Article ID Journal Published Year Pages File Type
8918870 Thermal Science and Engineering Progress 2017 26 Pages PDF
Abstract
This paper identifies different commercially available peristaltic and diaphragm micro-pumps suitable for the application in a portable/wearable artificial kidney and carries out their flow dynamic and energetic assessment in a specifically designed experimental rig. This analysis provides information on pressure and flow rate behaviours for developing control algorithms and data on energy consumption for increasing operation time of portable/wearing systems. Both the peristaltic and the diaphragm commercial units are able to cover the whole operative range of a portable/wearable artificial kidney. The peristaltic units allow a more regular flow and a reduced level of noise and vibration, particularly at low and medium flow rates, whereas the diaphragm units are more compact and lightweight and they exhibit a superior energetic efficiency. The overall efficiency of the diaphragm pumps is 2-4 times higher than that of the peristaltic pumps those exhibit very poor efficiency, particularly at low rotation speed. The final assessment of the more suitable commercial micro-pump for this specific application requires further investigation concerning biocompatibility, hemolysis, sterilisation, reliability, and economic costs.
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Physical Sciences and Engineering Energy Energy Engineering and Power Technology
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