A 3-D Printed Optically Clear Rigid Diseased Carotid Bifurcation Arterial Mock Vessel Model for Particle Image Velocimetry Analysis in Pulsatile Flow

Abstract

In recent years, blood flow analyses of diseased arterial mock vessels using particle image velocimetry (PIV) have been hampered by the inability to fabricate optically clear anatomical vessel models that realistically replicate the complex morphology of arterial vessels and provide highly resolved flow images of flow tracer particles. The aim of this paper is to introduce a novel approach for producing optically clear 3-D printed rigid anatomical arterial vessel models that are suitable for PIV analysis using a common 3-D inkjet printing process (using a Formlabs Form 2 3-D printer) and stock clear resin (RS-F2-GPCL-04). By matching the index of refraction (IOR) of the working fluid to the stock clear resin material, and by printing the part in a 45-deg print orientation, a clear anatomical model that allows clear visualization of flow tracer particles can be produced which yields highly resolved flow images for PIV analyses. However, a 45-deg print orientation increases the need for post-processing due to an increased amount of printed support material. During post-processing, the part must be wet sanded in several steps and surface finished with Novus Plastic Polish 3 Step System to achieve the final surface finish needed to yield high-resolution flow images. The mock arterial vessel model produced in this work is a 3-D printed diseased carotid bifurcation artery developed from CTA scan data. A PIV analysis was conducted on the developed mock arterial vessel model installed in a complex transient flow loop to assess the flow profiles within the model and the clarity of the model. A computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulation was conducted on the same carotid bifurcation arterial geometry, and the results were used as a benchmark comparison for PIV results. The results obtained in this work show excellent promise for using the developed approach for developing 3-D printed anatomical vessel models for experimental PIV analyses. The fabrication methodology of the clear anatomical models, PIV results, and CFD results is described in detail.

Fabrication of Soft Transparent Patient‐Specific Vascular Models with Stereolithographic 3D printing and Thiol‐Based Photopolymerizable Coatings

“…[8,9] However, the materials utilized for the fabrication of the vascular phantoms reported to date have mechanical and optical properties that are far from ideal. [10] The desired characteristics of an endovascular model for ex vivo procedural simulation and medical training are 1) high fidelity in terms of the reproduction of patient-specific anatomical features, 2) mechanical elasticity and tensile strength as similar as possible to the vascular tissue, and 3) optical transparency for ease of visualization of the interior of the models. [11,12] While a glass-like transparency may not be necessary in some applications, it is generally beneficial, albeit difficult to achieve in combination with the other two criteria.…”

“…[12] For instance, producing flow phantoms with high transparency has been limited to rigid materials with simple solid geometries, on which conventional post-processing techniques, namely sanding and polishing, can be performed. [10,40,48,49] Aycock et al developed optically transparent anatomical models for Laser-PIV by employing a 3D inkjet printing method (Poly-Jet) with a commercial resin (VeroClear). The models underwent sanding and polishing processes to achieve the desired level of transparency.…”

“…[ 8,9 ] However, the materials utilized for the fabrication of the vascular phantoms reported to date have mechanical and optical properties that are far from ideal. [ 10 ]…”

Continuous Flow Separation of Red Blood Cells and Platelets in a Y-Microfluidic Channel Device with Saw-Tooth Profile Electrodes via Low Voltage Dielectrophoresis

“…One of the main disadvantages reported is in order to achieve a high separation resolution and enough throughput, high voltages are typically necessary to induce a strong DEP effect, which may induce Joule heating effects in the microchannel and limit their application for temperature-sensitive biological cells [ 31 ]. Similarly, the particle force produced must be higher that the hydrodynamic force and flow effects [ 32 , 33 , 34 , 35 , 36 , 37 ]. This paper presents computational results of a multiphysics simulation modelling study on evaluating continuous separation of RBCs and platelets in a microfluidic device with saw-tooth electrodes via DEP.…”

Head Phantom for the Acquisition of Pulsatile Optical Signals for Traumatic Brain Injury Monitoring

“…Other anatomical models such as the Circle of Willis has been copied to a rigid vascular model for phantom studies and the computational analysis of blood flow [8,13]. Similarly, other cardiovascular studies have analysed the velocity profiles and pulsatile flow while simulating vessels and blood mechanical properties [14,15]. Additionally, additional anatomical structures have been included by other authors, such as ventricles, meninges, scalp, skin and hair [8,9,12].…”