201

Induced magnetic field influences on blood flow

through an anisotropically tapered elastic artery
with overlapping stenosis in an annulus
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Kh. S. Mekheimer, Mohammed H. Haroun, and M.A. El Kot

Abstract: A mathematical model for blood flow through an elastic artery with overlapping stenosis under the effect of in-
duced magnetic field is presented. The present theoretical model may be considered as a mathematical representation to
the movement of conductive physiological fluid through coaxial tubes such that the inner tube is uniform and rigid, repre-
senting a catheter tube, while the outer tube is an anisotropically tapered elastic cylindrical tube filled with a viscous in-
compressible electrically conducting fluid, representing blood. The analysis is carried out for an artery with mild local
narrowing in its lumen, forming a stenosis. Analytical expressions for the stream function, the magnetic force function, the
axial velocity, the axial induced magnetic field, and the distribution of the current density are obtained. The results for the
resistance impedance, the wall shear stress distribution, the axial velocity, the axial induced magnetic field, and distribu-
tion of the current density have been computed numerically, and the results were studied for various values of the physical
parameters, such as the the Hartmann number Ha, the magnetic Reynolds number Rm, the taper angle f, the maximum
height of stenosis d, the degree of anisotropy of the vessel wall n, and the contributions of the elastic constraints to the to-
tal tethering K.
PACS Nos: 47.63.cb, 47.65.cb
For personal use only.

Résumé : Nous présentons un modèle mathématique de l’écoulement sanguin dans une artère élastique avec chevauche-
ment de sténoses sous l’influence d’un champ magnétique. Ce modèle théorique peut être vu comme une représentation
mathématique du mouvement d’un liquide physiologique conducteur à travers des tubes coaxiaux où le tube intérieur est
uniformément rigide et représente le cathéter, alors que le tube extérieur est un cylindre élastique anisotropiquement co-
nique rempli d’un liquide visqueux incompressible et conducteur qui représente le sang. L’analyse est faite ici pour une ar-
tère avec un léger étranglement local formant une sténose dans son lumen. Nous obtenons des expressions analytiques
pour la fonction de courant, la force magnétique, la vitesse axiale, le champ magnétique axial induit et la distribution de
densité de courant. Les résultats pour l’impédance résistive, la distribution de la contrainte de cisaillement à la paroi, la vi-
tesse axiale, le champ magnétique axial induit et la distribution de densité de courant, ont été évalués numériquement. Les
résultats ont été étudiés pour différentes valeurs des paramètres physiologiques, comme le nombre de Hartmann Ha, le
nombre magnétique de Reynolds Rm, la conicité f, la hauteur maximale des sténoses d, le degré d’anisotropie de la paroi
du tube n et la contribution des contraintes élastiques à la liaison totale K.
[Traduit par la Rédaction]

1. Introduction
Stenoses in the arteries of mammals are a common occur-
rence, and for many years researchers have endeavored to
model the flow of blood through stenosed arteries experi-
mentally and theoretically. The deposition of cholesterol
and proliferation of the connective tissues in the arterial
wall form plaques that grow inward and restrict blood flow.
Catheterization refers to a procedure in which a long, thin,
Received 16 August 2010. Accepted 2 November 2010.
Published on the NRC Research Press Web site at cjp.nrc.ca on
22 January 2011.
Kh.S. Mekheimer.1 Department of Mathematics, Faculty of
Science, Al-Azhar University, Nasr city 11884, Cairo, Egypt.
M.H. Haroun. Department of Mathematics, Faculty of
Education, Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt.
M.A. El Kot. Department of Mathematics, Faculty of Science,
Suez Canal University, Suez, Egypt.
1Corresponding author (e-mail: kh_mekheimer@yahoo.com).
flexible plastic tube (catheter) is inserted into the artery. An-
giography, which is used for diagnosis, is the most common
type of heart catheter procedure. The insertion of a catheter
in an artery will form an annular region between the walls
of the catheter and artery. This will alter the flow field,
modifying the pressure distribution, and increase the resist-
ance. Therefore, it is important to study the effect due to
the presence of a catheter in the physiological artery flows.
To have a fuller understanding of the development of
these diseases, an accurate knowledge of the mechanical
properties of the vascular wall together with the flow char-
acteristics of blood are indispensable. Thus relevant infor-
mation is deemed to be of great help in the treatment of
vascular diseases and also to bioengineers who are engaged
in the design and construction of improved artificial organs.
Perhaps the actual cause of abnormal growth in an artery is
not completely clear to the theoretical investigators but its
effect over the cardiovascular system has been determined
by studying the flow characteristics of blood in the stenosed
area. Although the applicability of a purely mechanical

