Application of computational fluid dynamics techniques to blood pumps

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Computational Science

Background:

• Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) is crucial for analyzing fluid flow in various pumps.
• CFD aids in virtual prototyping, performance analysis, and design enhancements during pump development.
• Key flow parameters like stagnation zones and shear rates influence hemolysis and thrombus formation, critical for blood pump success.

Purpose of the Study:

• To demonstrate the application of CFD-ACE software for analyzing fluid flow in pumps, specifically axial flow blood pumps.
• To highlight CFD's role in predicting critical parameters related to blood damage.
• To showcase the capabilities of CFD-ACE in virtual prototyping and design optimization.

Main Methods:

• Utilized CFD-ACE, a commercial CFD code, for simulating fluid flow in rotary machines like axial flow pumps.
• Employed integrated preprocessing and postprocessing tools for efficient grid generation and flow visualization.
• Leveraged CFD-ACE features including multiblock grids, non-Newtonian fluid treatment, turbulence models, and particle tracking.

Main Results:

• CFD-ACE was successfully applied to study flow characteristics in an axial flow blood pump.
• The analysis provided insights into stagnation zones and shear rates, correlating them to potential hemolysis and thrombus formation.
• Development of an unstructured flow solver is underway to further automate grid generation and accelerate simulations.

Conclusions:

• CFD techniques, particularly using CFD-ACE, are effective tools for analyzing blood pump fluid dynamics.
• CFD simulations provide critical data for optimizing pump design to minimize blood damage.
• Ongoing development aims to enhance CFD simulation efficiency for broader application.