Abstract
Hydrodynamically levitated rotary blood pumps (RBPs) with noncontact bearing are effective to enhance the blood compatibility. The spiral groove bearing (SGB) is one of the key components which offer the suspension force to the RBP. Current studies focus on the suspension performance of the SGB under continuous flow condition. However, the RBP shows pulsatile characteristics in the actual clinical application, which may affect the suspension performance of the SGB. In this paper, the impact of pulsatile flow upon the suspension force from the SGB is studied. A model of the SGB with a groove formed of wedge-shaped spirals is built. Then, the CFD calculation of the hydrodynamic force offered by designed SGB under simulated pulsatile flow is introduced to obtain the pulsatile performance of the suspension force. The proposed method was validated by experiments measuring the hydrodynamic force with different bearing gaps. The results show that the suspension force of the SGB under pulsate flow is the same as under steady flow with equivalent effective pressure. This paper provides a method for suspension performance test of the SGB.
Highlights
Implanted rotary blood pumps (RBPs) are considered as replacement therapy for heart disease due to the lack of organ donation. e RBP requires a rotor bearing to maintain longtime operation
Magnetic bearings need sensors and control system to guarantee the suspension, which increases the complexity of the implanted device. us, hydrodynamic bearings, which offer suspension force depending on its hydraulic characteristics, were widely studied for RBPs [3,4,5]
Spiral groove bearing (SGB), which is small in size and has excellent loading capacity, is considered as a good structure used for the hydrodynamic bearing. e SGB was first introduced by Kink and Reul in the RBP to minimize the size of the implant device, and the mock-loop test result [6]
Summary
The Impact of Pulsatile Flow on Suspension Force for Hydrodynamically Levitated Blood Pump. Levitated rotary blood pumps (RBPs) with noncontact bearing are effective to enhance the blood compatibility. E spiral groove bearing (SGB) is one of the key components which offer the suspension force to the RBP. Current studies focus on the suspension performance of the SGB under continuous flow condition. The RBP shows pulsatile characteristics in the actual clinical application, which may affect the suspension performance of the SGB. The impact of pulsatile flow upon the suspension force from the SGB is studied. En, the CFD calculation of the hydrodynamic force offered by designed SGB under simulated pulsatile flow is introduced to obtain the pulsatile performance of the suspension force. Is paper provides a method for suspension performance test of the SGB A model of the SGB with a groove formed of wedge-shaped spirals is built. en, the CFD calculation of the hydrodynamic force offered by designed SGB under simulated pulsatile flow is introduced to obtain the pulsatile performance of the suspension force. e proposed method was validated by experiments measuring the hydrodynamic force with different bearing gaps. e results show that the suspension force of the SGB under pulsate flow is the same as under steady flow with equivalent effective pressure. is paper provides a method for suspension performance test of the SGB
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