Two-phase fluid flow in a porous tube: a model for blood flow in capillaries

A theoretical study of blood flow, under the influence of a body force, in a capillary is presented. Blood is modeled as a two-phase fluid consisting of a core region of suspension of all erythrocytes, represented by a micropolar fluid and a plasma layer free from cells modeled as a Newtonian fluid. The capillary is modeled as a porous tube consisting of a thin transition Brinkman layer overlying a porous Darcy region. Analytical expressions for the pressure, microrotation, and velocities for the different regions are given. Plots of pressure, microrotation, and velocities for varying micropolar parameters, hydraulic resistivity, and Newtonian fluid layer thickness are presented. The overall system was found to be sensitive to variations in micropolar coupling number. It was also discovered that high values of hydraulic resistivity result in an overall slower velocity of the micropolar and Newtonian fluid.