Electrical

UL fabricated panels may be provided with a simple cam timer or your choice of PLC. Individual valve position indication is available both on the valves and on the electrical panel.

Heater

Our electric heaters are derated to operate at 14 watts/sq. inch. This conservative watt density means that heater burnout rarely occurs. Additionally, the heater is manufactured using Inconel; an extremely high temperature material. Heater burnouts and hot spots are virtually eliminated by this conservative design.

Optional Steam Heater

Instead of an electric heater, steam may be used to regenerate the desiccant. If 150 PSIG steam is available, a steam to air heat exchanger may be used to reduce the operating cost of the drying system. A SAHARA exclusive is a bypass of the heat exchanger during cooling to prevent thermal cycling of the heat exchanger.

Extended life and reliability,
more benefits from SAHARA.

Blower

Quiet and reliable centrifugal blower provides years of trouble-free service. This blower design allows us to meet the low dBA noise level specifications required in today’s environments without additional sound-proofing.

Valves

Incredibly reliable 2-way, butterfly valves are high performance, non-lubricated. These valves are rated bubble tight shutoff and are even fire safe. Dryers under 3” use diaphragm angled globe valves.  All valves can be serviced in the field.

Check valves are spring actuated with high temperature soft seats. Because the highest differential pressure on any of our switching valves at tower shift is 10 PSIG, valve wear due to differential pressure is eliminated.

Our valves work, so you can relax.

Pressure Switch Control

Safety and reliability are our most important concerns. All of our dryers are designed and fabricated to provide you with this assurance.  Our blower purge dryers are a prime example of this fact. The purge exhaust valves, V3 and V4, are not controlled by a timer like most other dryer manufacturers. They are controlled by a pressure switch that measures the pressure in the regenerating tower as it depressurizes. Once the pressure has dropped to 10 PSIG, the pressure switch allows the purge exhaust valves to open and turns on the heater and blower. Competitive dryers typically allow their purge exhaust valves to open 30 seconds after depressurization. What if a valve fails or even if a valve leaks? Air takes the path of least resistance. With a competitive dryer, if a valve fails you could vent all of your compressed air to atmosphere. Downstream you have no air flow or air pressure. This can have catastrophic consequences. Sahara prevents this with our exclusive pressure switch control. This design also minimizes bed velocity during depressurization and reduces noise.

Redundant Temperature Controls

Our heaters are controlled by a triple redundant control system. The primary temperature controller is a dual set point, indicating temperature controller. It is located at the discharge of the heater and regulates the temperature of the regeneration air. The dual set point provides extra protection; if the temperature rises past the primary set point, the secondary set point turns the heater off before a problem can develop. If for any reason this controller should fail, or if the air flow from the blower is interrupted, a second heater controller is located at the inlet of the heater. This triple redundant heater control virtually guarantees optimum performance and safety.