Newtonian behavior of blood at high rates of shear 1

Abstract

Experimental investigations of the flow characteristics of blood have been reported only at shear rates analogous to conditions of flow that would be expected to occur in smaller arteries or the microcirculation. If one is to consider the rheological behavior of blood at peak levels of flow under conditions typically found in arteries of moderate size, higher rates of shear must be examined. In this study, it was found that at these higher rates of shear the blood behaves as a Newtonian fluid. This has broad implications in the study of hemorheological models of the cardiovascular system. It permits one to analyze disturbed flow in regions of high shear by utilization of equations which describe the fluid dynamics of Newtonian fluids.