Introducing 3D-potting: a novel production process for artificial membrane lungs with superior blood flow design

Abstract

Currently, artificial-membrane lungs consist of thousands of hollow fiber membranes where blood flows around the fibers and gas flows inside the fibers, achieving diffusive gas exchange. At both ends of the fibers, the interspaces between the hollow fiber membranes and the plastic housing are filled with glue to separate the gas from the blood phase. During a uniaxial centrifugation process, the glue forms the “potting.” The shape of the cured potting is then determined by the centrifugation process, limiting design possibilities and leading to unfavorable stagnation zones associated with blood clotting. In this study, a new multiaxial centrifugation process was developed, expanding the possible shapes of the potting and allowing for completely new module designs with potentially superior blood flow guidance within the potting margins. Two-phase simulations of the process in conceptual artificial lungs were performed to explore the possibilities of a biaxial centrifugation process and determine suitable parameter sets. A corresponding biaxial centrifugation setup was built to prove feasibility and experimentally validate four conceptual designs, resulting in good agreement with the simulations. In summary, this study shows the feasibility of a multiaxial centrifugation process allowing greater variety in potting shapes, eliminating inefficient stagnation zones and more favorable blood flow conditions in artificial lungs. Graphic abstract

The application of 3D bioprinting in urological diseases

“…3D printing is one of the latest technologies used in many industries, such as education, food, fashion, transportation, and health. Bioprinting is one of the 3D printing types that refers to the application in the life science industry, and is commonly used in tissue engineering for the development of scaffolds with complicated architectures that mimic native organs and can be eventually used for clinical transplantation [ [35] , [36] , [37] , [38] ]. Compared with traditional tissue engineering methods, 3D bioprinting could provide: 1) High printing resolution.…”

New Trends, Advantages and Disadvantages in Anticoagulation and Coating Methods Used in Extracorporeal Life Support Devices

“…From an engineering point of view, the new ECLS circuits should aim to mimic the physiologic conditions in order to avoid hemolysis and reduce the shear stress and/or the stasis zones [54][55][56][57]. The artificial surface area of the ECLS systems should be minimized by simplifying the circuit, reducing shear stress and stasis, while maintaining or increasing usability [58].…”

Smart bioelectronics and biomedical devices

“…The obtained gradient concentration environment of antibiotics provides a rapid testing method for measuring bacterial susceptibility to antibiotics in clinical settings. Hesselmann et al [37] proposed a novel design for 3D potting of membrane modules based on a multiaxial centrifugation process, which could improve flow path and lower stagnation volume, and ultimately improve efficiency for artificial lungs. Lastly, amid Covid-19 pandemic, Park et al [38] designed and tested cost-effective, rapidly scalable ventilator (ALIVE Vent) using commercially available components.…”