Numerical Model Validation of the Blood Flow through a Microchannel Hyperbolic Contraction

Abstract

A computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model of blood flow through hyperbolic contraction with a discrete phase model (DPM) was experimentally validated. For this purpose, the positions and velocities of red blood cells (RBCs) flowing in a microchannel with hyperbolic contraction were experimentally assessed using image analysis techniques, and were subsequently compared with the numerical results. The numerically and experimentally obtained velocity fields were in good agreement, with errors smaller than 10%. Additionally, a nearly constant strain rate was observed in the contraction region, which can be attributed to the quasilinear increase in the velocity along the hyperbolic contraction. Therefore, the numerical technique used was validated due to the close similarity between the numerically and experimentally obtained results. The tested CFD model can be used to optimize the microchannel design by minimizing the need to fabricate prototypes and evaluate them experimentally.

Empirical and Computational Evaluation of Hemolysis in a Microfluidic Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenator Prototype

“…Computational modeling is commonly employed during the design process of blood-contacting medical devices [ 49 , 50 ]. Hemolysis models are frequently integrated directly into the framework of a computational fluid dynamic (CFD) solver, and these methods guide the design process for devices such as microfluidics [ 51 , 52 , 53 ], pumps, valves, and catheters [ 43 , 44 , 45 ]. A range of hemolysis models exist that vary in complexity, but most predict hemolysis based on empirically determined functions of shear stress τ s and exposure time t, both of which are calculated by CFD [ 54 ].…”