Can. J. Phys. 89: 201–212 (2011) doi:10.1139/P10-103 Published by NRC Research Press
 202 Can. J. Phys. Vol. 89, 2011

model for such a physiological problem has obvious limita- Fig. 1. Schematic diagram of a catheterized overlapping stenosed
tions, vascular rheology together with hemodynamic factors artery.
are predominant in the development and progression of arte-
rial stenosis [1].
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Many recent studies have considered the effect of a mag-

netic field in stenotic arteries for a Newtonian and non-New-
tonian fluids, but in all of these studies the effect of the
induced magnetic field have been neglected. The first inves-
tigation of the effect of the induced magnetic field on peri-
staltic flow was studied by Vishnyakov and Pavlov [2],
where they consider the peristaltic MHD flow of a conduc-
tive Newtonian fluid. They used the asymptotic narrow-band
method to solve the problem and only obtained the velocity
profiles in certain channel cross-sections for definite param-
eter values. The effect of a moving magnetic field on blood
flow was studied by Sud et al. [3], and they observed that
the effect of a suitable moving magnetic field accelerates
the speed of the blood flow. Srivastava and Agrawal [4]
considered the blood as an electrically conducting fluid,
consisting of a suspension of red cells in plasma. Also,
the problem on a tapered blood vessel segment having an
Agrawal and Anwaruddin [5] studied the effect of a mag-
overlapping stenosis. Ismail et al. [15] studied the power-
netic field on blood flow by using a simple mathematical
law model of blood flow using an overlapping stenosed ar-
model for blood flow through an equally branched channel
with flexible walls, executing peristaltic waves using a tery where an improved shape of the time-variant stenosis in
long-wavelength approximation method; they observed that the tapered arterial lumen is given and the vascular wall de-
for flow blood in arteries with arterial disease, such as arte- formability is taken to be elastic (moving wall).
With the above discussion in mind, the goal of this inves-
For personal use only.

rial stenosis or arteriosclerosis, the magnetic field may be

utilized as a blood pump when carrying out cardiac opera-
tions. Eldabe et al. [6] studied the effect of the induced
magnetic field on the peristaltic transport of a non-Newto-
nian fluid (biviscosity fluid), where the authors analyzed the
peristaltic flow of an incompressible electrically conducting
biviscosity fluid through an axisymmetric non-uniform tube,
under the considerations of long wavelength and low Rey-
nolds number. Recently, Mekheimer [7, 8] studied the effect
of an induced magnetic field on the peristaltic flow of a
couple stress and micropolar fluids.
The important contributions of recent years to the topic
are referenced in the literature [9–12]. Some studies consid-
ered an overlapping stenosis in the blood vessel segment
subject to pulsatile pressure gradient. Chakravarty and Man-
dal [13] noted that the problem becomes more acute in the
presence of an overlapping stenosis in the artery instead.
The effect of vessel tapering is another important factor that
was considered. Chakravarty and Mandal [14] formulated
tigation is to study the effect of an induced magnetic field on
the flow of a Newtonian fluid (as a blood model) through an
anisotropically tapered elastic artery with overlapping steno-
sis in an annulus. The problem is first modeled and the non-
dimensional governing equations are formulated. The
nondimensional governing equations in the case of mild
stenosis and the corresponding boundary conditions are pre-
scribed and then solved analytically for the axial velocity
and the axial induced magnetic field. The results for the re-
sistance impedance, wall shear stress distribution, axial ve-
locity, axial induced magnetic field, and distribution of the
current density are discussed for various values of the prob-
lem parameters. Also, the contour plots for the stream func-
tion and the magnetic force function are discussed. Finally,
the main finding of the results are summarized in the con-
cluding remarks. This study may be important in understand-
ing magnetic resonance angiography (MRA), which is one of
the methods of radiological investigation into atherosclerosis.

2. Formulation of the problem

We consider a viscous incompressible electrically conducting Newtonian fluid of viscosity m and density r flowing through
coaxial tubes, such that the inner tube is uniform and rigid, representing a catheter of radius a1, while the outer tube has a
finite length L with overlapping stenosis. The outer tube is treated as an anisotropic linear viscoelastic material. Let (r, q, z)
be the coordinates of a material point in the cylindrical polar coordinate system, where the z-axis is taken along the axis of
the artery, while r and q lie along the radial and circumferential directions, respectively. The system is stressed by an external
radial uniform magnetic field of strength HoR/r, which gives rise to an induced magnetic field H(hr, 0, hz), and the total mag-
netic field will be H+(HoR/r + hr, 0, hz). The geometry of the elastic (moving wall) arterial wall of the time-varying overlap-
ping stenosis for different taper angles (see Fig. 1) is expressed as,
  
d cos f 94 32 32 3lo
Rðz; tÞ ¼ ðmz þ Ro Þ  ðz  dÞ 11  ðz  dÞ þ 2 ðz  dÞ2  3 ðz  dÞ3 UðtÞ; dzdþ
lo 3lo lo 3lo 2
¼ ðmz þ Ro ÞUðtÞ; otherwise ð1Þ

