Surface Effects on Fluid Flows in 3D Printed Micro-channels: Computational Simulations with Empirical Validation

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Investigating the flow of blood and blood-driven transport of cells and particles in microchannels of different shapes and degrees of roughness is critical for fabricating and characterizing a host of medical devices meant for separating blood components. The objective of this proposal is to employ a combined computational-experimental framework for studying the fluid dynamics of blood and blood flow driven transport.Additive manufacturing techniques will be employed to fabricate straight and spiral microchannels with varying degree of roughness. The microchannel cross-section and surface roughness will be quantified using microCT imaging. A computational geometry representing the rough straight and spiral microchannels will be constructed by importing the microCT imaging data. In this simulation geometry a two-phase fluid flow model (plasma representing one phase and red blood cells another) will be employed to quantify the blood transport as a function of hematocrit.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.