Fluid Dynamics of Circulation: Focus on the Kidney. In Australia, about 30% of adults have hypertension, a major risk factor for heart disease, accounting for about 40% of all deaths. Problems in renal circulation are likely factors leading to hypertension. A detailed understanding of the renal circulation, of whose hydraulic characteristics we have limited knowledge, is required before we can cure or prevent hypertension. We will determine how the size, structure and geometry of the blood vesse ....Fluid Dynamics of Circulation: Focus on the Kidney. In Australia, about 30% of adults have hypertension, a major risk factor for heart disease, accounting for about 40% of all deaths. Problems in renal circulation are likely factors leading to hypertension. A detailed understanding of the renal circulation, of whose hydraulic characteristics we have limited knowledge, is required before we can cure or prevent hypertension. We will determine how the size, structure and geometry of the blood vessels influence the function of the kidney. This will lead to predictive models to aid the design and interpretation of physiological studies and the combat of hypertension. It will also help in the ongoing development of bioartificial kidneys to replace present dialysis systems. Read moreRead less
Determination of the Properties of Hyper-Elastic Materials by Deep Indentation. We seek to develop the scientific basis for the interpretation of the results of "deep" indentation testing of non-linear elastic (hyper-elastic) materials. Simple tests (such as indentation) produce complex strain fields. Interpretation of the resulting data in terms of stiffness, for example, requires a complex model of the deformation process that can be utilised to link the observed behaviour to the basic prope ....Determination of the Properties of Hyper-Elastic Materials by Deep Indentation. We seek to develop the scientific basis for the interpretation of the results of "deep" indentation testing of non-linear elastic (hyper-elastic) materials. Simple tests (such as indentation) produce complex strain fields. Interpretation of the resulting data in terms of stiffness, for example, requires a complex model of the deformation process that can be utilised to link the observed behaviour to the basic properties of interest. This project is dedicated to an understanding of the complex deformation associated with large strain indentation of hyper-elastic materials and structures, development of finite element based models for this deformation and creation of techniques for interpretation of the results of such indentation tests.Read moreRead less