Experimental investigation of droplet flow in wire mesh demisters: comparing plastic and metallic types

This study reports experimental results for the performance of wire mesh demister as a function of broad ranges of operating conditions. Various parameters such as air velocity (6-10 m/s), packing density (50-200 kg/m(3)), wire diameter (0.3-1.9 mm), size of the mesh, and different materials of construction have been studied. Further betterment by the use of different materials or geometry modifications was investigated. A feasibility study was done in order to check the possibility of substitution of the plastic demister instead of a metallic one. The experiments were carried out to measure the performance of demister for an air-water system and evaluated by pressure drop and separation efficiency in different geometries and materials of wire mesh demister. Two empirical correlations were developed as a function of the design parameters for the separation efficiency and dry pressure drop. These correlations are sufficiently accurate for practical calculations and demister design. The outcomes show that the separation efficiency of plastic demister with big mesh was more than the separation efficiency of stainless steel wire mesh demister for an equal pressure drop. Consequently, plastic demister can be used as an alternative, by lower cost.