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Paul E. Allaire

Wade Professor of Engineering and Biomedical Engineering

B.E./M.E., Mechanical Engineering, Yale University, 1963/64
Ph.D., Mechanical Engineering, Northwestern University, 1972

PO Box 400746
Mechanical Engineering Building
University of Virginia
Charlottesville, VA 22908

(434) 924-6209
pea@virginia.edu

Research Interests

We are conducting research in mechanical artificial hearts for use in patients with longterm congestive heart failure and other major circulatory blood problems. The mechanical heart will be employed as an assist device, working with the normal left or right ventricle to provide six to ten liters per minute of additional flow at about 100 mm Hg.

A series of continuous flow mechanical heart prototypes have been constructed and tested in benchtop testing with water and blood. Also, a successful animal test has been carried out. The pumps include the world’s first fully magnetically suspended pump, leading to expectations of a 15- to 20-year life. This is not a shortterm bridge to a transplant device but a longterm permanent heart assist device.

NIH is funding the development of a new prototype, approximately the size of a hockey puck. It is magnetically suspended using a combination of permanent and electromagnets with very low power consumption. The pump flow path is carefully designed with extensive use of computational fluid mechanics analysis. The flows in the pump are measured with advanced particle image velocimetry, to insure that there are no flows stagnating or undergoing excessive shearing inside the pump. Extensive animal and human testing is planned in the near future for the fourth prototype ventricular assist heart pump.

Selected Publications

Glauser M, Jiang W, Li G, Lin Z, Allaire PE, Olson D. Optimization of an axial flow heart pump with active and passive magnetic bearings. Artif Organs. 2006 May;30(5):400-3.

Untaroiu A, Wood HG, Allaire PE, Throckmorton AL, Day S, Patel SM, Ellman P, Tribble C, Olsen DB. Computational design and experimental testing of a novel axial flow LVAD. ASAIO J. 2005 Nov-Dec;51(6):702-10.

Throckmorton AL, Lim DS, McCulloch MA, Jiang W, Song X, Allaire PE, Wood HG, Olsen DB. Computational design and experimental performance testing of an axial-flow pediatric ventricular assist device. ASAIO J. 2005 Sep-Oct;51(5):629-35.

Bennett BC, Abel MF, Wolovick A, Franklin T, Allaire PE, Kerrigan DC.Bennett BC, Abel MF, Wolovick A, Franklin T, Allaire PE, Kerrigan DC. Center of mass movement and energy transfer during walking in children with cerebral palsy. Arch Phys Med Rehabil. 2005 Nov;86(11):2189-94.

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