Our design approach for sizing a knockout drum is to use the Souders-Brown equation where max

velocity through the demister pad is:

Vmax = K * sq rt [(liquid droplet density – vapor density) / (vapor density)]

where K is a constant provided by the demister manufacturer, typically ~ 0.35 at 100 psig.

The GPSA Engineering Databook uses the same method, but says to multiply K by 0.6-0.8 for glycol
and amine solutions. I looked through the references listed by GPSA and found a 1980 paper by
Laurence Reid (himself) where it says to multiply K by 0.82.
Does anyone understand why amine droplets are so much harder to knock out than hydrocarbon or
water, and what is the appropriate fraction of K to use? The 0.6-0.8 is a pretty wide range.
 

1) 3-10-11
I don't think it has much to do with droplet properties. My guess is this is a way to deal with the fact
that foam travels through demisters; essentially it is applying a foam factor to the sizing. Adding
diameter arrests foam height growth by spreading out the foam structure over a wider area.

2) 3-11-11
Droplet diameter, physical properties and foaming tendency are all part of the equation. If you just
need a knock-out and are willing to allow droplets of a certain size pass through this unit, then that is
one matter. If you really need a clean stream such thataerosol liquid droplets (like smoke) will not
even pass through this unit then you need a coalescer. Depending on the pressure and temperature, a
knock-out may end up being quite a bit larger and more expensive than a properly sized coalescer.

3) 3-11-11
The approach you describe is what I have always used with a de-rate factor of 0.75, regardless of
whether for amine, glycol, etc. I've come to the conclusion that anything further (save CFD modeling)
is just polishing the art.

4) 4-11-11
The key to selecting the right K factor is to realize that everything has some measure of importance. I
would agree that the correction factor for glycol or amine should be 0.75. Don't forget to add the
correction for operating pressure shown in Fig. 7-9.
It is also important to understand that as the gas rates drop off, there is a minimum turndown 
condition. If the gas velocity through the mesh pas is less than about 25% of the full design velocity, 
the liquid will start to bypass the mesh pad and carry over. We have been surprised in some cases by 
reasonably sized mesh pads which were really over‐sized for the operating conditions.