Image based, patient speci c computational uid dynamics (CFD) modeling has gained dramatic attention in evaluation of health and disease... Show moreImage based, patient speci c computational uid dynamics (CFD) modeling has gained dramatic attention in evaluation of health and disease progression. With the popularity of these techniques in clinical settings the need to address how these numerical predictions validate against the empirical data becomes more imperative. Validation studies have primarily been used in vitro models, since experiments are dif- cult to control in vivo, and in vivo conditions are challenging to replicate numerically. However, in vivo validations are essential for a more reliable assessment. Moreover, direct quanti cation of turbulence, necessary for diagnostic purposes, makes the validation process more challenging in turbulent ows. A phase-contrast magnetic resonance imaging (PCMRI) method was used to obtain turbulent kinetic energy (TKE) in an aortic coarctation, a congenital disease, where the aorta narrows blocking the passage of blood to a great portion of the body. A 3D patient-speci c computer model of the aortic coarctation was constructed from the MRI data. Direct numerical simulation was performed to solve the Navier-Stokes equations using a stabilized nite element method. Based on the PCMRI procedures, di erent methods were used to compute TKE from the CFD velocity data, and were compared to the PCMRI data. The velocity data obtained from CFD was also used to study the ow topology by computing the Finite-Time Lyapunov Exponent (FTLE) eld, and the Lagrangian coherent structures (LCS). The TKE results showed relative good agreement between the in vivo measurements and the CFD predictions of TKE. Observed di erences were within expectations due to modeling, measurement and numerical errors. M.S. in Mechanical, Materials, and Aerospace Engineering, May 2012 Show less
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