Transversally enriched pipe element method (TEPEM): An effective numerical approach for blood flow modeling.

Area of Science:

• Fluid Dynamics
• Computational Science

Background:

• Simulating fluid flow in complex 3D tubular domains is computationally expensive.
• Existing 1D models lack sufficient descriptive accuracy, while 3D models are resource-intensive.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a novel, computationally efficient approach for simulating fluid flow in 3D tubular domains.
• To bridge the gap between low-fidelity 1D models and high-fidelity 3D models.
• To provide a tunable methodology adaptable to local accuracy requirements.

Main Methods:

• Utilizes finite (pipe-type) elements exploiting the domain's tubular structure.
• Employs low-order approximation for longitudinal fields and high-order polynomials for transverse approximation.
• Applies the method to computational hemodynamics and general internal fluid dynamics problems.

Main Results:

• The novel approach achieves descriptive capabilities comparable to full 3D models at a significantly lower computational cost.
• Demonstrates accurate simulation of fluid dynamics in both academic and patient-specific coronary arterial geometries.
• Outperforms traditional finite element methods in tested scenarios.

Conclusions:

• The developed methodology offers an efficient and accurate solution for fluid flow simulation in pipe-like domains.
• It is particularly relevant for computational hemodynamics, including pathological conditions like atherosclerosis.
• The approach is generalizable to various internal fluid dynamics applications.