A novel transparent airway model is presented, that simulates the geometry and airflow along all 23 bifurcation units of a representative pathway. The model is intended for the development of new aerosol/droplet based therapeutic techniques. The model is realized in fused quartz and thus allows the application of different optical measurement techniques for the analysis of aerosol propagation and deposition on microscopic level. In addition, it enables separate adjustment of the flow conditions for each individual bifurcation unit of the lung and therefore offers the possibility to simulate specific human breathing characteristic. The model can be rotated in two spatial directions to vary the local relevance of sedimentation for aerosol deposition. In this first study, the suitability of the model concept is investigated and evaluated by analyzing a predefined droplet aerosol during its propagation along the airway. A water aerosol is generated using a commercially available medical nebulizer and is actively inhaled by the lung model. Droplets within the airway are characterized in flight with regard to their mean size, velocity, and concentration as function of generation number and breathing characteristics using high-speed transmitted light microscopy. The present combination of measurement methodology and aerosol characteristics allows a quantitative analysis of the propagation of micro droplets up to the 10th generation of the respiratory tract. The data indicate that up to the 6th generation the droplets on average follow the respiratory flow almost with no slip and are deposited further downstream. The results underline the importance of airway models with a sufficiently high number of generations.

提出了一种新颖的透明气道模型，该模型模拟了代表路径的所有23个分叉单元的几何形状和气流。该模型旨在开发新的基于气雾剂/液滴的治疗技术。该模型在熔融石英中实现，因此可以应用不同的光学测量技术在微观水平上分析气溶胶的传播和沉积。此外，它可以为肺的每个单独的分叉单元分别调节流量条件，因此可以模拟特定的人类呼吸特性。可以在两个空间方向上旋转模型，以改变用于气溶胶沉积的沉积的局部相关性。在这第一项研究中 通过分析预定义的液滴气溶胶沿气道传播的过程，对模型概念的适用性进行了研究和评估。使用可商购的医用雾化器生成水气雾，并通过肺部模型主动吸入。使用高速透射光显微镜，在气道内的液滴的平均大小，速度和浓度随世代数和呼吸特性的变化而在飞行中得到表征。测量方法和气溶胶特性的当前组合允许对直至呼吸道的第10代的微滴传播进行定量分析。数据表明，直至第6代，液滴平均几乎跟随呼吸流而无滑动，并进一步沉积在下游。