Final answer:
Minute volume is the total volume of air breathed in one minute, and it is the product of tidal volume and respiratory rate; for a 500ml tidal volume and 15 breaths per minute, it is 7.5L/minute. Alveolar ventilation accounts for air that reaches the alveoli and excludes dead space; with a 100ml dead space, the same person's alveolar ventilation is 6L/minute.
Step-by-step explanation:
Minute volume is the amount of air inhaled or exhaled by a person's lungs in one minute. The equation for calculating minute volume is the product of the tidal volume (the amount of air inhaled/exhaled in a single breath) and the respiratory rate (number of breaths per minute). For an individual inhaling 500ml of air per breath and breathing 15 times per minute, the minute volume would be 500ml/breath × 15 breaths/minute, which equals 7500ml/minute or 7.5L/minute.
Alveolar ventilation refers to the amount of air that reaches the alveoli and is available for gas exchange. To calculate alveolar ventilation, we must take into account the anatomical dead space, which is the portion of air that does not participate in gas exchange due to staying in the airways. For the same individual with a dead space of 100ml, the calculation would be (500ml - 100ml) × 15 breaths/minute, resulting in 6000ml/minute or 6L/minute of alveolar ventilation.
Thus, minute volume provides a measure of total airflow, while alveolar ventilation is a more precise measure of the volume of air that is actually used for gas exchange in the alveoli.