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This study is part of a FDA-sponsored project to evaluate the use and limitations of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) in assessing blood flow parameters related to medical device safety. In an interlaboratory study, fluid velocities and pressures were measured in a nozzle model to provide experimental validation for a companion round-robin CFD study. The simple benchmark nozzle model, which mimicked the flow fields in several medical devices, consisted of a gradual flow constriction, a narrow throat region, and a sudden expansion region where a fluid jet exited the center of the nozzle with recirculation zones near the model walls. Measurements of mean velocity and turbulent flow quantities were made in the benchmark device at three independent laboratories using particle image velocimetry (PIV). Flow measurements were performed over a range of nozzle throat Reynolds numbers (Re(throat)) from 500 to 6500, covering the laminar, transitional, and turbulent flow regimes. A standard operating procedure was developed for performing experiments under controlled temperature and flow conditions and for minimizing systematic errors during PIV image acquisition and processing. For laminar (Re(throat)=500) and turbulent flow conditions (Re(throat)≥3500), the velocities measured by the three laboratories were similar with an interlaboratory uncertainty of ∼10% at most of the locations. However, for the transitional flow case (Re(throat)=2000), the uncertainty in the size and the velocity of the jet at the nozzle exit increased to ∼60% and was very sensitive to the flow conditions. An error analysis showed that by minimizing the variability in the experimental parameters such as flow rate and fluid viscosity to less than 5% and by matching the inlet turbulence level between the laboratories, the uncertainties in the velocities of the transitional flow case could be reduced to ∼15%. The experimental procedure and flow results from this interlaboratory study (available at http://fdacfd.nci.nih.gov) will be useful in validating CFD simulations of the benchmark nozzle model and in performing PIV studies on other medical device models.

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Waves propagating in confi ned geometries usually evolve into spatially stationary patterns, built from the interference between the waves that have been refl ected upon hitting the boundaries. However, a recent study on bio-locomotion [1] has reported that traveling wave kinematics can naturally emerge in a forced elastic rod, even with boundary conditions involving signifi cant refl ections. It has been shown that this particular behavior is observed only in the presence of strong damping. Based on those observations, we aim at giving a quantitative description of the mechanism involved to prevent the built-up of standing waves and establish traveling fi sh-like kinematics (that optimizes the global swimming effi ciency). The question is discussed here in the framework of hand-made artifi cial swimmers as an example of practical application.

Hemolymph is responsible for the transport of nutrients and metabolic waste within the insect circulatory system. Circulation of hemolymph is governed by viscosity, a physical property, which is well known to be influenced by temperature. However, the effect of temperature on hemolymph viscosity is unknown. We used larvae to measure hemolymph viscosity across a range of physiologically relevant temperatures. Measurements were taken from 0 to 45°C using a cone and plate viscometer in a sealed environmental chamber. Hemolymph viscosity decreased with increasing temperature, showing a 6.4-fold change (11.08 to 1.74 cP) across the temperature range. Viscosity values exhibited two behaviors, changing rapidly from 0 to 15°C and slowly from 17.5 to 45°C. To test the effects of large particulates (e.g. cells) on viscosity, we also tested hemolymph plasma alone. Plasma viscosity also decreased as temperature increased, but did not exhibit two slope regimes, suggesting that particulates strongly influence low-temperature shifts in viscosity values. These results suggest that as environmental temperatures decrease, insects experience dramatic changes in hemolymph viscosity, leading to altered circulatory flows or increased energetic input to maintain similar flows. Such physical effects represent a previously unrecognized factor in the thermal biology of insects.