A model for erythrocyte sedimentation

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Hill, C.D. | Bedford, A.

Affiliations: Department of Aerospace Engineering and Engineering Mechanics, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas 78712, USA

Note: [] Accepted by: Editor Y.C.B. Fung

Abstract: The concentration profile of erythrocytes during sedimentation is predicted by using equations for two-phase flow. The equations model the buoyant force on the cells, the drag due to the relative motion of the cells and the plasma, and the diffusive force on the cells due to their Brownian motion. The equations are solved by the method of finite differences and the results are compared to the experimental data of Whelan, Huang, and Copley. The results indicate that a theory of this type can accurately predict the measured concentration profiles. However, in order to do so, an anomalously large value of the diffusivity coefficient must be used.

Keywords: Blood sedimentation, Blood viscosity, Erythrocyte aggregation

DOI: 10.3233/BIR-1981-18207

Journal: Biorheology, vol. 18, no. 2, pp. 255-266, 1981