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The atomizer is a crucial component in spray columns used in mass transfer applications. Proper function of the atomizer can enhance mass transfer and reduce sorbent evaporation and droplet drift (physical loss). Commonly used atomizers for spray column application suffer from excessive droplet drift and high spray polydispersity. Flat fan sprays were beneficially used to reduce droplet drift in agricultural applications and in studies dealing with CO2 capture. Six 3D printed flat fan atomizers with different internal channel geometry (elliptical, cone-shaped) were tested at four inlet pressures in this study. The liquid sheet breakup length and spray cone angle derived from high-speed visualization are compared for each atomizer design. No systematic difference was found between the elliptical and cone-shaped channels. The spray cone angle and breakup length were corelated only with experimental regimes (Reynolds number and Weber number). Perforations were responsible for the breakup of the liquid sheet at lower injection pressures, whereas the combined effect of perforations and waves dominated the liquid sheet breakup at higher injection pressures.

With recent advance in print resolution of stereo lithography (SLA) 3D printers, a cheap and fast prototyping method of many industrial components is available. This paper examines the limits of the low- end SLA printer with a pixel resolution of 35 μm for the prototyping of pressure-swirl atomizers. Several differently sized atomizers with exit orifice diameter in range from 0.3 to 1.2 mm were produced with all dimensions evenly scaled. The circularity of the exit orifices was inspected by an optical microscope. Atomizers were operated under the same Reynolds numbers, which were selected to cover a pressure range between 4 and 10 bar for the smallest atomizer. The generated spray was observed with a high-speed camera. The discharge coefficient, spray cone angle (SCA) and circumferential liquid distribution were compared. Even the atomizer with 0.46 mm exit orifice produced a decent spray, almost comparable to the machined version. The discharge coefficient was slightly dependent on the size of the atomizer up to the exit orifice of 0.6 mm with the indices to print inaccuracies.

Respimat soft mist inhaler (SMI) is an inhaler producing a soft mist with low velocity. The liquid drug solution is emitted by the mechanical energy of compressed spring, so the device is propellant-free. This paper describes the measurement of particle fraction penetrating through the model of the upper respiratory tract (mouth cavity, pharynx, larynx trachea). The solution inside the cartridge was marked by fluorescein in order to evaluate the regional particle deposition in the model. After the exposition, segments of the model, as well as the filter, were washed out and the deposited fluorescein was extracted into water. The analysis showed that the fraction of particles penetrating through the upper respiratory tract was 64.7±6.7 %. However, the real inhalation pattern was not simulated and measurement was provided with continual “inhalation” without “exhalation”.

Laser diagnostics techniques are widely used in experimental fluid mechanics. By far the most widely used systems for getting spatial velocity fields and turbulence data are laser Doppler anemometers (LDA). Further, in the cases of two-phase flows phase Doppler analysers (PDA) are typically chosen to measure the size and velocity of the droplets or bubbles. The PDA system is non-intrusive laser technique with high spatial and temporal resolution. Moreover, the PDA system does not require additional calibration as, for example, hot-wire anemometers. However, with a growing number of PDA users, there is a need for verification of the results among the workplaces and systems themselves. The current paper deals with the comparison of two fibre-based PDA systems. The main scope of the investigation is an evaluation of the system's age and the influence of lasers type. One of the systems is older, operated with Argon-Ion laser and the second one is brand new equipped with Diode-pumped solid-state lasers. Both have the same optics and were manufactured by the same company. Various properties of the PDA system are tested to show particular influence on the quality of results when measuring in a spray generated by a small air-blast atomizer.

Inhaled fibres can potentially cause inflammation of the lung tissue and interstitium which, after long-term exposure, may lead to lung cancer, malignant mesothelioma or pulmonary and pleural fibrosis. For risk reduction and correct setting of occupational hygiene regulations, it is important to be able to precisely calculate the fate of inhaled fibres depending on their physical characteristics and inhalation conditions. As there is a lack of experimental data on the orientation of fibres, a new test rig has been assembled for visualization and recording of flowing fibres in a replica of the human trachea. Fibres prepared from regular glass fibres produced commercially for blown thermal insulation have been processed, dispersed and introduced into the glass tube with dimensions of the trachea. Visualization was performed using a powerful LED light and a high-speed camera. Angles of the fibres have been evaluated for six different flowrates and the dependence of the angles on the flow Reynolds number was searched for. The angles of fibres agreed with expected values, i.e. only vertically and horizontally oriented fibres were recorded. However, the number of vertically and horizontally oriented fibres did not seem to be correlated with the flow Reynolds number.

A Monte Carlo simulation of Phase Doppler systems has been developed. It consists of three sections, the droplet flow description, generation of the photomultiplier signals and then their processing to determine droplet velocities and the time shift between the signals from the three scattered light detection apertures. With highly realistic Doppler bursts being simulated and processed, the question arises as to whether the signal processing software could be used to process ‘real-world’ experimental signals. In a preliminary assessment of its capabilities in such a situation, actual spray Doppler signals (from a Dantec fibre-based PDA system with a BSA signal processor) were recorded and used as input to the software signal processor. The signals from the three photomultipliers were input first into a Picoscope and then into the BSA processor. In this way droplet velocities and size estimates would be available from the BSA as control data. The signal outputs were taken as csv files, and input directly into the software signal processor. Initially the software determined the time location of the centre of each signal burst envelop. This approach was shown to measure signal delays from single cycle to multiple cycles. For this experiment, the software was modified by adding a zero-crossing approach to measure the single cycle delays. The introduction of this method should establish the accuracy of the complete software package in the real world as the results from the preliminary experiment show good agreement between the two techniques.

Both pulmonary airway geometry and breathing pattern evolve from birth to adulthood. These gradual changes significantly influence airflow dynamics and subsequently particle transport and deposition. Regarding the airway structure, the differences between infants and adults are most profound till 5 years of age. Since that age the child airway geometry can be downsized from adult lungs. The objective of the present work was to investigate airflow patterns in child airways. The digital model of male respiratory airways was downsized to dimensionally correspond to a 5–year old child. Airflow simulations with properly validated RANS k–ω turbulence model were performed under steady inhalation boundary conditions. The inspiratory flow rate was 12.5 L/min. The velocity profiles just upstream of the first bifurcation were validated by Laser–Doppler anemometry (LDA) experiments. A replica of the same geometry as the one used in the simulation was 3D printed and part of the trachea was replaced by a glass tube. LDA measurements in several points upstream of the first bifurcation were carried out. The validated flow patterns were compared to the ones obtained in adult lungs.

The ability to precisely predict the fate of inhaled fibres is important for toxicologists as well as for pharmaceutists struggling to utilize fibres as carriers of a medication. However, the complexity of fibre movement in human airways still represents a significant challenge for programmers of codes for simulation of fibre flow. This conference contribution introduces the theoretical equations of fibre motion which can be used for calculation of the fate of inhaled fibres, and also, in the second part, first results of high-speed camera recorded trajectories of fibres downstream of a realistic human airway bifurcation are presented as an illustration of the real behaviour of fibres in the lungs.