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 Mekheimer et al. 203

where R(z, t) denotes the radius of the tapered arterial segment in the constricted region, Ro is the constant radius of the nor-
mal artery in the non-stenotic region, f is the angle of tapering, 3lo/2 is the length of overlapping stenosis, d is the location of
the stenosis, dcosf is taken to be the critical height of the overlapping stenosis, and m = tan f represents the slope of the
tapered vessel. We can explore the possibility of different shapes of the artery, viz., the converging tapering (f < 0), nonta-
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pered artery (f = 0), and divergent tapering (f > 0). The time-varying parameter U(t) is taken to be,
UðtÞ ¼ 1  bðcos ut  1Þexp ðbutÞ ð2Þ
where b is a constant, u represents the angular frequency of the forced oscillation, and t is the time.
The governing equations are:
1. Maxwell’s equations
r  Hþ ¼ 0; rE¼0 ð3Þ

r  Hþ ¼ J with J ¼ s½E þ me ðV  Hþ Þ ð4Þ

@Hþ
r  E ¼ me ð5Þ
@t

2. the continuity equation

rV¼0 ð6Þ

3. the Navier–Stokes equation

 
@V
For personal use only.

r þ V  rV ¼ rp þ mr2 V þ me ðJ  Hþ Þ ð7Þ

@t

where E is the induced electric field vector, V is the velocity vector, J is electric current density vector, me is the magnetic
permeability, and s is electrical conductivity of the fluid.
Combining (3)–(5) we obtain the induction equation,
@Hþ 1
¼ r  ðV  Hþ Þ þ r2 Hþ ð8Þ
@t z
where z = 1/sme is the magnetic diffusivity.
Now we assume the velocity vector V = (Vr, 0, Vz), where Vr and Vz are the velocity components in the r and z directions,
respectively.
The governing equations of motion of the arterial wall when it is subjected to inertial forces, surface forces, and the forces
of constraint representing the reactions of the surrounding connective tissues, are given by [1, 16–18],
     
@2x @x @Vz @Vr @h Tto  Tqo Et h s q @h @ 2 x
Mo 2 þ Cl þ Kl x ¼ m þ jr¼Ro þ þ þ 2 ð9Þ
@t @t @r @z @z Ro 1  s q s t Ro @z @z
   
@2h @h @Vr h @2h Eq h h @x
Mo þ Cr þ Kr h ¼ p  2m jr¼Ro þ 2 Tqo þ Tto 2  þ st ð10Þ
@t2 @t @r a @z Ro ð1  s q s t Þ Ro @z
in which Mo = roh + Ma, where ro and h are the mass density and thickness of the arterial wall, respectively. (x, h) represent
the displacement components of the vessel wall along the axial and radial directions, respectively, while (Tto, Tqo) are the in-
itial respective viscoelastic stress components acting along the longitudinal and the circumferential directions. Kl, Cl, and Ma
represent (per unit area) the spring coefficient, the frictional coefficient of the dashpot, and the additional mass of the me-
chanical model, respectively, in the longitudinal tethering, and Kr and Cr are those in the radial direction. Eq and Et are the
Young moduli in the circumferential and longitudinal directions, respectively; sq and st are the corresponding Poisson ratios.
The boundary conditions are given below.
1. On the arterial wall, the velocity and induced magnetic field boundary conditions are taken as,
@h @x
Vr ðr; z; tÞ ¼ ; Vz ðr; z; tÞ ¼ ; hr ¼ hz ¼ 0 on r ¼ Rðz; tÞ ð11Þ
@t @t

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 204 Can. J. Phys. Vol. 89, 2011

2. On the catheter wall, the normal component of the velocity, the axial velocity, the radial and axial induced magnetic field
vanish. These may be stated mathematically as,
Vr ðr; z; tÞ ¼ 0; Vz ðr; z; tÞ ¼ 0; hr ¼ hz ¼ 0 on r ¼ a1 ð12Þ
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We introduce the following nondimensional variables,

c 0 dc 0
r ¼ Ro r 0 ; z ¼ lo z0 ; u¼ u; x ¼ lo x 0 ; h ¼ lo h 0 ; Vr ¼ V; Vz ¼ cVr0
lo lo r
lo 0 clo m 0
R ¼ Ro R 0 ; t¼ t; hr ¼ Ho hr0 ; hz ¼ Ho hz0 ; p¼ p; Mo ¼ rRo Mo0
c R2o
rc2 0 rc2 0
Cl ¼ rcCl0 ; Cr ¼ rcCr0 ; Kl ¼ K; Kr ¼ K; Tto ¼ rc2 Ro Tto0
Ro l Ro r
0
Tqo ¼ rc2 Ro Tqo ; h ¼ Ro h 0 ; Et ¼ rc2 Et0 ; Eq ¼ rc2 Eq0 ð13Þ
where c is the velocity averaged over the section of the outer tube with radius Ro.
Using (13), after dropping the primes, (3) and (6)–(10) can be written as,
@hr hr @hz
þ þb ¼0 ð14Þ
@r r @z
 
@Vr Vr @Vz
d þ þ ¼0 ð15Þ
@r r @z
   2 2
  
For personal use only.

