Buckling of Porcine Aorta Under Static and Dynamic Loading

Tortuosity and buckling of blood vessels are defined as the deviation from original configuration and has been observed throughout the vascular system. The blood flow in the regions down-stream of tortuous section decreases, which may cause a deficiency in blood supply to the organs and ischemia. Although tortuosity of blood vessels has been associated with aging, atherosclerosis, hypertension, genetic and other cardiovascular disease, the mechanism behind its initiation and development is not yet understood. In a series of theoretical and experimental studies, biomechanical aspects of buckling of arteries has been investigated under quasi-static loading (Han, 2007; Liu and Han, 2011); however, it has been shown theoretically that the buckling behavior of arteries under dynamic loading are different and arteries may become mechanically unstable at pressures other than the static critical loading (Rachev, 2009). This work addresses buckling of porcine aorta and experimental verification of dynamic buckling in this case. We hypothesize that dynamic buckling can partly contribute to the traumatic rupture of aorta that is a leading cause of fatality in motor vehicle crashes.