BME211 Engineering physiology, Fall 2022

Final exam (total 40 pts)

Submit your exam answers to a box located in front of Bldg 110 Rm 801-12.
The submission deadline is 6:00 pm, 12/16/2022. The late exam will not be accepted.

1. Circulation (20 pts)

In the class, we learned the relationship between cardiac output (CO), peripheral resistance
(PR), and blood pressure drop (BP) as
𝐵𝑃 = 𝐶𝑂 ⋅ 𝑃𝑅,
which is analogous to Ohm’s law (𝑉 = 𝐼𝑅).
To get a sense of this relationship, let’s consider the following system, a flow loop.

Assume that the resistance of the nonbranching segments of tubing is negligible compared to
that of segments A and B. The resistances are: 𝑅𝐴 = 1000 𝑃𝑎 ⋅ 𝑠 ⋅ 𝑚−3 and 𝑅𝐵 = 3000 𝑃𝑎 ⋅
𝑠 ⋅ 𝑚−3 .
(a) Draw an analogous electrical circuit diagram for this flow loop. (5pts)
(b) What is the flow rate through each segment? (Hint: convert the unit of the flow into 𝑚3 /𝑠
to match with that of the resistances.) (5pts)
(c) What is the total pressure drop? (5pts)
(d) What is the pressure drop across each segment? (5pts)
BME211 Engineering physiology, Fall 2022

2. Lung mechanics (Laplace’s law) (20 pts)

In the class, we learned Laplace’s law, the relationship between the surface tension and the
pressure difference (Δ𝑃) between inside and outside the surface of an elastic container:
4𝑇
Δ𝑃 = ,
𝑟
for a spherical container such as an alveolus in the lung, where Δ𝑃 is the pressure difference,
𝑇 is the surface tension of the wall, and 𝑟 is the radius of the spherical container.
Two balloons (inflated with air) are connected to each other through a valve that is initially
closed, preventing the exchange of air (see figure below). The larger balloon has a radius of
100𝜇𝑚 (0.01 cm) and the smaller balloon has a radius of 50 𝜇𝑚 (0.005 cm).

(a) Calculate the pressure required within each of the two balloons to keep them inflated if the
wall tension is 70 dyne/cm. (A dyne is a unit of force; 1 dyne = 1 𝑔 ⋅ 𝑐𝑚/𝑠 2 = 10-5 N; Hint:
make the unit of length consistent.) (5 pts)
(b) What happens if the valve between the two balloons is opened? Calculate the final diameter
of each of the two balloons. (5 pts)
(c) Repeat parts a and b for a wall tension of 7 dyne/cm. (5 pts)
(d) What is the relevance of this problem to the physiology of the lung? (Hint: relate this with
the surfactant, a substance secreted by Type 2 pneumocytes in the alveolus to reduce the
surface tensions of mucus lining the alveolar wall). (5 pts)