@Vr @Vr @Vr @p @ Vr 1 @Vr 2 @ Vr Vr @ðhr þ R=rÞ @hz

Re d b3 þ d Vr þ Vz ¼ þ d b3 þ þ b  þ S2
Reb b  hz ð16Þ
@t @r @z @r @r 2 r @r @z2 r2 @z @r
   2 2
   
@Vz @Vz @Vz @p @ Vz 1 @Vz 2  @ Vz @hz @ðhr þ R=rÞ R
Reb þ d Vr þ Vz ¼ þ þ þ b d þ S2
Re  b hr þ ð17Þ
@t @r @z @z @r2 r @r @z2 @r @z r
       
@ðhr þ R=rÞ R @Vr @Vr @ @ R b @ @ðhr þ R=rÞ @hz
b ¼ d b hr þ þ bhz  b d Vr þ Vz hr þ þ b  ð18Þ
@t r @r @z @r @z r Rm @z @z @r
      
@hz R @Vz @Vz @hz @hz 1 @ 2 hz 1 @hz 2
2 @ hz
b ¼ hr þ þ bhz  b d Vr þ Vz þ þ þ b ð19Þ
@t r @r @z @r @z Rm @r2 r @r @z2
   
@2x @x b @Vz  2 @Vr @h Et h @h @2x
b2 Mo þ bC l þ K l x ¼  þ d b j r¼1 þ b ðT to  T qo Þ þ b s q þ b ð20Þ
@t2 @t Re @r @z @z 1  sq st @z @z2
   
@2h @h 1  2 @Vr @2h Eq h @x
b2 Mo þ bC r þ K r h ¼ p  2d b j r¼1 þ Tqo h þ b2
Tto  h þ bs t ð21Þ
@t2 @t Re @r @z2 1  s q s t @z

The appropriate equations describing the flow of a Newtonian fluid in the case of a mild stenosis d ¼ ðd=Ro Þ  1 , subject
to the additional condition ½b ¼ ðRo =lo Þ ’ Oð1Þ [19] can be written as,
@hr hr
þ ¼0 ð22Þ
@r r

@p
¼0 ð23Þ
@r
 
@p @ 2 Vz 1 @Vz 2 @hz R
¼ þ þ S Re hr þ ð24Þ
@z @r2 r @r @r r  
@ 2 hz 1 @hz R @Vz
þ ¼ Rm hr þ ð25Þ
@r 2 r @r r @r

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 Mekheimer et al. 205

Kl x ¼ 0 ð26Þ
 
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Eq h
p ¼ Re Kr þ  Tqo h ð27Þ
1  ns 2q
where Re = rcRo/m is Reynolds number, S2 = H20me/rc2 is the Strommer number (magnetic force number), n = st/sq is the de-
gree of anisotropy of the vessel wall, and Rm = smeRoc is the magnetic Reynolds number.
The corresponding boundary conditions (dropping primes) are,
 
d @h @x
Vr ðr; z; tÞ ¼ ; Vz ðr; z; tÞ ¼ ; hr ¼ hz ¼ 0 on r ¼ Rðz; tÞ ð28Þ
lo @t @t

Vr ðr; z; tÞ ¼ 0; Vz ðr; z; tÞ ¼ 0; hr ¼ hz ¼ 0 on r¼e ð29Þ

where
  
94 32 3
Rðz; tÞ ¼ ðm z þ 1Þ  d cos fðz  d Þ 11  ðz  d  Þ þ 32ðz  d  Þ2  ðz  d  Þ3 UðtÞ; d  z  d þ
3 3 2
¼ ðm z þ 1ÞUðtÞ; otherwise ð30Þ

d a1
m ¼ lo m; d ¼ ; e¼ ð31Þ
lo Ro
and e is the radius ratio (the ratio between the radius of the inner tube and the radius of the outer one).
For personal use only.

3. Solution of the problem

The solution to (22) with the boundary conditions (28) and (29) shows that hr = 0, (i.e., the continuity of the normal com-
ponent of the magnetic field across the boundary results in an induced magnetic field in the radial direction of zero). From
(26) and (28), we can see that x = 0, where Kl = 0, and for (d/lo << 1) we can assume that h = exp(–kz), where k represents the
wave number of the harmonic oscillation. After some straightforward calculations, the solutions of the axial velocity and axial
induced magnetic field, together with the corresponding boundary conditions, will be in the forms,
 
@p=@z 2ag1
hz ðr; z; tÞ ¼ 2 ar 2 þ 2 þ g2 rg þ g3 rg ð32Þ
g 4 g

@p=@z
Vz ðr; z; tÞ ¼ ½a0 ðg 2  4Þr2 þ a1 g1 logðrÞ þ a2 ðg2 r g  g3 rg Þ þ g4  ð33Þ
g2  4
 
