Analysis on Nasal Airflow by PIV

Researchers have investigated nasal flow both numerically and experimentally for centuries. Experimental studies most have suffered from various limitations necessary to allow the measurements to be obtained with available equipment. Nasal airflow can be subdivided into two interrelated categories; nasal airflow resistance and heat and mass transfer between the air stream and the walls of the nasal cavity. In this study, thanks to a new method for model casting by a combination of Rapid prototyping and curing of clear silicone, a transparent rectangular box containing the complex nasal cavity is made for PIV experiments. The CBC PIV algorithm is used for analysis. Average and RMS distributions are obtained for inspirational and expiration nasal airflows. Comparison between western and Korean nasal air flows are appreciated. Flow fields for Korean model shows some differences from western's. Flow resistances for breathing are measured with varying flow rates.