Title: Modelling of blood flow through heart valves

Authors: Vahid Nassehi, Leila Shojai

Addresses: Advanced Separation Technologies Group, Chemical Engineering Department, Loughborough University, Loughborough LE11 3TU, UK. ' Advanced Separation Technologies Group, Chemical Engineering Department, Loughborough University, Loughborough LE11 3TU, UK

Abstract: A commercially available software has been used to simulate blood flow through a heart valve. Basic fluid dynamic aspects of the problem such as variations of the blood flow domain geometry, possible alterations of inlet velocity and changes of blood viscosity have been incorporated into the simulations. It is shown that using a computer modelling approach significant data regarding the described system can be obtained. Therefore this study provides an important insight about the development of a reliable, cost effective and convenient methodology for the study of the operations of heart valves as well as a basis for the development of a predictive design tool for artificial heart valves.

Keywords: heart valves; blood viscosity; Young|s modulus; Von-Mises stress; COMSOL package; blood flow; modelling; artificial heart valves; heart valve deformation; simulation; finite element analysis; FEA.

DOI: 10.1504/IJBET.2011.041772

International Journal of Biomedical Engineering and Technology, 2011 Vol.6 No.4, pp.337 - 349

Published online: 21 Jan 2015 *

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