Eq h
p ¼ Re Kr þ  Tqo exp ðkzÞ ð34Þ
1  ns 2q
From (32), the current density distribution will be in the form,
ð@p=@zÞ
Jq ðr; z; tÞ ¼ ½2ar þ gðg2 rg1  g3 rg1 Þ ð35Þ
Rmðg 2  4Þ
The corresponding stream function (Vz ¼ ð1=rÞð@j=@rÞ and j = 0 at r ¼ e) is,

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 206 Can. J. Phys. Vol. 89, 2011

( " 2#
@p=@z 2 4 4 2 2 rr
jðr; z; tÞ ¼ 2
a0 ðg  4Þðr  e Þ þ ð2g4  a1 g1 Þðr  e Þ þ 2a1 g1 log e2
4ðg  4Þ e
 
g2 ðrgþ2  egþ2 Þ g3 ðrgþ2  egþ2 Þ
þ 4a2  ð36Þ
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2þg 2g
The corresponding magnetic force function (hz ¼ ð1=rÞð@f=@rÞ and F = 0 at r ¼ e) is,
  
@p=@z 4 4 4ag1 2 2 g2 ðrgþ2  egþ2 Þ g3 ðrgþ2  egþ2 Þ
Fðr; z; tÞ ¼ aðr  e Þ þ 2 ðr  e Þ þ þ ð37Þ
4ðg 2  4Þ g 2þg 2g
The expression for the wall shear stress is given by,
@Vz
t rz ¼  jr¼R ð38Þ
@r
Using (33), we can find the expression for the wall shear stress in the form,
ð@p=@zÞ h a1 g1 i
t rz ¼ 2 2a0 ðg 2  4ÞR þ þ ga2 ðg2 Rg1 þ g3 Rg1 Þ ð39Þ
g 4 R
where
     
Rm R 2 2 2 1 2a Re RS2 2a Re RS2 Re RS2
a¼ ; g ¼ S Re Rm R ; a0 ¼ 1 2 ; a1 ¼ 1 ; a2 ¼ 
2 4 g 4 g2 g2
and the coefficients gi(z) (i = 1,2,3,4) are given by,
g 2 ½ðg 2  4ÞðR2  e2 ÞðRg þ eg Þao  aðR2 þ e2 ÞðRg  eg Þa2 
For personal use only.

g1 ¼

g 2 ðRg þ eg Þ log Re a1  4aðRg  eg Þa2


g2 ¼ a ðR2  e2 ÞðRg  eg Þ½2ðg 2  4Þao þ 2aa2   g 2 ðRgþ2  egþ2 Þ log Re a1

 
ðRg  eg Þ g 2 ðRg þ eg Þ log Re a1  4aðRg  eg Þa2


g3 ¼ ðReÞg a ðR2  e2 ÞðRg  eg Þ½2ðg 2  4Þao  2aa2  þ g 2 ðR2 eg  Rg e2 Þlog Re a1

 
ðRg  eg Þ g 2 ðRg þ eg Þlog Re a1  4aðRg  eg Þa2

1
g4 ¼
  
ðRg  eg Þ g 2 ðRg þ eg Þlog Re a1  4aðRg  eg Þa2
   e2  
2 g g 2 g g R 2 2 g g
 ðg  4ÞðR  e Þa0 g ðR þ e Þlog R2 a1  2aðR þ e ÞðR  e Þa2
e
  2 2 2 2

þ aa2 g 2 log ½Re eR ðR2g þ e2g Þ  2ðReÞg log ½RR ee  a1 þ 2aðR2  e2 ÞðR2g  e2g Þa2 ð40Þ

We can find the flux between the coaxial tubes Q using,

ZR  
@p 1
Q ¼ 2p rVz dr ¼  ð41Þ
@z FðzÞ
e
and
2ðg 2  4Þ
FðzÞ ¼ ð42Þ
p½c1 g1 þ c2 g2 þ c3 g3 þ c4 g4 þ c5 
where the constants ci(z) (i = 1, 2, 3, 4) are given by,
2
!
RR 2 2 4a2 ðRgþ2  egþ2 Þ
c1 ¼ 2a1 log 2  a1 ðR  e Þ; c 2 ¼
ee 2þg
4a2 ðRgþ2  egþ2 Þ
c3 ¼ ; c4 ¼ 2ðR2  e2 Þ; c5 ¼ ao ðg 2  4ÞðR4  e4 Þ ð43Þ
2g

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 Mekheimer et al. 207

Since Q is constant for all sections between the two coaxial tubes, the pressure drop across the length of the overlapping
stenosis is,
ZL   ZL
@p
Dp ¼  dz ¼ Q FðzÞ dz ð44Þ
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@z
0 0

The resistance to flow (resistance impedance) experienced by the flowing blood in the arterial segment under consideration,
using (44), may be defined as
2  3
d þ32
Zd Z ZL
Dp 6 7
l¼ ¼ 4 IðzÞdzþ FðzÞdzþ IðzÞdz5 ð45Þ
Q
0 d d  þ32

where IðzÞ ¼ FðzÞjR¼ðm zþ1ÞUðtÞ .

