On the Use of Magnetic Fields for Controlling the Temperature of Hot Spots on Porous Plaques in Stenosis Arteries

Applicability of a bi-directional magnetic field is investigated on lowering the temperature of hot spots formed on the surface of a porous macrophage plaque typical of stenosis arteries. Having assumed that the blood obeys the Carreau model for shear-thinning fluids, the governing equations are derived for a two-dimensional, partially-constricted channel representing a stenosis artery. Treating the macrophage layer as a heat source, the coupled Cauchy, Brinkman-Forchheirmer, energy, and Maxwells equations are numerically solved using the finite-volume method based on the SIMPLE and ADI algorithms. The main objective of the work is to investigate the combined effect of electromagnetic force, the physiological parameters of the blood, and the geometrical properties of the constriction on the temperature distribution along the plaque’s surface. Based on the numerical results obtained in the present work, the shear-thinning behavior of the blood is predicted to play a negative role as it increases the temperature of the hot spot. A bi-directional magnetic field can lower the temperature of the hot spot (say, by roughly 0.4°C) through suppressing vortex formation in the rear side of the plaque. The magnetic field is also shown to lower the wall shear stress distributions on the lee side of the plaque.