Design of artery models used to visualize flow patterns

Abstract

Biomedical engineering students can gain insight from laboratory experiments that demonstrate blood flow patterns. This need will be addressed by designing and constructing in vitro artery models from a polyurethane elastomer that will represent normal, stenotic, and bifurcated arteries. These models will be used in a flow system containing a blood analog consisting of glycerol and distilled water. Flow through the models will be generated via a constant head tank that will be supplied by a peristaltic pump. In order to ensure dimensional similitude between arteries of interest and the arterial models, fluid flow will be controlled to maintain Reynolds numbers in the range of 100 to 500. A dye will be injected into the system in order to visualize the flow streamlines, which may show flow separation in the stenotic artery model and zones of recirculation in the bifurcated artery model. Validation tests will be performed by running flow visualization experiments similar to those that will be used by undergraduate biomedical engineering students. The successful completion of this system will provide biomedical engineering students with a supplemental visual learning tool.