The effect of mild stenosis to flow in Trachea

Abstract

Flow in the trachea is essential to be properly understood since it is the inlet to the lungs. Disturbance to this flow will disrupt the inlet conditions to both bronchi. In this study, disturbance of flow due to mild stenosis is investigated via numerical models. The effect of various stenosis sizes, at the middle of the trachea, to the flow pattern is studied and analyzed. 3D simplified trachea models were used and different flow conditions were applied. The results show two stages of pressure drop behavior appear as the size of the stenosis reaches fifty percent of the airway size. The inlet condition to the bronchi is also significantly disturbed as the stenosis reaches fifty percent.