Abstract
Parallel plate chambers are frequently used to examine the response of biological cells to a constant wall shear stress. However, the stress can vary more than 80% across the chamber due to end effects. Earlier estimates of the magnitude of this inhomogeneity used boundary layer theory and experiments. Here, the full equations for steady, three-dimensional flow in a novel parallel plate device were solved numerically and used to identify an active test region where the shear stress is within 5% of a constant value. Endothelial cells can be confined to this region to assure a nearly uniform shear stress exposure.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 535-546 |
Number of pages | 12 |
Journal | Computers and Structures |
Volume | 81 |
Issue number | 8-11 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - May 2003 |
Keywords
- Active test region
- Endothelial cells
- Mechanotransduction
- Parallel plate device
- Shear stress