Effect of microgravity and hypergravity on deposition of 0.5- to 3-μm-diameter aerosol in the human lung

1997 ◽  
Vol 83 (6) ◽  
pp. 2029-2036 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chantal Darquenne ◽  
Manuel Paiva ◽  
John B. West ◽  
G. Kim Prisk

Darquenne, Chantal, Manuel Paiva, John B. West, and G. Kim Prisk. Effect of microgravity and hypergravity on deposition of 0.5- to 3-μm-diameter aerosol in the human lung. J. Appl. Physiol. 83(6): 2029–2036, 1997.—We measured intrapulmonary deposition of 0.5-, 1-, 2-, and 3-μm-diameter particles in four subjects on the ground (1 G) and during parabolic flights both in microgravity (μG) and at ∼1.6 G. Subjects breathed aerosols at a constant flow rate (0.4 l/s) and tidal volume (0.75 liter). At 1 G and ∼1.6 G, deposition increased with increasing particle size. In μG, differences in deposition as a function of particle size were almost abolished. Deposition was a nearly linear function of the G level for 2- and 3-μm-diameter particles, whereas for 0.5- and 1.0-μm-diameter particles, deposition increased less between μG and 1 G than between 1 G and ∼1.6 G. Comparison with numerical predictions showed good agreement for 1-, 2-, and 3-μm-diameter particles at 1 and ∼1.6 G, whereas the model consistently underestimated deposition in μG. The higher deposition observed in μG compared with model predictions might be explained by a larger deposition by diffusion because of a higher alveolar concentration of aerosol in μG and to the nonreversibility of the flow, causing additional mixing of the aerosols.

1997 ◽  
Vol 83 (3) ◽  
pp. 966-974 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chantal Darquenne ◽  
Peter Brand ◽  
Joachim Heyder ◽  
Manuel Paiva

Darquenne, Chantal, Peter Brand, Joachim Heyder, and Manuel Paiva. Aerosol dispersion in human lung: comparison between numerical simulations and experiments for bolus tests. J. Appl. Physiol. 83(3): 966–974, 1997.—Bolus inhalations of 0.87-μm-diameter particles were administered to 10 healthy subjects, and data were compared with numerical simulations based on a one-dimensional model of aerosol transport and deposition in the human lung ( J. Appl. Physiol. 77: 2889–2898, 1994). Aerosol boluses were inhaled at a constant flow rate into various volumetric lung depths up to 1,500 ml. Parameters such as bolus half-width, mode shift, skewness, and deposition were used to characterize the bolus and to display convective mixing. The simulations described the experimental results reasonably well. The sensitivity of the simulations to different parameters was tested. Simulated half-width appeared to be insensitive to altered values of the deposition term, whereas it was greatly affected by modified values of the apparent diffusion in the alveolar zone of the lung. Finally, further simulations were compared in experiments with a fixed penetration volume and various flow rates. Comparison showed good agreement, which may be explained by the fact that half-width, mode shift, and skewness were little affected by the flow rate.


2000 ◽  
Vol 89 (5) ◽  
pp. 1787-1792 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chantal Darquenne ◽  
Manuel Paiva ◽  
G. Kim Prisk

To determine the extent of the role that gravity plays in dispersion and deposition during breath holds, we performed aerosol bolus inhalations of 1-μm-diameter particles followed by breath holds of various lengths on four subjects on the ground (1G) and during short periods of microgravity (μG). Boluses of ∼70 ml were inhaled to penetration volumes (Vp) of 150 and 500 ml, at a constant flow rate of ∼0.45 l/s. Aerosol concentration and flow rate were continuously measured at the mouth. Aerosol deposition and dispersion were calculated from these data. Deposition was independent of breath-hold time at both Vp in μG, whereas, in 1G, deposition increased with increasing breath hold time. At Vp = 150 ml, dispersion was similar at both gravity levels and increased with breath hold time. At Vp = 500 ml, dispersion in 1G was always significantly higher than in μG. The data provide direct evidence that gravitational sedimentation is the main mechanism of deposition and dispersion during breath holds. The data also suggest that cardiogenic mixing and turbulent mixing contribute to deposition and dispersion at shallow Vp.


