Biomedical Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
m thick fluorinated Teflon (polytetrafluoroethylene,
PTFE) coated with platinum. The ring electrodes were copper coated with 24-K
gold, the tubings were Teflon, and the inductive coil was enameled gold armature
wire with the stripped ends gold plated with 24-K gold. The pump had to be sterilized
before any medical implanting surgery. The results of the flow rate measurements
under a head pressure of 20, 40, and 60 mmHg with or without the inductive generator
powering the pumps are discussed next.
muscle (diaphragm) was 30
µ
20 mmHg input pressure:
Average flow rate of water at room temperature (~70
°
F) without the induc-
L/min.
Average flow rate of water at room temperature (~70
tive generator was 0.6
µ
°
F) with the inductive
L/min.
It is estimated that these flow rates in the eye and with aqueous humor re-
placing water will drop to almost 0
generator was 0.8
µ
µ
L/min without inductive generator
activation and 0.1
µ
L/m with inductive generator activation.
40 mmHg input pressure:
Average flow rate of water at room temperature (~70
°
F) without the induc-
L/min.
Average flow rate of water at room temperature (~70
tive generator was 1.1
µ
°
F) with the inductive
L/min.
It is estimated that these flow rates in the eye and with aqueous humor
replacing water will drop to almost 0.8
generator was 1.36
µ
µ
L/min without the inductive
generator activation and 1.11
µ
L/min with the inductive generator
activation
60 mmHg input pressure:
Average flow rate of water at room temperature (~70
°
F) without the induc-
L/min.
Average flow rate of water at room temperature (~70
tive generator was 1.7
µ
°
F) with inductive
L/min.
It is estimated that these flow rates in the eye and with aqueous humor re-
placing water will drop to almost 1.4
generator was 1.9
µ
µ
L/min without the inductive gen-
erator activation and 1.7
µ
L/min with the inductive generator activation.
In conclusion, it should be emphasized that implantable, pressure-adjustable,
diaphragm pump systems can be fabricated with IPMNCs. Furthermore, these
minipumps are scalable and are characterized by a common type of actuating mech-
anism in the form of synthetic muscles made with ionic polymeric conductor com-
posites (IPCNCs). The pumps may be inductively and transcutaneously powered via
adjacent, mutually inductive electromagnetic coils. Alternatively, the pumps may be
effectively “self”-powered using a synthetic muscle attached to a local bending or
twisting force.
