Wall liquid films from spray impingement, condensation, packing, or splashing can travel around the perimeter of a mist eliminator even when gas passes correctly through the media. Edge geometry, support rings, perimeter drainage, and upstream liquid distribution should therefore be included in carryover troubleshooting.

Mist eliminator performance may remain poor after an overload because retained liquid, foam, blocked drainage, redistributed deposits, or mechanical deformation can persist after gas flow returns to normal. Recovery trend over time helps distinguish temporary hydraulic saturation from permanent damage.

High mist carryover combined with unexpectedly low pressure drop can indicate perimeter bypass, open segment joints, displaced mesh, damaged vane modules, or an incorrect replacement separator. Low DP should therefore be compared with the historical clean baseline rather than assumed to indicate good condition.

Fiber-bed mist eliminators capture fine and submicron aerosols through a combination of Brownian diffusion, interception, inertial impaction, coalescence, and drainage. They typically require lower face velocity and careful control of pressure drop, liquid properties, solids, and fouling.

Parallel gas-liquid separators can receive unequal gas and liquid loads because of piping resistance, valve position, pressure differences, liquid distribution, vessel level, and fouling. One demister can therefore reach re-entrainment even when total plant flow is below the combined nominal capacity.