2,555 research outputs found
Non-Newtonian and flow pulsatility effects in simulation models of a stented intracranial aneurysm
Permission to redistribute provided by publishers.Three models of different stent designs implanted in a cerebral aneurysm, originating from the Virtual Intracranial Stenting Challenge'07, are meshed and the flow characteristics simulated using commercial computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software in order to investigate the effects of non-Newtonian viscosity and pulsatile flow. Conventional mass inflow and wall shear stress (WSS) output are used as a means of comparing the cfd simulations. In addition, a WSS distribution is presented, which clearly discriminates in favour of the stent design identified by other groups. It is concluded that non-Newtonian and pulsatile effects are important to include in order to avoid underestimating wss, to understand dynamic flow effects, and to discriminate more effectively between stent designs. © Authors 2011
A finite element based formulation for sensitivity studies of piezoelectric systems
Sensitivity Analysis is a branch of numerical analysis which aims to quantify the affects that variability in the parameters of a numerical model have on the model output. A finite element based sensitivity analysis formulation for piezoelectric media is developed here and implemented to simulate the operational and sensitivity characteristics of a piezoelectric based distributed mode actuator (DMA). The work acts as a starting point for robustness analysis in the DMA technology
Recommended from our members
Squeeze-film levitation characteristics of plates excited by piezoelectric actuators
A small mass is levitated by a vibrating plate with an arrangement of four piezoelectric actuators that generate a squeeze-film in the gap between the plate and the mass. Different arrangements of actuators and plate design are explored using simulation in order to produce better performance
Recommended from our members
Effect of stent position on flow characteristics in a cerebral aneurysm
The position of an intracranial stent in relation to the ostium of a cerebral aneurysm can
significantly affect the blood flow characteristics through the ostium and inside the aneurysm.
An idealised cerebral artery and aneurysm were simulated with a pulsatile flow. Simulation
results show that the effect on mass inflow between two stent positions is about 20%
whereas the difference in the porosity effect of the pattern at these two positions is around
3%. The remainder may be attributed to differences in flow velocity profile across the stent
into the aneurysm. The implications for clinical practice are an important consideration as the
surgeon may place the stent in any position between the two investigated and hence this will
lead to markedly different stent performance. Therefore, computational tools that take into
account the variability of stent placement will be valuable for assisting surgical planning
Recommended from our members
Plate actuator vibration modes for levitation
The design of an aluminium or steel plate of various thicknesses for achieving levitation of a small aluminum disk is investigated by simulation using ANSYS. Each plate design is excited by an arrangement of four hard piezoelectric actuators driven with an AC voltage, which produces a centre displacement for generating a squeeze-film in the gap between the vibrating plate and the disk. Physical experiments show levitation conditions for one of the designs
- and -spin relaxation time limitations of phosphorous donor electrons near crystalline silicon to silicon dioxide interface defects
A study of donor electron spins and spin--dependent electronic transitions
involving phosphorous (P) atoms in proximity of the (111) oriented
crystalline silicon (c-Si) to silicon dioxide (SiO) interface is
presented for [P] = 10 and [P] =
10 at about liquid He temperatures (
). Using pulsed electrically detected magnetic
resonance (pEDMR), spin--dependent transitions between the \Phos donor state
and two distinguishable interface states are observed, namely (i) \Pb centers
which can be identified by their characteristic anisotropy and (ii) a more
isotropic center which is attributed to E defects of the \sio bulk
close to the interface. Correlation measurements of the dynamics of
spin--dependent recombination confirm that previously proposed transitions
between \Phos and the interface defects take place. The influence of these
electronic near--interface transitions on the \Phos donor spin coherence time
as well as the donor spin--lattice relaxation time is then
investigated by comparison of spin Hahn--echo decay measurements obtained from
conventional bulk sensitive pulsed electron paramagnetic resonance and surface
sensitive pEDMR, as well as surface sensitive electrically detected inversion
recovery experiments. The measurements reveal that both and of
\Phos donor electrons spins in proximity of energetically lower interface
states at K are reduced by several orders of magnitude
Development and feasibility testing of an education program to improve knowledge and self-care among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander patients with heart failure
INTRODUCTION: There is a 70% higher age-adjusted incidence of heart failure (HF) among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, three times more hospitalisations and twice as many deaths as among non-Aboriginal people. There is a need to develop holistic yet individualised approaches in accord with the values of Aboriginal community health care to support patient education and self-care. The aim of this study was to re-design an existing HF educational resource (Fluid Watchers-Pacific Rim) to be culturally safe for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, working in collaboration with the local community, and to conduct feasibility testing. METHODS: This study was conducted in two phases and utilised a mixed-methods approach (qualitative and quantitative). Phase 1 used action research methods to develop a culturally safe electronic resource to be provided to Aboriginal HF patients via a tablet computer. An HF expert panel adapted the existing resource to ensure it was evidence-based and contained appropriate language and images that reflects Aboriginal culture. A stakeholder group (which included Aboriginal workers and HF patients, as well as researchers and clinicians) then reviewed the resources, and changes were made accordingly. In Phase 2, the new resource was tested on a sample of Aboriginal HF patients to assess feasibility and acceptability. Patient knowledge, satisfaction and self-care behaviours were measured using a before and after design with validated questionnaires. As this was a pilot test to determine feasibility, no statistical comparisons were made. RESULTS: Phase 1: Throughout the process of resource development, two main themes emerged from the stakeholder consultation. These were the importance of identity, meaning that it was important to ensure that the resource accurately reflected the local community, with the appropriate clothing, skin tone and voice. The resource was adapted to reflect this, and members of the local community voiced the recordings for the resource. The other theme was comprehension; images were important and all text was converted to the first person and used plain language. Phase 2: Five Aboriginal participants, mean age 61.6±10.0 years, with NYHA Class III and IV heart failure were enrolled. Participants reported a high level of satisfaction with the resource (83.0%). HF knowledge (percentage of correct responses) increased from 48.0±6.7% to 58.0±9.7%, a 20.8% increase, and results of the self-care index indicated that the biggest change was in patient confidence for self-care, with a 95% increase in confidence score (46.7±16.0 to 91.1±11.5). Changes in management and maintenance scores varied between patients. CONCLUSIONS: By working in collaboration with HF experts, Aboriginal researchers and patients, a culturally safe HF resource has been developed for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander patients. Engaging Aboriginal researchers, capacity-building, and being responsive to local systems and structures enabled this pilot study to be successfully completed with the Aboriginal community and positive participant feedback demonstrated that the methodology used in this study was appropriate and acceptable; participants were able to engage with willingness and confidence
- …