Case Study: RMIT University improves nasal irrigation design with Tecplot 360

Flow Visualization of Nasal Irrigation Leads to New Squeeze Bottle Design

Researchers at RMIT University sought to understand the flow dynamics of liquid jets from squeeze bottles used for nasal irrigation. The challenge was processing the massive, complex datasets generated by their transient, multiphase computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations of the human nasal cavity. They turned to Tecplot, Inc. and used their product, Tecplot 360, to manage this data.

Using Tecplot 360's powerful data handling and automation tools like PyTecplot, the team efficiently processed the time-dependent results. The solution from Tecplot enabled clear flow visualization, which revealed how the irrigation cleansed the nasal passages. This research, published in leading journals, was directly used by a medical device company to redesign their squeeze bottle. The new, ergonomically designed bottle has been anecdotally successful with patients and is expected to be released to the market.

RMIT University

Kiao Inthavong

RMIT University