Experimental investigation of oscillatory air flow in a bronchial tube model with HFOV mode

Abstract

Mechanical ventilations for artificial respiration have been developed to improve the medical treatment of the patients showing respiratory disorder. In various types of ventilation, High Frequency Oscillatory Ventilation (HFOV) is one of the most effective techniques of medical care for pulmonary disease patients, especially, infants or premature infants. HFOV is a ventilation technique with high breathing rate in comparison with the normal breathing rate. Some successful studies have focused on the effect of treatment using HFOV. However, the mechanism of gas exchange in bronchial tube under the medical treatment by HFOV has not been clarified. In this study, the oscillatory flow in a micro-channel model of bronchial with single bifurcation in HFOV mode has been investigated experimentally with micro Particle Image Velocimetry (micro PIV) technique. The phase averaged velocity profiles changing with the driving frequency of HFOV have been investigated.