The Computational Fluid Dynamics Rupture Challenge 2013--Phase II: Variability of Hemodynamic Simulations in Two Intracranial Aneurysms.

With the increased availability of computational resources, the past decade has seen a rise in the use of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) for medical applications. There has been an increase in the application of CFD to attempt to predict the rupture of intracranial aneurysms, however, while many hemodynamic parameters can be obtained from these computations, to date, no consistent methodology for the prediction of the rupture has been identified. One particular challenge to CFD is that many factors contribute to its accuracy; the mesh resolution and spatial/temporal discretization can alone contribute to a variation in accuracy. This failure to identify the importance of these factors and identify a methodology for the prediction of ruptures has limited the acceptance of CFD among physicians for rupture prediction. The International CFD Rupture Challenge 2013 seeks to comment on the sensitivity of these various CFD assumptions to predict the rupture by undertaking a comparison of the rupture and blood-flow predictions from a wide range of independent participants utilizing a range of CFD approaches. Twenty-six groups from 15 countries took part in the challenge. Participants were provided with surface models of two intracranial aneurysms and asked to carry out the corresponding hemodynamics simulations, free to choose their own mesh, solver, and temporal discretization. They were requested to submit velocity and pressure predictions along the centerline and on specified planes. The first phase of the challenge, described in a separate paper, was aimed at predicting which of the two aneurysms had previously ruptured and where the rupture site was located. The second phase, described in this paper, aims to assess the variability of the solutions and the sensitivity to the modeling assumptions. Participants were free to choose boundary conditions in the first phase, whereas they were prescribed in the second phase but all other CFD modeling parameters were not prescribed. In order to compare the computational results of one representative group with experimental results, steady-flow measurements using particle image velocimetry (PIV) were carried out in a silicone model of one of the provided aneurysms. Approximately 80% of the participating groups generated similar results. Both velocity and pressure computations were in good agreement with each other for cycle-averaged and peak-systolic predictions. Most apparent "outliers" (results that stand out of the collective) were observed to have underestimated velocity levels compared to the majority of solutions, but nevertheless identified comparable flow structures. In only two cases, the results deviate by over 35% from the mean solution of all the participants. Results of steady CFD simulations of the representative group and PIV experiments were in good agreement. The study demonstrated that while a range of numerical schemes, mesh resolution, and solvers was used, similar flow predictions were observed in the majority of cases. To further validate the computational results, it is suggested that time-dependent measurements should be conducted in the future. However, it is recognized that this study does not include the biological aspects of the aneurysm, which needs to be considered to be able to more precisely identify the specific rupture risk of an intracranial aneurysm.

Turbulence in ferrofluids in channel flow with steady and oscillating magnetic fields.

The turbulent flow of a ferrofluid in channel flow is studied using direct numerical simulation. The method of analysis is an extension of that used for Newtonian fluids, with additional features necessary to model the ferrofluid. The analysis is applied to low Reynolds number turbulence in the range of existing experimental data in a capillary. For steady and oscillating magnetic fields, comparisons are made between a Newtonian fluid and a ferrofluid by comparing the pressure drop, turbulent Reynolds number, turbulent kinetic energy (k), Reynolds stress, velocity, and spin profiles. The results are also compared with predictions of a k-ɛ model to show the accuracy of that model when applied to ferrofluids, where ɛ is the rate of viscous dissipation of turbulent kinetic energy.

Effects of an oscillating magnetic field on homogeneous ferrofluid turbulence.

This paper presents the results from direct numerical simulations of homogeneous ferrofluid turbulence with a spatially uniform, applied oscillating magnetic field. Due to the strong coupling that exists between the magnetic field and the ferrofluid, we find that the oscillating field can affect the characteristics of the turbulent flow. The magnetic field does work on the turbulent flow and typically leads to an increased rate of energy loss via two dissipation modes specific to ferrofluids. However, under certain conditions this magnetic work results in injection, or a forcing, of turbulent kinetic energy into the flow. For the cases considered here, there is no mean shear and the mean components of velocity, vorticity, and particle spin rate are all zero. Thus, the effects shown are entirely due to the interactions between the turbulent fluctuations of the ferrofluid and the magnetic field. In addition to the effects of the oscillation frequency, we also investigate the effects of the choice of magnetization equation. The calculations focus on the approximate centerline conditions of the relatively low Reynolds number turbulent ferrofluid pipe flow experiments described previously [K. R. Schumacher, Phys. Rev. E 67, 026308 (2003)].

Computational analysis of the tether-pulling experiment to probe plasma membrane-cytoskeleton interaction in cells.

Tethers are thin membrane tubes that can be formed when relatively small and localized forces are applied to cellular membranes and lipid bilayers. Tether pulling experiments have been used to better understand the fine membrane properties. These include the interaction between the plasma membrane and the underlying cytoskeleton, which is an important factor affecting membrane mechanics. We use a computational method aimed at the interpretation and design of tether pulling experiments in cells with a strong membrane-cytoskeleton attachment. In our model, we take into account the detailed information in the topology of bonds connecting the plasma membrane and the cytoskeleton. We compute the force-dependent piecewise membrane deflection and bending as well as modes of stored energy in three major regions of the system: body of the tether, membrane-cytoskeleton attachment zone, and the transition zone between the two. We apply our method to three cells: cochlear outer hair cells (OHCs), human embryonic kidney (HEK) cells, and Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells. OHCs have a special system of pillars connecting the membrane and the cytoskeleton, and HEK and CHO cells have the membrane-cytoskeleton adhesion arrangement via bonds (e.g., PIP2), which is common to many other cells. We also present a validation of our model by using experimental data on CHO and HEK cells. The proposed method can be an effective tool in the analyses of experiments to probe the properties of cellular membranes.

Modeling the mechanics of tethers pulled from the cochlear outer hair cell membrane.

Cell membrane tethers are formed naturally (e.g., in leukocyte rolling) and experimentally to probe membrane properties. In cochlear outer hair cells, the plasma membrane is part of the trilayer lateral wall, where the membrane is attached to the cytoskeleton by a system of radial pillars. The mechanics of these cells is important to the sound amplification and frequency selectivity of the ear. We present a modeling study to simulate the membrane deflection, bending, and interaction with the cytoskeleton in the outer hair cell tether pulling experiment. In our analysis, three regions of the membrane are considered: the body of a cylindrical tether, the area where the membrane is attached and interacts with the cytoskeleton, and the transition region between the two. By using a computational method, we found the shape of the membrane in all three regions over a range of tether lengths and forces observed in experiments. We also analyze the effects of biophysical properties of the membrane, including the bending modulus and the forces of the membrane adhesion to the cytoskeleton. The model's results provide a better understanding of the mechanics of tethers pulled from cell membranes.

Experiment and simulation of laminar and turbulent ferrofluid pipe flow in an oscillating magnetic field.

Laminar and turbulent pipe flow of a ferrofluid with an imposed linearly polarized, oscillating, magnetic field is examined here. Experimental results show a fractional pressure drop dependence on flow rate, magnetic field strength, and oscillation frequency. Calculations are presented, which show that ferrofluid theory can explain the flow phenomena in laminar and turbulent pipe flow. The model requires an initial fit of key parameters but then shows predictive capability in both laminar and turbulent flow. Simulation results are found to be essentially independent of the spin boundary condition due to an approximation of spin viscosity that is very small. A low Reynolds number k-epsilon model is used to model the turbulent pipe flow.