Particulates that deposit in the acinus region of the lung have the potential to migrate through the alveolar wall and into the blood stream. However, the fluid mechanics governing particle transport to the alveolar wall are not well understood. Many physiological conditions are suspected to influence particle deposition including morphometry of the acinus, expansion and contraction of the alveolar walls, lung heterogeneities, and breathing patterns. Some studies suggest that the recirculation zones trap aerosol particles and enhance particle deposition by increasing their residence time in the region. However, particle trapping could also hinder aerosol particle deposition by moving the aerosol particle further from the wall. Studies that suggest such flow behavior have not been completed on realistic, nonsymmetric, three-dimensional, expanding alveolated geometry using realistic breathing curves. Furthermore, little attention has been paid to emphysemic geometries and how pathophysiological alterations effect deposition. In this study, fluid flow was examined in three-dimensional, expanding, healthy, and emphysemic alveolar sac model geometries using particle image velocimetry under realistic breathing conditions. Penetration depth of the tidal air was determined from the experimental fluid pathlines. Aerosol particle deposition was estimated by simple superposition of Brownian diffusion and sedimentation on the convected particle displacement for particles diameters of 100–750 nm. This study (1) confirmed that recirculation does not exist in the most distal alveolar regions of the lung under normal breathing conditions, (2) concluded that air entering the alveolar sac is convected closer to the alveolar wall in healthy compared with emphysematous lungs, and (3) demonstrated that particle deposition is smaller in emphysematous compared with healthy lungs.