4. Discussion of the results
To observe the quantitative effects of the Hartmann num-
ber Ha, the magnetic Reynolds number Rm, the taper angle
f, the maximum height of stenosis d, the radius ratio e, the
degree of anisotropy of the vessel wall n, and the contribu-
tions of the elastic constraints to the total tethering K, for
the purpose of the computations, we use the following ex-
perimental data [1, 17, 20],
For personal use only.
tal tethering K, and the degree of anisotropy of the vessel
wall n. The easiest way of understanding this is the presence
of fibres (collagen, elastine, and smooth muscle cells
(SMCs)) in the wall, where the behavior in the direction of
the fibres will be different than in the direction transverse to
the fibres. On the other hand, if the fibre direction coincides
with the axial, circumferential, and radial directions of the
artery, the arterial wall material is called isotropic [20]. We
take the data that represents a free isotropic tube,

M Tq ¼ 0;
Re ¼ 1; b ¼ 0:1; l0 ¼ 1; S¼ ;
R2e
d ¼ 0:75; k ¼ 0:0021 u ¼ 7:854; Tq ¼ 0:1;
s q ¼ 0:51; Eq ¼ 4  106 ; h ¼ 0:01; kr ¼ ReK
The influence of the parameter that represents viscoelastic
stress components acting along the circumferential direction
Tq on propagation properties was previously analyzed by
Atabek and Lew [21]. The effect of the Poisson ratio in the
circumferential direction sq and the effect of the contribu-
tions of the elastic constraints to the total tethering K was
investigated by Womersley [22].
Figure 2 indicates how the axial induced magnetic field hz
and the axial velocity Vz are influenced by Ha and Rm. Fig-
ure 2a indicates that the magnitude of the axial induced
magnetic field hz decreases as Ha increases, while it in-
creases as Rm increases. Further in the half region, hz is in
one direction and in the other half it is in the opposite direc-
tion, and it is zero at r = 0.5, 0.79, 1.073. Also, the axial in-
duced magnetic field profiles are almost parabolic in the
regions 0.5 < r < 0.79 and 0.79 < r < 1.073. Figure 2b shows
that the axial velocity Vz decreases as Ha and Rm increase.
Figure 3 describes the distribution of the current density
Jq with r for different values of Ha and Rm. The graphical
results of these figures indicate that the dimensionless cur-
rent density Jq increases as Ha and Rm increase in the re-
gions 0.5 < r < 0.606 and 0.943 < r < 1.073, while it decreases
for the same values of Ha and Rm in the region
0.606 < r < 0.943.
Propagation properties of blood flow depend on the influ-
ence of the elastic wall parameters, which represent viscoe-
lastic stress component acting along the circumferential
direction Tq, the Poisson ratio in the circumferential direc-
tion sq, the contributions of the elastic constraints to the to-
s q ¼ 0:5; n ¼ 1; K¼0
where in the case of an isotropic tube sq = 1/2 and n = 1, and
the tube is initially unstressed [23].
The effects of elastic wall parameters n and K on the the
axial induced magnetic field hz and the distribution of the
current density Jq are displayed in Fig. 4. We can see that
the axial induced magnetic field hz increases with an in-
crease the anisotropy parameter n and the contribution due
to elastic constraints of the total tethering K. Further in the
half region, the induced magnetic field is in one direction,
and in the other half it is in the opposite direction. The dis-
tribution of the current density Jq decreases as n and K in-
crease in the regions 0.5 < r < 0.602 and 0.950 < r < 1.074,
while it increases for the same values of Ha and Rm in the
region 0.602 < r < 0.950.
Figure 5 shows the variation of the the axial induced
magnetic field hz and the distribution of the current density
Jq for several values of e and d. It is observed that hz de-
creases with increasing d and e in the half region and the in-
verse result is observed in the other half. Also, the
distribution of the current density Jq increases as d and e in-
crease in the regions 0.5 < r < 0.602, 0.55 < r < 0.645, and
0.6 < r < 0.689, while it decreases for the same values of d
and e in the regions 0.602 < r < 0.950, 0.645 < r < 0.960, and
0.689 < r < 0.971, and the inverse result is observed in the re-
gions 0.950 < r < 1.074, 0.960 < r < 1.049, 0.971 < r < 1.023).
The effects on the blood flow characteristics of vessel ta-
pering together with the shape of stenosis seem to be
equally important and hence deserve special attention. The
tapering is a significant aspect of a mammalian arterial sys-
tem. Thus, in this paper, we are interested in the flow
through a tapered artery with stenosis. In an actual situation,
the arterial wall thickness does not have uniform shape, so
we will show the influence of the diverging, converging,

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 208 Can. J. Phys. Vol. 89, 2011

Fig. 2. Variation of axial induced magnetic field (a) hz and (b) axial velocity Vz with r for different values of Ha and Rm at t = 0.5, z = 1.5,
d = 0.05, e = 0.5, f = 0, n = 1, K = 104.
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Fig. 3. Variation of the current denisty distribution Jq with r for different values of (a)Ha and (b)Rm at t = 0.5, z = 1.5, d = 0.05, e = 0.5, f = 0,
n = 1, K = 104.
For personal use only.

