How do you diagnose and mitigate foaming in an amine absorption column?

Foaming symptoms: erratic pressure drop, liquid carryover to downstream equipment, poor acid gas removal, unstable levels. Causes: contaminants (hydrocarbons, well-treating chemicals, corrosion products, degradation products), fine solids, surfactants in feed gas. Diagnosis: measure flash gas quality, analyze lean amine for contaminants, conduct foam test (ASTM D892 modified). Mitigation: install inlet coalescer/filter, activated carbon filtration of lean amine, mechanical filtration, antifoam injection (silicone-based, 5-20 ppm), and amine reclaiming.