Numerical simulation of blood flow in an artery with two successive bends.

Blood flow in an artery with two successive bends is simulated by a finite-element computation of steady flow of a Newtonian viscous fluid through a rigid tube having the same shape as a specific part of the femoral artery. Notwithstanding the fact that the bends in the model geometry are rather gentle, the axial and secondary flow patterns, computed for a range of values of the Reynolds number Re, show strong and complicated three-dimensional flow effects. In particular, the flow pattern in the second bend for relatively small values of Re (Re < 240) turns out to be drastically different from that for larger Re-values.