clotFoam: An Open-Source Framework to Simulate Blood Clot Formation Under Arterial Flow

Area of Science:

• Computational fluid dynamics
• Biomedical engineering
• Hemodynamics

Background:

• Blood clotting is a complex process involving platelet aggregation and coagulation.
• Simulating blood clotting in complex geometries under flow presents significant computational challenges due to multiple scales.
• Existing models often struggle with accuracy and efficiency in dynamic fluid environments.

Approach:

• Developed clotFoam, an open-source software within the OpenFOAM framework.
• Employs a continuum model for platelet advection, diffusion, and aggregation.
• Incorporates a simplified coagulation model with reactive boundary conditions for proteins.

Key Points:

• clotFoam handles platelet dynamics (advection, diffusion, aggregation) in a fluid flow.
• Coagulation proteins are modeled with advection, diffusion, and reaction kinetics.
• Reactive boundary conditions simulate protein interactions with vessel walls.

Conclusions:

• clotFoam provides a robust framework for simulating blood clotting.
• Enables reliable simulations in diverse computational domains.
• Forms a foundation for developing more complex and detailed clotting models.