Abstract
Due to the limited availability of compatible heart donors, one of the most promising treatments for patients suffering from cardiac insufficiency is Mechanical Circulatory Support using Left Ventricular Assist Devices (LVAD). The main device in the market, HeartMate3, is a low size centrifugal pump incorporating a magnetic levitation system. This device assists the ventricle in generating the needed pressure head to provide the required cardiac output of blood flow through the circulatory system. However, the blood within an LVAD experiences a wide range of non-physiological phenomena such as high shear stresses and device-induced turbulence. Although there are multiple references approaching the behavior of these devices both experimentally and numerically, hardly any of them has analyzed the influence of turbulence modeling on the quantification of performance variables. Furthermore, the performance of LVAD must be evaluated through all possible working conditions. Therefore, the current work presents a set of Unsteady Reynolds-Averaged Navier Stokes and Large Eddy Simulations of the HeartMate3 operating under various conditions. Both the hemodynamic performance and the hemocompatibility of the device are considered. In addition, a 0D Windkessel model is imposed at the outlet to account for the resistance and compliance of the vascular system downstream of the device.