Instantaneous deposition rate of aerosols in the lung

气雾剂药物递送与个体患者的呼吸模式的协调是开发下一代智能气雾剂递送装置的最大挑战之一。精确的数值模拟气溶胶沉积是至关重要的优化设计和开发这些新的设备。现有的沉积模型不能捕捉到瞬态呼吸模式的影响，不能预测随时间变化的局部沉积速率。该项目的目标是为气溶胶颗粒的瞬时、瞬时沉积速率开发新型沉积函数。该研究将从在高度简化的几何形状上开发新的分析沉积函数开始，以获得可用于现实流动的函数形式。为了使分析功能适应实际的几何形状，如口喉和肺分叉，将开发一种新的实验系统。该验证实验的工作原理是基于测量表面的电荷积累，以获得先前用已知单位电荷充电的颗粒的沉积速率。该装置将是第一个能够高精度实时测量气溶胶颗粒局部沉积速率的装置。该实验装置的一个重要特点是能够同时测量多个位置的瞬时局部沉积速率，这项研究的结果将大大提高我们理解和预测气溶胶在肺部不同区域瞬时沉积速率的能力。这将有助于下一代智能雾化器的开发，这将在人类气道中提供更有效，更好的控制和靶向药物输送。

The coordination of aerosol drug delivery with the breathing pattern of individual patients is one of the greatest challenges in developing the next generation of smart aerosol delivery devices. Accurate numerical simulation of aerosol deposition is essential for the optimal design and development of these new devices. The presently existing deposition models cannot capture the effect of transient breathing pattern and cannot predict the time dependent local deposition rates. The goal of this project is to develop novel deposition functions for the instantaneous, transient deposition rate of aerosol particles.The research will start with the development of new analytical deposition functions on highly simplified geometries to obtain functional forms that can be used in realistic flows. To adapt the analytical functions to realistic geometries, such as the mouth-throat and lung bifurcations, a novel experimental system will be developed. The working principle of this validation experiment is based on measuring electrical charge accumulation at surfaces to obtain the deposition rate of particles previously charged with a known unit charge. This setup will be the first of its kind to enable real-time measurement of local deposition rate of aerosol particles with high accuracy. An important feature of this experimental setup will be its ability to measure instantaneous local deposition rate at multiple locations simultaneously.The outcome of this research will greatly advance our ability to understand and to predict transient deposition rates of aerosols in different regions of lungs. This will help development of the next generation of smart nebulizers, which will offer a more efficient and better controlled, targeted delivery of drugs in human airways.