Fig. 4. Variation of (a) axial induced magnetic field hz and (b) current denisty distribusion Jq with r for different values of n and K at t = 0.5,
z = 1.5, d = 0.05, e = 0.5, f = 0, n = 1, Ha = 5, Rm = 1.

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 Mekheimer et al.
Fig. 5. Variation of (a) axial induced magnetic field hz and (b) current denisty distribusion Jq with r for different values of d and e at t = 0.5,
z = 1.5, n = 1, K = 104, f = 0, Ha = 5, Rm = 1.
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Fig. 6. Variation of the wall shear stress distribusion trz with (a) z and (b) t for different values of f at d = 0.05, e = 0.5, K = 104, n = 1,
Ha = 2, Rm = 1.
For personal use only.
and nontapering arterial walls on the resistance to flow (re-
sistance impedance) and the wall shear stress. The analysis
of blood flow through tapered tubes is very important in
understanding the behaviour of the flow, as the taper of the
tube is an important factor in pressure development. It has
been pointed out that the blood vessels bifurcate at frequent
intervals, and although the individual segments of arteries
may be treated as uniform between bifurcations, the diame-
ter of the artery decreases quite fast at each bifurcation [24].
It has been observed that even for small angles of taper (up
to 28), the effects of tapering of the blood vessels cannot be
neglected [25]. As pointed out by How and Black [26], this
is also very useful for the design of prosthetic blood vessels,
as the use of grafts of tapered lumen has the advantage of
surgical benefits, the blood vessels being wider upstream.
The wall shear stress is important in understanding the de-
velopment of arterial disease because of the strong correla-
tion between the localization of arteriosclerosis (stenosis)
and arterial wall. Figure 6a shows the wall shear stress dis-
tribution over the tapering arterial segment with overlapping
stenosis at a particular instant of time t = 0.5. Seven different
209
curves, shown in Fig. 6a, have been measured showing the
effects of vessel tapering of the wall shear stress profiles.
Under stenotic conditions, the curves through the converging
tapered artery (f = –0.1, –0.15, –0.2 (<0)) is less than those
in the nontapered artery (f = 0) and the divergent tapered ar-
tery (f = 0.1, 0.15, 0.21 (>0)). Hence, we can conclude that
the wall shear stress is reduced to some extent with vessel
tapering, then it increases at z = 2.25. Figure 6b shows plots
for the wall shear stress versus time for nearly four cardiac
cycles. We can observe that divergent tapering gives higher
values compared with both the convergent tapering and non-
tapered artery. Figure 6a shows the profiles for the wall
shear stress in a stenosed artery with seven different taper
angles. The wall shear stress for divergent tapering (f = 0.1,
0.15, 0.2 (>0)) gives higher values than both the convergent
tapering (f = –0.1, –0.15, –0.2 (<0)) and the nontapered ar-
tery (f = 0).
Figure 7a illustrates the variation of the resistance to flow
(resistance impedance) with the maximum height of stenosis
d for different values of tapering angle f. It shows that the
values of resistance are higher for convergent tapering artery
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 210
Fig. 7. Variation of the resistance impedance (resistance to flow) l with (a) z and (b)t for different values of f at e = 0.5, K = 104, n = 1,
Ha = 2, Rm = 1, L = 3.
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Fig. 8. Plot showing streamlines fot different values of (a) taper angle f and (b) maximum height of stenosis d.
For personal use only.
(f = –0.01, –0.015, –0.02 (<0)) than for both the divergent
tapering artery (f = 0.01, 0.015, 0.02 (>0)) and nontapered
artery (f = 0). Figure 7b is a plot of the resistance to flow
versus time for nearly four cardiac cycles to show that the
resistance to flow shows the opposite trend of the wall shear
stress. The values of resistance are higher for a convergent
tapering artery (f = –0.01, –0.015, –0.02 (<0)) than for
both the divergent tapering artery (f = 0.01, 0.015, 0.02
(>0)) and nontapered artery (f = 0). Hence we can conclude
that more blood can flow freely through a diverging vessel,
which has less resistance.
Trapping represents an interesting phenomenon for fluid
flow. In the wave frame, streamlines under certain condi-
tions split to trap a bolus, which moves as a whole with the
speed of the wave. The formation of an internally circulating
bolus of fluid by closed streamline is called trapping. A bo-
Can. J. Phys. Vol. 89, 2011
lus is defined as a volume of fluid bounded by a closed
streamlines in the wave frame that is transported with the
wave. To see the effects of the taper angle f and the maxi-
mum height of stenosis d on trapping, we prepared Fig. 8 for
various values of the parameters: f = 0, 0.1, –0.1 with
t = 0.5, d = 0.05, n = 1, K = 0, Ha = 5, Rm = 1, and d = 0.05,
0.07, 0.09 with t = 0.5, f = 0, n = 1, K = 0, Ha = 5, Rm = 1.
Figure 8 reveals that the size of the trapping bolus increases
toward the left at f = 0.1 (divergent tapering artery), and it
increases toward the right at f = –0.1 (convergent tapering
artery). Furthermore, the trapping boluses disappear at f = 0
(nontapered artery). The effect of the the maximum height
of stenosis d on the trapping is also illustrated in Fig. 8. It
is observed that there is no separation of flow, and the flow
is laminar at d = 0.05, but that separation occurs and the
streamlines seem turbulent at d = 0.07 and d = 0.09. The ef-
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 Mekheimer et al. 211

