A Comparative Study of Transducer Array Design for Ultrasound-Assisted Thrombolysis

https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.18138140

Abstract

Thrombosis continues to be a major cause of global mortality, primarily due to vascular obstruction by blood clots that impede normal circulation. The avaliable therapies used for the thrombolysis are catorgorized into invaisve and minimally invasive. However, invasive therapies may have several side effects like incomplete clot removal, risk of stroke and systemic side effects. Whereas, minimal invasive therapy i.e. ultrasound assisted thrombolysis offers a best alternative which enhances the distruption of a clot by cavitataion and acoustic pressure. The required acoustic pressure for thrombolysis is 1.2 Mega Pascal (MPa).  Therefore, the aim of this paper is to design a ultrasound transducer which provides the required acoustic pressure on low volatge. Hence, COMSOL Multiphysics 6.1 software was used to design two piezoelectric transducer array linear and rectangular were designed having array size 24x1 and 5x5, respectively. Both transducers were investigated by keeping the identical materials and operating conditions (1-5 V and 100 kHz). Hence, the results showed that linear array produced the 0.8 MPa and rectangular array produced 1.2 MPa at 5 V. Beside the acoustic pressure the focusing capability of rectangular array was more superior as compared to linear. Moreover, the rectangular array provided enhanced cavitation and mechanical stress which is preferable for the disruption of the clot. Therefore, findings suggest that the transducer geometry and voltage play a vital role in optimizing ultrasound mediated thrombolysis. Nevertheless, the rectangular array configuartaion can be efficient for cardiovascular therapeutic applications