Time-Resolved PIV Measurements of Vortical Structures in the Upper Human Airways

Abstract

A detailed knowledge of the three-dimensional flow structures in the human lung is an inevitable prerequisite to optimize respiratory-assist devices. To achieve this goal the indepth analysis of the flow field that evolves during normal breathing conditions is indispensable. This study focuses on the experimental investigation of the steady and oscillatory flow in the first lung bifurcation of a three-dimensional realistic transparent silicone lung model. The particle image velocimetry technique was used for the measurements. To match the refractive index of the model, the fluid was a mixture of water and glycerine. The flow structures occurring in the first bifurcation during steady inflow have been studied in detail at different flow rates and Reynolds numbers ranging from ReD = 1250 to ReD = 1700 based on the hydraulic diameter D of the trachea. The results evidence a highly three-dimensional and asymmetric character of the velocity field in the upper human airways, in which the influence of the asymmetric geometry of the realistic lung model plays a significant role for the development of the flow field in the respiratory system. The inspiration flow shows large zones with secondary vortical flow structures with reduced streamwise velocity near the outer walls of the bifurcation and regions of high-speed fluid in the vicinity of the inner side walls of the bifurcation. Depending on the local geometry of the lung these zones extend to the next generation of the airway system, resulting in a strong impact on the flow-rate distribution in the different branches of the lung. During expiration small zones of reduced streamwise velocity can be observed mainly in the trachea and the flow profile is characterized by typical jet-like structures and an M-shaped velocity profile. To investigate the temporal evolution of the flow phenomena in the first lung bifurcation time-resolved recordings were performed for Womersley numbers α ranging from 3.3 to 5.8 and Reynolds numbers of ReD = 1050, 1400, and 2100. The results evidence a region with two embedded counterrotating vortices in the left bronchia. Furthermore, the measurements reveal a strong shear layer in the bronchia that evolves when the flow direction changes from inspiration to expiration. Due to the high intricacy of the natural lung geometry most research has been performed in simplified bifurcation models such that no comparably realistic and detailed experimental study of the flow field within the first bifurcation of the upper human airways has been presented as yet.