Computational Methods for Coupled Fluid-Structure-Electromagnetic Interaction Models with Applications to Biomechanics

Multiphysics problems arise naturally in several engineering and medical applications which often require the solution to coupled processes, which is still a challenging problem in computational sciences and engineering. Some examples include blood flow through an arterial wall and magnetic targeted drug delivery systems. For these, geometric changes may lead to a transient phase in which the structure, flow field, and electromagnetic field interact in a highly nonlinear fashion. In this paper, we consider the computational modeling and simulation of a biomedical application, which concerns the fluid-structure-electromagnetic interaction in the magnetic targeted drug delivery process. Our study indicates that the strong magnetic fields, which aid in targeted drug delivery, can impact not only fluid (blood) circulation but also the displacement of arterial walls. A major contribution of this paper is modeling the interactions between these three components, which previously received little to no attention in the scientific and engineering community.