Mauricio J. Del Razo

Mauricio J. Del Razo, Yoichi Morofuji, James S. Meabon et al.

There is growing concern that blast-exposed individuals are at risk of developing neurological disorders later in life. Therefore, it is important to understand the dynamic properties of blast forces on brain cells, including the endothelial cells that maintain the blood-brain barrier (BBB), which regulates the passage of nutrients into the brain and protects it from toxins in the blood. To better understand the effect of shock waves on the BBB we have investigated an {\em in vitro} model in which BBB endothelial cells are grown in transwell vessels and exposed in a shock tube, confirming that BBB integrity is directly related to shock wave intensity. It is difficult to directly measure the forces acting on these cells in the transwell container during the experiments, and so a computational tool has been developed and presented in this paper. Two-dimensional axisymmetric Euler equations with the Tammann equation of state were used to model the transwell materials, and a high-resolution finite volume method based on Riemann solvers and the Clawpack software was used to solve these equations in a mixed Eulerian/Lagrangian frame. Results indicated that the geometry of the transwell plays a significant role in the observed pressure time series in these experiments. We also found that pressures can fall below vapor pressure due to the interaction of reflecting and diffracting shock waves, suggesting that cavitation bubbles could be a damage mechanism. Computations that include a simulated hydrophone inserted in the transwell suggest that the instrument itself could significantly alter blast wave properties. These findings illustrate the need for further computational modeling studies aimed at understanding possible blast-induced BBB damage.

Mauricio J. Del Razo, Randall J. LeVeque

Many experiments in biomedical applications and other disciplines use a shock tube. These experiments often involve placing an experimental sample within a fluid-filled container, which is then placed inside the shock tube. The shock tube produces an initial shock that propagates through gas before hitting the container with the sample. In order to gain insight into the shock dynamics that is hard to obtain by experimental means, computational simulations of the shock wave passing from gas into a thin elastic solid and into a nearly incompressible fluid are developed. It is shown that if the solid interface is very thin, it can be neglected, simplifying the model. The model uses Euler equations for compressible fluids coupled with a Tammann equation of state (EOS) to model both compressible gas and almost incompressible materials. A three-dimensional (2D axisymmetric) model of these equations is solved using high-resolution shock-capturing methods, with newly developed Riemann solvers and limiters. The methods are extended to work on a mapped grid to allow more complicated interface geometry, and they are adapted to work with adaptive mesh refinement (AMR) for higher resolution and faster computations. The Clawpack software is used to implement the method. These methods were initially inspired by shock tube experiments to study the injury mechanisms of traumatic brain injury (TBI).

Mauricio J. Del Razo, Randall J. LeVeque

The following study is motivated by experimental studies in traumatic brain injury (TBI). Recent research has demonstrated that low intensity non-impact blast wave exposure frequently leads to mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI); however, the mechanisms connecting the blast waves and the mTBI remain unclear. Collaborators at the Seattle VA Hospital are doing experiments to understand how blast waves can produce mTBI. In order to gain insight that is hard to obtain by experimental means, we have developed conservative finite volume methods for interface-shock wave interaction to simulate these experiments. A 1D model of their experimental setup has been implemented using Euler equations for compressible fluids. These equations are coupled with a Tammann equation of state (EOS) that allows us to model compressible gas along with almost incompressible fluids or elastic solids. A hybrid HLLC-exact Eulerian-Lagrangian Riemann solver for Tammann EOS with a jump in the parameters has been developed. The model has shown that if the plastic interface is very thin, it can be neglected. This result might be very helpful to model more complicated setups in higher dimensions.