Fig. 9. Plot showing magnetic force lines for different values of (a) Ha and (b) Rm.
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Fig. 10. Plot showing (a) magnetic force lines and (b) streamlines for free and tethered tubes.
For personal use only.

fect of Ha and Rm on magnetic force function is illustrated 6. Concluding remarks

in Fig. 9. It is observed that as Ha and Rm increase, the
magnetic force lines have a tendency to move away from
the inner tube. Also, the size of the boluses increase with in-
creasing Ha and Rm and slowly disappears for small values
of Ha and Rm, where the fluid moves as a bulk. Finally, the
effect of the degree of anisotropy of the vessel wall n and
the contributions of the elastic constraints to the total tether-
ing K for free and tethered tubes on the magnetic force func-
tion and the streamlines are illustrated in Figs. 10a and 10b,
such that the size of the boluses in the free tube (n = 1,
K = 0) are smaller than in the tethered tube (n = 0.63,
K = 1.6  104).
The effect of the induced magnetic field on blood flow
through an anisotropically tapered elastic artery with over-
lapping stenosis in an annulus is studied. The exact expres-
sions for streamlines, magnetic force function, axial
velocity, axial induced magnetic field, and current density
are obtained analytically. Graphical results are presented for
the wall shear stress distributions, resistance impedance, ax-
ial induced magnetic field, current density, and trapping.
The medical term ‘‘stenosis’’ means a narrowing of any
body passage (tube or orifice). Stenosis or arteriosclerosis
represents the abnormal and unnatural growth in the arterial

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 212
wall thickness that develops at various locations of the car-
diovascular system under diseased conditions. It is believed
that stenoses are caused by the impingement of extra vascu-
lar masses or intravascular atherosclerotic plaques, which
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develop at the wall of the artery and protrude into the lu-
men. Much research about arteriosclerotic development are
mainly concerned with the single symmetric and nonsym-
metric stenoses. Stenoses may develop in series (multiple
stenoses) or may be of irregular shapes or overlapping or of
composite in nature (Nichols and Orourke [27], Lighthill
[28], Kapur [29], Berger and Jou [30]].
The main findings can be summarized as follows.
Across the annulus, the axial induced magnetic field hz
and the distribution of the current density Jq increase as
Ha increases, and by increasing Rm, the axial induced
magnetic field hz decreases while the current density Jq
increases. These results agree closely with those of Me-
kheimer [7, 8].
The axial induced magnetic field hz and the distribution
of the current density Jq decrease with increasing the de-
gree of anisotropy of the vessel wall n and the contribu-
tion elastic constraints of the total tethering K.
The effect of vessel tapering is an important factor con-
sidered in this paper. The results considered three differ-
ent taper angles of artery, convergent tapering (f < 0),
nontapered (f = 0), and divergent tapering (f > 0) in the
For personal use only.
presence of overlapping stenosis. The variation of resis-
tance to flow with time gives the opposite trend of the
wall shear stress with respect to the taper angle f, and
these results agree closely with those of Chakravarty et
al. [31], Mandal et al. [32], and Ismail et al. [15].
The size of trapped boluses increase toward the left at
f = 0.1 (divergent tapering artery) and increase toward
the right at f = –0.1 (convergent tapering artery). Further,
the trapped boluses disappear at f = 0 (nontapered artery).
In the overlapping stenotic region, when increasing the
maximum height of the stenosis d, the streamlines sepa-
rate and trapped boluses appear.
The magnetic force lines have a tendency to move away
from the inner tube when increasing Ha and Rm. Also,
the size of the boluses increases with increasing Ha and
Rm and slowly disappear for the small values of Ha and
Rm, where the fluid moves as a bulk. These results agree
closely with those of Mekheimer [7, 8].
It is observed that the size of trapped boluses for the
magnetic force lines in the free isotropic tube is smaller
than those in the tethered tube.
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