Study of miniaturization of a centrifugal blood pump with magnetic bearing

• Grant number: 12/03766-1
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: July 01, 2012
• End date: May 31, 2013
• Field of knowledge: Engineering - Mechanical Engineering - Mechanical Engineering Design
• Principal Investigator: Chi Nan Pai
• Grantee: Tatiane Angelelli Nishiwaki
• Host Institution: Centro de Engenharia, Modelagem e Ciências Sociais Aplicadas (CECS). Universidade Federal do ABC (UFABC). Ministério da Educação (Brasil). Santo André , SP, Brazil

Abstract

The increase of patients waiting for a heart donor has not been followed by increase of number of heart transplants and, as consequence, several of them passes away during the process. In order to improve this situation, blood pumps have been researched and used to substitute the blood pumping function of the weakened heart ventricle. This assistance provided by the blood pumps can be for several days, to preserve the life of the patient until the heart transplant, or even for decades, when the blood pumps are used as destination therapy, avoiding the necessity of a heart transplant. Among the three generations of blood pumps that have been developed, the ones that provide higher durability are the rotary blood pumps using non-contact bearings. The reason is the absence of friction between moving parts, which decreases wearing and heating, responsible for the increase of blood cell damages and the risk of clot formation. Professor Pai Chi Nan, supervisor of this project, developed one of these kinds of blood pumps, a centrifugal blood pump (CBP) using magnetic bearing in Japan. However, because of the size of this CBP, and of most of the other available CBPs with magnetic bearing, they should be implanted inside the abdominal cavity and only in adults. In this research project, a study for miniaturization of the developed CBP with magnetic bearing is proposed, using national technology, in order to make the CBP smaller enough to be implanted in thoracic cavity and to be used in small children as well. To achieve this objective, new magnetic bearings with different size and providing different magnetic forces are going to be designed and studied, as well as new motors with different torques. The designs are going to be performed using CAD software and the studies are going to be performed using electromechanical simulation software. Finally, a feasibility analysis is going to be performed to evaluate the possibility of manufacturing the prototype in Brazil.(AU)