tested manufacturer data.