Thesis (M.Sc. (Applied Mathematics)) -- University of Limpopo, 2008 / Understanding the effects of blood viscosity variation plays a very crucial role in hemodynamics, thrombosis and inflammation and could provide useful information for diagnostics and therapy of (cardio) vascular diseases. Blood viscosity, which arises from frictional interactions between all major blood constituents, i.e. plasma, plasma proteins and red blood cells, constitutes blood inherent resistance to flow in the blood vessel. Generally, blood viscosity in large arteries is lower near the vessel wall due to the presence of plasma layer in this peripheral region than the viscosity in the central core region which depends on the hematocrit. In this dissertation, the flow of blood in a large artery is investigated theoretically using the fluid dynamics equations of continuity and momentum. Treating artery as a rigid channel with uniform width and blood as a variable viscosity incompressible Newtonian fluid, the basic flow structure and its stability to small disturbances are examined. A fourth-order eigenvalue problem which reduces to the well known Orr–Sommerfeld equation in some limiting cases is obtained and solved numerically by a spectral collocation technique with expansions in Chebyshev polynomials implemented in MATLAB. Graphical results for the basic flow axial velocity, disturbance growth rate and marginal stability curve are presented and discussed. It is worth pointing out that, a decrease in plasma viscosity near the arterial wall has a stabilizing effect on the flow.

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Thesis (M.App.Sc.) - Carleton University, 2006. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 114-145). Also available in electronic format on the Internet.

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Two experimental dynamic phantoms have been used for studying temperature distributions induced by interstitial ferromagnetic implant hyperthermia at various blood perfusions, Curie point implants, and input power levels. One of the phantoms is an axially perfused hollow cylinder filled with 3 mm diameter glass beads, and the other is a similar cylinder model that is radially perfused. Analytic models have been developed for evaluating temperature profiles within the two phantoms. Experimental results from the phantoms compare reasonably well with the analytical results. A qualitative comparison is made between thermal profiles derived from both a convection energy equation, for a homogeneous porous medium, and a bioheat transfer equation. The adequacy of using a porous material for simulating living tissue is discussed. Parametric studies showing the effects of various implant parameters such as Curie point and applied power are analyzed.

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