Experimental and theoretical analysis of pulsatile flow in elastic tubes: Wave propagation and attenuation

Abstract

The objective of this study was to comprehensively examine the pulsatile flow behavior within an elastic tube using experimental and theoretical approaches. This work is an extension of our earlier report [Roknujjaman et al., Phys. Fluids, 34, 123612 (2022)]. In this paper, we adapted a quasi-one-dimensional model to elucidate the wave propagation and pulse attenuation phenomena in an elastic tube and compared with experimental findings. According to our investigation, the key findings were as follows: the experimental and predicted flow wave propagation trend agreed well. Additionally, because of the silicon tubes greater deformation than the urethane tubes, the pulsation was decreased farther in the silicon tubes than in the urethane ones. Furthermore, because of the reflected wave near the tube exit, the pulsations amplitude significantly increased, but it did not enlarge when the resistance was installed at the exit. Finally, we infer that the quasi-one-dimensional model is a better fit for experimental results compared to the two-dimensional model.