Answer:
The average diameter of a single alveolus is 0.0222 cm.
Explanation:
Volume of the lung ,V= 1.9 L
[tex]1 L = 1000 cm^3[/tex]
[tex]1.9 L=1.9\times 1000 cm^3=1900 cm^3[/tex]
Number of alveoli in a human lung = [tex]330\times 10^6[/tex]
Volume of single alveoli =v
[tex]v\times 330\times 10^6=V[/tex]
[tex]v=\frac{1900 cm^3}{330\times 10^6}[/tex]
[tex]v=5.7575\times 10^{-6} cm^3[/tex]
The alveoli are spherical.
Radius of an alveolus = r
Volume of the sphere = [tex]\frac{4}{3}\pi r^3[/tex]
[tex]v=\frac{4}{3}\pi r^3[/tex]
[tex]5.7575\times 10^{-6} cm^3=\frac{4}{3}\times 3.14\times r^3[/tex]
[tex]r=0.0111 cm[/tex]
Diameter of the alveolus =d
d = 2r = 2 × 0.0111 cm = 0.0222 cm
The average diameter of a single alveolus is 0.0222 cm.
