BIO 115 Lecture Notes - Lecture 8: Intrapleural Pressure, Partial Pressure, Alveolar Pressure
Document Summary
Water vapor pressure impacts the partial pressures of other gases in a mixture. As ph2o increases, the partial pressures of the other gases decreases due to the formula above. Why (in the lungs) water vapor pressure is dependent on temperature but not on barometric pressure. Ph2o is a function of the relative humidity and the prevailing temperature. In the airways, the gas equilibrates with water vapor at body temperature due to the extensive moist surfaces of the respiratory system leading to the gas exchange surfaces of the lung (100% humidity) - always 100% humidity. Determinants of the partial pressure of a gas dissolved in a liquid. Once in solution, a gas does not exert any pressure. However, it is convenient to speak as if there were a partial pressure equal to the partial pressure of a gas in equilibrium with the solution. Henry"s law relates the concentration of a gas in solution to its partial pressure.
