Graphical Abstract

Project Overview

Blood viscosity is critical in cardiovascular health and the design of medical devices. However, viscosity changes dramatically with shear rate due to complex red blood cell (RBC) behaviors, specifically aggregation (rouleaux formation) and deformation. This project established a new rheological framework by defining the Intermediate Shear Rate—a critical point where the influence of RBC aggregation on viscosity ends, and the change is then dominated solely by RBC deformation. By segmenting the flow into distinct shear regions, we developed a highly accurate, new phenomenological model to describe blood’s shear-thinning behavior.

Major Outcomes

• New Hemorheology Concept: Defined and introduced the Intermediate Shear Rate as the transition point where RBC aggregation effects diminish, simplifying viscosity modeling.
• Segmented Rheological Model: Developed a model that accurately accounts for the distinct effects of aggregation and deformation in separate shear rate regions.
• High Predictive Accuracy: The model successfully predicts human blood viscosity across a wide range of hematocrits (0.299–0.702) and shear rates (0.2–680 1/s) with an average error of only ±5%.
• Enhanced Clinical Tool: Provided a more robust and accurate tool for assessing blood rheology, which is vital for clinical diagnosis and cardiovascular engineering applications.

Paper Source

To access the paper, please click here.