{"id":{"repo_id":"vt","oai_identifier":"oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/141138"},"canonical_url":"https://search.dev.ndltd.org/etd/vt/oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/141138","repository":{"repo_id":"vt","name":"Virginia Tech","base_url":"https://vtechworks.lib.vt.edu/oai/request"},"display":{"title":"Employing Fluid Structure Interaction Analyses to Reveal Insights in Atherosclerotic Progression in the Carotid Artery","abstract":"Atherosclerosis, the leading cause of death globally, has been shown to have a biomechanical link. A broad consensus exists that low levels of hemodynamic Wall Shear Stress (WSS) facilitate atherosclerotic stenoses (arterial blockages). Despite numerous studies on this phenomenon, the effects of how stenosis severity in simultaneity with its orientation relative to bulk flow may affect the rate of disease progression remain unexplored. To address these gaps, this study investigates the hemodynamic response of an anatomically realistic carotid artery using 1-way coupled Fluid Structure Interaction (FSI). We computationally analyzed blood flow in 4 stages of carotid artery stenoses (0%, 30%, 60% and 80%) at 3 levels of orientation of the stenosis with bulk flow direction. We employed a Newtonian rheology of blood, and considered the arterial walls as a Mooney-Rivlin hyperelastic solid. Low Time-Averaged Wall Shear Stress (TAWSS) below the threshold of 0.4 Pa is observed in the ICA region for the healthy (0%) and 30% stenosis cases, consistent with established studies. The 60% and 80% cases exhibit high levels of TAWSS at the stenosis throat. The interplay between the Reynolds number (Re), nondimensional WSS and nondimensional Turbulent Kinetic Energy (TKE) is investigated as a marker of disturbed shear dynamics. The 0% and 30% stenosed cases exhibited higher disturbed shear dynamics, potentially accelerating the rate of progression. In contrast, the severe stenosed cases (60% and 80%) seem to suppress disturbed shear dynamics, but may still facilitate disease progression due to high TAWSS promoting the risk of endothelial injury. Varying the stenosis orientation highlighted how geometric features affect flow disturbances. At 30% stenosis, the orientation with apex tilted towards downstream may accelerate early-stage progression relative to other orientations. In contrast, at 60% stenosis, the orientation with apex tilted upstream may also accelerate disease progression relative to other orientations, due to higher risk of endothelial injury and plaque destabilization. The study attempts to aid clinical intervention of atherosclerosis by proposing a qualitative ranking framework for the predicted rate of stenosis progression.","abstract_html":"Atherosclerosis, the leading cause of death globally, has been shown to have a biomechanical link. A broad consensus exists that low levels of hemodynamic Wall Shear Stress (WSS) facilitate atherosclerotic stenoses (arterial blockages). Despite numerous studies on this phenomenon, the effects of how stenosis severity in simultaneity with its orientation relative to bulk flow may affect the rate of disease progression remain unexplored. To address these gaps, this study investigates the hemodynamic response of an anatomically realistic carotid artery using 1-way coupled Fluid Structure Interaction (FSI). We computationally analyzed blood flow in 4 stages of carotid artery stenoses (0%, 30%, 60% and 80%) at 3 levels of orientation of the stenosis with bulk flow direction. We employed a Newtonian rheology of blood, and considered the arterial walls as a Mooney-Rivlin hyperelastic solid. Low Time-Averaged Wall Shear Stress (TAWSS) below the threshold of 0.4 Pa is observed in the ICA region for the healthy (0%) and 30% stenosis cases, consistent with established studies. The 60% and 80% cases exhibit high levels of TAWSS at the stenosis throat. The interplay between the Reynolds number (Re), nondimensional WSS and nondimensional Turbulent Kinetic Energy (TKE) is investigated as a marker of disturbed shear dynamics. The 0% and 30% stenosed cases exhibited higher disturbed shear dynamics, potentially accelerating the rate of progression. In contrast, the severe stenosed cases (60% and 80%) seem to suppress disturbed shear dynamics, but may still facilitate disease progression due to high TAWSS promoting the risk of endothelial injury. Varying the stenosis orientation highlighted how geometric features affect flow disturbances. At 30% stenosis, the orientation with apex tilted towards downstream may accelerate early-stage progression relative to other orientations. In contrast, at 60% stenosis, the orientation with apex tilted upstream may also accelerate disease progression relative to other orientations, due to higher risk of endothelial injury and plaque destabilization. The study attempts to aid clinical intervention of atherosclerosis by proposing a qualitative ranking framework for the predicted rate of stenosis progression.","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Patil, Harshawardhan Sudhir"],"institution":"Virginia Tech","degree_name":"Master of Science","degree_level":"masters","degree_discipline":"Mechanical Engineering","degree_department":"Mechanical Engineering","school":null,"contributors":[],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":["Untaroiu, Alexandrina"],"committee_members":["Wang, Kevin