Development of wall surface tangent DPIV measurement techniques for arterial branch models

Experimental techniques for measuring unsteady flow in a glass arterial bifurcation model have been developed to aid in quantifying three-dimensional wall shear fluctuations associated with arterial disease. The unique feature of the current technique is the use of a "curved" laser sheet, which was everywhere tangent to the inner wall of a daughter tube in an arterial bifurcation model. Surface tangent velocity vector field measurements were made to demonstrate the potential of this technique. Ensemble-averaged data showing weak secondary flows as well as statistical distributions of flow angles are presented. Measurements of this type may be used to estimate mean and instantaneous wall shear magnitude and direction, data that are necessary for understanding the importance of circumferential motions on arterial disease.