Endothelial Cell Distribution After Flow Exposure With Two Stent Struts Placed in Different Angles

Stent implantation has been a primary treatment for stenosis and other intravascular diseases. However, the struts expansion procedure might cause endothelium lesion and the structure of the struts could disturb the blood flow environment near the wall of the blood vessel. These changes could damage the vascular innermost endothelial cell (EC) layer and pose risks of restenosis and post-deployment thrombosis. This research aims to investigate the effect of flow alterations on EC distribution in the presence of gap between two struts within the parallel flow chamber. To study how the gap presence impacts EC migration and the endothelialization effect on the surface of the struts, two struts were placed with specific orientations and positions on the EC layer in the flow chamber. After a 24-h exposure under wall shear stress (WSS), we observed the EC distribution conditons especially in the gap area. We also conducted computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations to calculate the WSS distribution. High EC-concentration areas on the bottom plate corresponded to the high WSS by the presence of gap between the two struts. To find the relation between the WSS and EC distributions on the fluorescence images, WSS condition by CFD simulation could be helpful for the EC distribution. The endothelialization rate, represented by EC density, on the downstream sides of both struts was higher than that on the upstream sides. These observations were made in the flow recirculation at the gap area between two struts. On two side surfaces between the gaps, meaning the downstream at the first and the upstream at the second struts, EC density differences on the downstream surfaces of the first strut were higher than on the upstream surfaces of the second strut. Finally, EC density varied along the struts when the struts were placed at tilted angles. These results indicate that, by the presence of gap between the struts, ECs distribution could be predicted in both perpendicular and tiled positions. And tiled placement affect ECs distribution on the strut side surfaces.

Impact of Condensation on the System Performance of a Fuel Cell Turbocharger

A mobile fuel cell systems power output can be increased by pressure amplification using an electric turbocharger. These devices are subject to frequent transient manoeuvres due to a multitude of load changes during the mission in automotive applications. In this paper, the authors describe a simulation approach for an electric turbocharger, considering the impact of moist air and condensation within the cathode gas supply system. Therefore, two simulation approaches are used: an iterative simulation method and one based on a set of ordinary differential equations. Additional information is included from turbine performance maps taking into account condensation using Euler–Lagrange CFD simulations, which are presented. The iterative calculation approach is well suited to show the impact of condensation and moist air on the steady state thermodynamic cycle and yields a significant shift of the steady state operating line towards the surge line. It is shown that a substantial risk of surge occurs during transient deceleration manoeuvres triggered by a load step.