Guanyuan","Paul, Mark R."],"year":2026,"date_issued":"2026-02-03","date_published":"2026-02-03","updated_at":"2026-07-22T22:18:50Z","subjects":["Fluid structure interaction","Carotid Bifurcation","Computational Hemodynamics","Hyperelasticity","Wall Shear Stress","Atherosclerotic Progression"],"languages":["en"],"rights":["Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International"],"rights_urls":["http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/"],"identifier_entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier.other","label":"Dc Identifier Other","values":["vt_gsexam:45556"],"render_values":[{"text":"vt_gsexam:45556","href":null,"code":true}]}]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://hdl.handle.net/10919/141138","outbound_label":"Handle","outbound_source":"dc:identifier.uri"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor.committeechair","label":"Committee Chair","values":["Untaroiu, Alexandrina"]},{"key":"dc:contributor.committeemember","label":"Committee Member","values":["Wang, Kevin Guanyuan","Paul, Mark R."]},{"key":"dc:contributor.department","label":"Department","values":["Mechanical Engineering"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Patil, Harshawardhan Sudhir"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.accessioned","label":"Dc Date Accessioned","values":["2026-02-04T09:01:14Z"]},{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2026-02-04T09:01:14Z"]},{"key":"dc:date.issued","label":"Date","values":["2026-02-03"]},{"key":"dc:publisher","label":"Institution","values":["Virginia Tech"]},{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Mechanical Engineering"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["masters"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Science"]},{"key":"thesis:institution_name","label":"Thesis Institution Name","values":["Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Fluid structure interaction","Carotid Bifurcation","Computational Hemodynamics","Hyperelasticity","Wall Shear Stress","Atherosclerotic Progression"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:language.iso","label":"Language (ISO)","values":["en"]},{"key":"dc:rights","label":"Dc Rights","values":["Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International"]},{"key":"dc:rights.uri","label":"Rights URI","values":["http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier.other","label":"Dc Identifier Other","values":["vt_gsexam:45556"]},{"key":"dc:identifier.uri","label":"Identifier URI","values":["https://hdl.handle.net/10919/141138"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["Atherosclerosis, the leading cause of death globally, has been shown to have a biomechanical link. A broad consensus exists that low levels of hemodynamic Wall Shear Stress (WSS) facilitate atherosclerotic stenoses (arterial blockages). Despite numerous studies on this phenomenon, the effects of how stenosis severity in simultaneity with its orientation relative to bulk flow may affect the rate of disease progression remain unexplored. To address these gaps, this study investigates the hemodynamic response of an anatomically realistic carotid artery using 1-way coupled Fluid Structure Interaction (FSI). We computationally analyzed blood flow in 4 stages of carotid artery stenoses (0%, 30%, 60% and 80%) at 3 levels of orientation of the stenosis with bulk flow direction. We employed a Newtonian rheology of blood, and considered the arterial walls as a Mooney-Rivlin hyperelastic solid. Low Time-Averaged Wall Shear Stress (TAWSS) below the threshold of 0.4 Pa is observed in the ICA region for the healthy (0%) and 30% stenosis cases, consistent with established studies. The 60% and 80% cases exhibit high levels of TAWSS at the stenosis throat. The interplay between the Reynolds number (Re), nondimensional WSS and nondimensional Turbulent Kinetic Energy (TKE) is investigated as a marker of disturbed shear dynamics. The 0% and 30% stenosed cases exhibited higher disturbed shear dynamics, potentially accelerating the rate of progression. In contrast, the severe stenosed cases (60% and 80%) seem to suppress disturbed shear dynamics, but may still facilitate disease progression due to high TAWSS promoting the risk of endothelial injury. Varying the stenosis orientation highlighted how geometric features affect flow disturbances. At 30% stenosis, the orientation with apex tilted towards downstream may accelerate early-stage progression relative to other orientations. In contrast, at 60% stenosis, the orientation with apex tilted upstream may also accelerate disease progression relative to other orientations, due to higher risk of endothelial injury and plaque destabilization. The study attempts to aid clinical intervention of atherosclerosis by proposing a qualitative ranking framework for the predicted rate of stenosis progression."]