In vitro and in silico (IVIS) flow characterization in an idealized human airway geometry using laser Doppler anemometry and computational fluid dynamics techniques

The air flow in idealized human airway geometry was studied using computational and experimental methods. A computational fluid dynamics model developed to determine the air flow characteristics in airways was validated by comparison of the experimental velocity profiles obtained with laser Doppler anemometric measurements with numerical data. A good correlation was found between the values obtained with the two methods. Both the measurements and the calculations showed the flow to be laminar in the trachea region of the airway model, but it is affected by the airway geometry in subsequent airways.