Heat Transfer Analysis of Human Cell Culture Under RF Exposure

A 2.45 GHz radio frequency (RF) exposure system was designed and used to study the RF effects on the genome-wide gene expression in cultured human cells. In this system, a T-25 culture flask, which contains 10 × 10⁶ cells in a 10ml medium, is placed in a WR 340 waveguide. The waveguide serves as an environmental chamber. The source is a pulsed magnetron for obtaining a high electric field with the specific absorption rate (SAR) at approximately 10 W/kg. In order to ensure the non-thermal effect, the system was designed to maintain a temperature of 37°C. In this research, the heat transfer analysis of the system was conducted using the computational fluid dynamic (CFD) software FLUENT® coupled with the finite element software, High Frequency Structural Simulation (HFSS) by Ansoft. The electric field was first analyzed by using HFSS to calculate the SAR distribution as a heat source input for CFD calculations. The fluid flow and temperature distributions within the flask were then analyzed using FLUENT®. The results were validated experimentally by measuring the temperatures with fluoroptic thermometer probes as well as by examining the level of heat shock gene expression. These results provide useful information for a better understanding and controlling of the operating conditions of the system.