},{"key":"dc:description.abstractgeneral","label":"General Abstract","values":["Atherosclerosis is the number one cause of death globally with an estimated 19 million deaths a year. When too many lipids accumulate in a section of the artery, it gets clogged, causing atherosclerosis. When blood flows inside an artery, its viscosity causes it to 'tug' at the artery wall. Research suggests that too low of a tug or fluctuating tug can facilitate initiation of the disease and can also affect the rate of progression of the disease. The purpose of this study is to seek to understand the impact of certain geometric variations of the blockage the rate of further disease progression. We find that for milder blockages, the disease may progress faster if the blockage is oriented along the direction of flow. In constant, in more severe blockages, the opposite may be the case. Severe blockages may be more susceptible to rupture or hemorrhage."]},{"key":"dc:description.degree","label":"Dc Description Degree","values":["Master of Science"]},{"key":"dc:format.medium","label":"Dc Format Medium","values":["ETD"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Employing Fluid Structure Interaction Analyses to Reveal Insights in Atherosclerotic Progression in the Carotid Artery"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor.committeechair":["Untaroiu, Alexandrina"],"dc:contributor.committeemember":["Wang, Kevin Guanyuan","Paul, Mark R."],"dc:contributor.department":["Mechanical Engineering"],"dc:creator":["Patil, Harshawardhan Sudhir"],"dc:date.accessioned":["2026-02-04T09:01:14Z"],"dc:date.available":["2026-02-04T09:01:14Z"],"dc:date.issued":["2026-02-03"],"dc:description.abstract":["Atherosclerosis, the leading cause of death globally, has been shown to have a biomechanical link. A broad consensus exists that low levels of hemodynamic Wall Shear Stress (WSS) facilitate atherosclerotic stenoses (arterial blockages). Despite numerous studies on this phenomenon, the effects of how stenosis severity in simultaneity with its orientation relative to bulk flow may affect the rate of disease progression remain unexplored. To address these gaps, this study investigates the hemodynamic response of an anatomically realistic carotid artery using 1-way coupled Fluid Structure Interaction (FSI). We computationally analyzed blood flow in 4 stages of carotid artery stenoses (0%, 30%, 60% and 80%) at 3 levels of orientation of the stenosis with bulk flow direction. We employed a Newtonian rheology of blood, and considered the arterial walls as a Mooney-Rivlin hyperelastic solid. Low Time-Averaged Wall Shear Stress (TAWSS) below the threshold of 0.4 Pa is observed in the ICA region for the healthy (0%) and 30% stenosis cases, consistent with established studies. The 60% and 80% cases exhibit high levels of TAWSS at the stenosis throat. The interplay between the Reynolds number (Re), nondimensional WSS and nondimensional Turbulent Kinetic Energy (TKE) is investigated as a marker of disturbed shear dynamics. The 0% and 30% stenosed cases exhibited higher disturbed shear dynamics, potentially accelerating the rate of progression. In contrast, the severe stenosed cases (60% and 80%) seem to suppress disturbed shear dynamics, but may still facilitate disease progression due to high TAWSS promoting the risk of endothelial injury. Varying the stenosis orientation highlighted how geometric features affect flow disturbances. At 30% stenosis, the orientation with apex tilted towards downstream may accelerate early-stage progression relative to other orientations. In contrast, at 60% stenosis, the orientation with apex tilted upstream may also accelerate disease progression relative to other orientations, due to higher risk of endothelial injury and plaque destabilization. The study attempts to aid clinical intervention of atherosclerosis by proposing a qualitative ranking framework for the predicted rate of stenosis progression."],"dc:description.abstractgeneral":["Atherosclerosis is the number one cause of death globally with an estimated 19 million deaths a year. When too many lipids accumulate in a section of the artery, it gets clogged, causing atherosclerosis. When blood flows inside an artery, its viscosity causes it to 'tug' at the artery wall. Research suggests that too low of a tug or fluctuating tug can facilitate initiation of the disease and can also affect the rate of progression of the disease. The purpose of this study is to seek to understand the impact of certain geometric variations of the blockage the rate of further disease progression. We find that for milder blockages, the disease may progress faster if the blockage is oriented along the direction of flow. In constant, in more severe blockages, the opposite may be the case. Severe blockages may be more susceptible to rupture or hemorrhage."],"dc:description.degree":["Master of Science"],"dc:format.medium":["ETD"],"dc:identifier.other":["vt_gsexam:45556"],"dc:identifier.uri":["https://hdl.handle.net/10919/141138"],"dc:language.iso":["en"],"dc:publisher":["Virginia Tech"],"dc:rights":["Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International"],"dc:rights.uri":["http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/"],"dc:subject":["Fluid structure interaction","Carotid Bifurcation","Computational Hemodynamics","Hyperelasticity","Wall Shear Stress","Atherosclerotic Progression"],"dc:title":["Employing Fluid Structure Interaction Analyses to Reveal Insights in Atherosclerotic Progression in the Carotid Artery"],"dc:type":["Thesis"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Mechanical Engineering"],"thesis:degree_level":["masters"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master of Science"],"thesis:institution_name":["Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-22T22:18:50Z"}