CFD Analysis of Straightener Designs on Overall Performance of the Axial Flow Blood Pump

Ventricular assist devices (VADs) have emerged as an effective clinical tool for offering crucial aid to patients suffering with heart failure. To achieve optimal performance that matches a healthy ventricle, precise design and a thorough understanding of hydraulic and clinical factors are crucial. This research paper presents a comprehensive analysis using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software ANSYS Fluent at different range of rotational speed and flow rate to examine the performance of an axial blood pump with three different straightener designs: conical, cylindrical, and paraboloid. The primary objective is to assess the impact of these straightener designs on the overall performance of the axial blood pump. Initially, the base axial pump employed conical straightener designs, which were subsequently modified to paraboloid and cylindrical shapes to evaluate their performance. Consistently, the results demonstrated that the paraboloid design outperformed the other designs. Specifically, the axial blood pump equipped with a paraboloid straightener exhibited an increased pressure head and lower intensity of turbulent kinetic energy compared to the other two designs. Additionally, the wall shear stress in the impeller region was lower in the paraboloid design. By employing CFD tool, this study provides valuable insights into the performance of different straightener designs for axial blood pumps. The findings highlight the superiority of the paraboloid design in terms of pressure head and wall shear stress reduction. These results contribute to enhancing the effectiveness and efficiency of left ventricular assist devices (LVADs), ultimately benefiting patients with heart failure.