Ventricle-valve-aorta flow analysis with the Space–Time Isogeometric Discretization and Topology Change

Abstract

AbstractWe address the computational challenges of and presents results from ventricle-valve-aorta flow analysis. Including the left ventricle (LV) in the model makes the flow into the valve, and consequently the flow into the aorta, anatomically more realistic. The challenges include accurate representation of the boundary layers near moving solid surfaces even when the valve leaflets come into contact, computation with high geometric complexity, anatomically realistic representation of the LV motion, and flow stability at the inflow boundary, which has a traction condition. The challenges are mainly addressed with a Space–Time (ST) method that integrates three special ST methods around the core, ST Variational Multiscale (ST-VMS) method. The three special methods are the ST Slip Interface (ST-SI) and ST Topology Change (ST-TC) methods and ST Isogeometric Analysis (ST-IGA). The ST-discretization feature of the integrated method, ST-SI-TC-IGA, provides higher-order accuracy compared to standard discretization methods. The VMS feature addresses the computational challenges associated with the multiscale nature of the unsteady flow in the LV, valve and aorta. The moving-mesh feature of the ST framework enables high-resolution computation near the leaflets. The ST-TC enables moving-mesh computation even with the TC created by the contact between the leaflets, dealing with the contact while maintaining high-resolution representation near the leaflets. The ST-IGA provides smoother representation of the LV, valve and aorta surfaces and increased accuracy in the flow solution. The ST-SI connects the separately generated LV, valve and aorta NURBS meshes, enabling easier mesh generation, connects the mesh zones containing the leaflets, enabling a more effective mesh moving, helps the ST-TC deal with leaflet–leaflet contact location change and contact sliding, and helps the ST-TC and ST-IGA keep the element density in the narrow spaces near the contact areas at a reasonable level. The ST-SI-TC-IGA is supplemented with two other special methods in this article. A structural mechanics computation method generates the LV motion from the CT scans of the LV and anatomically realistic values for the LV volume ratio. The Constrained-Flow-Profile (CFP) Traction provides flow stability at the inflow boundary. Test computation with the CFP Traction shows its effectiveness as an inflow stabilization method, and computation with the LV-valve-aorta model shows the effectiveness of the ST-SI-TC-IGA and the two supplemental methods.