151-0255-00L  Energy Conversion and Transport in Biosystems

SemesterAutumn Semester 2014
LecturersD. Poulikakos, A. Ferrari
Periodicityyearly recurring course
CourseDoes not take place this semester.
Language of instructionEnglish


AbstractTheory and application of thermodynamics, energy conversion and fluid dynamics in biological systems and biomedicine at the macro scale and the cellular level.
ObjectiveTheory and application of energy conversion at the macro scale and the cellular level. Understanding of the basic features governing fluid transport in the principal fluidic systems of the human body. Connection of characteristics and patterns from other fields of engineering to biofluidics. Heat and mass transport processes within the human body and relation to biomedical technologies.
ContentHeat and mass transfer models for the transport of thermal energy and chemical species in the human body. Physiology, pathology and biomedical intervention based on extreme temperatures (medical radio frequency therapy, tissue freezing and cryotherapy). Introduction to the main fluidic systems of the human body (cardiovascular, cerebrospinal etc.). Description of the functionality of these systems and of analytical experimental and computational techniques for understanding of their operation. Introduction to bioengineering approaches for the treatment of common pathogenic conditions of these systems. Introduction to cell metabolism, cellular energy transport and cellular thermodynamics.
Lecture notesScript as well as additional material in the form of hand-outs will be distributed.
LiteratureLecture notes and references therein.