Mehdi Azhdarzadeh

This work describes an atomizer capable of generating monodisperse droplets of high vapor pressure liquids such as HFA227ea and HFA134a. This atomizer is expected to be a useful tool in future fundamental explorations of the mechanics of these highly dynamic aerosols. Hydrofluoroalkanes (HFAs) are the most common propellants in metered dose inhalers (MDIs), which are themselves the most common delivery method for pulmonary disease medications. As a result of the high vapor pressure of these fluids, generation of monodisperse droplets and their study are not possible with previously existing monodisperse atomizers due to fluid flashing when exposed to ambient conditions. The new atomizer uses a piezoelectric transducer to disintegrate the propellant jet, a cooling circuit with a low-temperature limit of -30°C to reduce propellant vapor pressure, and a high-pressure feed system (up to 2.7 MPa) to keep the propellant in the liquid phase, thereby avoiding flash atomization. In the current setup, the diameter of the generated droplets was monitored with a laser scattering system (using Fraunhofer diffraction theory) to optimize the operating parameters of the setup (for example, the actuation frequency and amplitude of the piezoelectric transducer). This monitoring system allowed for the measurement of droplet geometric diameter, spacing, and velocity. The capabilities of the atomizer for generating monodisperse droplets are demonstrated by a case study in which monodisperse dry particles of beclomethasone dipropionate (BDP) are generated using a solution of BDP, ethanol co-solvent, and HFA134a propellant.

Background: The fraction of inhaled particles depositing in the nasal extrathoracic airways determines the amount of particles delivered to the lungs of infants. Electrostatic charge on particles can affect this deposition, and for this reason, deposition of charged aerosol particles in the Alberta Idealized Infant nasal geometry is examined. Methods: Charged aerosol particles were generated via Plateau-Rayleigh jet breakup atomization with induction charging. Nasal deposition was measured by collecting particles on a filter membrane at the inlet and outlet of the airway and measuring their mass with an ultramicrobalance. The experiments were carried out using monodisperse, uniformly charged particles with aerodynamic diameters of 3–6 μm at two flow rates of 7.5 and 15 L/min, for a charge range of 0–10,000 e per particle. Results: Electrostatic charge effects are largest for the lowest flow rate, smallest particle size, and highest charge level, with deposition in this case being approximately three times that for neutral particles. Higher flow rates and larger particle size result in much weaker electrostatic effects, with even the highest charge levels giving only a few percent higher deposition for the largest particle size and flow rate considered in this study. A dimensionless empirical relation based on the experimental data was developed for predicting deposition of charged particles in the idealized infant airway. Conclusion: Electrostatic charge on inhaled aerosol particles has only a minor effect on deposition for large particles at higher flow rates, because in this case inertial impaction dominates deposition. However, for particles with low inertia, for example, small particles or low flow rates, large values of electrostatic charge strongly increase nasal deposition in the present infant extrathoracic airway.