Date of Award
Spring 6-13-2025
Document Type
Masters Thesis
Degree Name
M.S. in Mechanical Engineering
Organizational Unit
Daniel Felix Ritchie School of Engineering and Computer Science, Mechanical and Materials Engineering
First Advisor
Ali Azadani
Copyright Statement / License for Reuse
All Rights Reserved.
Keywords
Arbitrary lagrangian-eulerian, Computational fluid dynamics, Coupled-momentum method, Fluid-structure interaction, Simvascular, Vertebrobasilar junction
Abstract
Cerebral perfusion is critical for maintaining proper brain function, with each cerebrovascular artery playing an integral role in the overall cerebrovascular system. When these arteries become damaged or develop plaque, cardiovascular disease (CVDs) such as atherosclerosis can arise, leading to conditions like arterial stenosis. While CVDs are most prevalent in older individuals, they are also observed in young adults, particularly those engaged in high-endurance occupations such as military service. Diagnosis and prediction of CVDs often rely on imaging modalities supported by computational fluid dynamics (CFD) which account for low resolution in fluid flow. CFD models assume rigid arterial walls, which fail to capture the viscoelastic nature of vascular tissue and may result in inaccurate hemodynamic predictions. We investigate the impact of vertebrobasilar arterial wall deformability through fluid-structure interaction (FSI) methods. FSI is better suited for describing the arterial behavior, specifically for initialization and development of CVDs in young adults. Results demonstrate that CFD overestimates key physical parameters, such as pressure and wall shear stress, with a pressure difference of approximately 2% and a wall shear stress difference of 12%, underscoring the importance of FSI in achieving more physiologically accurate simulations of cerebrovascular hemodynamics.
Copyright Date
6-2025
Publication Statement
Copyright is held by the author. User is responsible for all copyright compliance.
Rights Holder
Bryce Clinkenbeard
Provenance
Received from ProQuest
File Format
application/pdf
Language
English (eng)
Extent
160 pgs
File Size
15.8 MB
Recommended Citation
Clinkenbeard, Bryce, "Computational Fluid Dynamics and Fluid Structure Interaction Modeling in Healthy Vertebral Arteries: A Comparative Study" (2025). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 2554.
https://digitalcommons.du.edu/etd/2554