2012 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Il Doh ◽  
Young-Ho Cho

A pumpless fuel supply using pressurized fuel with autonomous flow regulation valves is presented. Since micropumps and their control circuitry consume a portion of the electrical power generated in fuel cells, fuel supply without micropumps makes it possible to provide more efficient and inexpensive fuel cells than conventional ones. The flow regulation valves in the present system maintain the constant fuel flow rate from the pressurized fuel chamber even though the fuel pressure decreases. They autonomously adjust fluidic resistance of the channel according to fuel pressure so as to maintain constant flow rate. Compared to previous pumpless fuel supply methods, the present method offers more uniform fuel flow without any fluctuation using a simple structure. The prototypes were fabricated by a polymer micromolding process. In the experimental study using the pressurized deionized water, prototypes with pressure regulation valves showed constant flow rate of 5.38 ± 0.52 μl/s over 80 min and 5.89 ± 0.62 μl/s over 134 min, for the initial pressure in the fuel chamber of 50 and 100 kPa, respectively, while the other prototypes having the same fluidic geometry without flow regulation valves showed higher and gradually decreasing flow rate. The present pumpless fuel supply method providing constant flow rate with autonomous valve operation will be beneficial for the development of next-generation fuel cells.


2018 ◽  
Vol 851 ◽  
pp. 507-544 ◽  
Author(s):  
Roberto Inghilesi ◽  
Claudia Adduce ◽  
Valentina Lombardi ◽  
Federico Roman ◽  
Vincenzo Armenio

Unconfined three-dimensional gravity currents generated by lock exchange using a small dividing gate in a sufficiently large tank are investigated by means of large eddy simulations under the Boussinesq approximation, with Grashof numbers varying over five orders of magnitudes. The study shows that, after an initial transient, the flow can be separated into an axisymmetric expansion and a globally translating motion. In particular, the circular frontline spreads like a constant-flow-rate, axially symmetric gravity current about a virtual source translating along the symmetry axis. The flow is characterised by the presence of lobe and cleft instabilities and hydrodynamic shocks. Depending on the Grashof number, the shocks can either be isolated or produced continuously. In the latter case a typical ring structure is visible in the density and velocity fields. The analysis of the frontal spreading of the axisymmetric part of the current indicates the presence of three regimes, namely, a slumping phase, an inertial–buoyancy equilibrium regime and a viscous–buoyancy equilibrium regime. The viscous–buoyancy phase is in good agreement with the model of Huppert (J. Fluid Mech., vol. 121, 1982, pp. 43–58), while the inertial phase is consistent with the experiments of Britter (Atmos. Environ., vol. 13, 1979, pp. 1241–1247), conducted for purely axially symmetric, constant inflow, gravity currents. The adoption of the slumping model of Huppert & Simpson (J. Fluid Mech., vol. 99 (04), 1980, pp. 785–799), which is here extended to the case of constant-flow-rate cylindrical currents, allows reconciling of the different theories about the initial radial spreading in the context of different asymptotic regimes. As expected, the slumping phase is governed by the Froude number at the lock’s gate, whereas the transition to the viscous phase depends on both the Froude number at the gate and the Grashof number. The identification of the inertial–buoyancy regime in the presence of hydrodynamic shocks for this class of flows is important, due to the lack of analytical solutions for the similarity problem in the framework of shallow water theory. This fact has considerably slowed the research on variable-flow-rate axisymmetric gravity currents, as opposed to the rapid development of the knowledge about cylindrical constant-volume and planar gravity currents, despite their own environmental relevance.


2011 ◽  
Vol 391-392 ◽  
pp. 1080-1084
Author(s):  
Nan Li ◽  
Feng Chai ◽  
Lei Chen ◽  
Shu Kang Cheng

Effect of rotating electromagnetic field on the conductivity of aqueous NaCl solution was investigated by experiments. NaCl solution was circulated at a constant flow rate in the flow loop with a rotating-electromagnetic generating device for a period of time. Then conductivity of NaCl solution was measured at different NaCl solution contractions and rotating electromagnetic fields. Simultaneously, the conductivity was determined for NaCl solution untreated magnetically, as a reference. It was found that the rotating electromagnetic field influenced conductivity of aqueous NaCl solution and made it increased. The mechanism of the effect of the rotating electromagnetic field on conductivity of NaCl solution was also discussed.


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