Author(s)

Jorge O. Virues Delgadillo, Sebastien Delorme, Vincent Mora, Robert DiRaddo, Savvas G. Hatzikiriakos

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Pig aorta samples were tested uniaxially and equi- biaxially at deformation rates from 10 to 200 %/s. Under uniaxial and biaxial testing, loading forces were reduced up to 20% when the deformation rate was increased from 10 to 200 %/s, which is the opp- osite to the behaviour seen in other biological tissues. A rate-dependent isotropic hyperelastic constitutive equation, derived from the Mooney-Rivlin model, was fitted to the experimental results (e.g. aorta specimens) using an inverse finite element technique. In the proposed model, one of the material par- ameters is a linear function of the deformation rate. The inverse relationship between stiffness and defo- rmation rate raises doubts on the hypothesized rel- ationship between intramural stress, arterial injury, and restenosis.

Mechanical Properties; Artery; Uniaxial & Biaxial Testing; Deformation Rate; Viscoelasticity; Constitutive Model

Delgadillo, J. , Delorme, S. , Mora, V. , DiRaddo, R. and Hatzikiriakos, S. (2010) Effect of deformation rate on the mechanical properties of arteries. Journal of Biomedical Science and Engineering, 3, 124-137. doi: 10.4236/jbise.2010.32018.