Research papers of the week – September 18, 2023

Mariusz Ptak; Mateusz Dymek; Marek Sawicki; Fábio A. O. Fernandes; Maciej Wnuk; Johannes Wilhelm; Monika Ratajczak; Daria Witkowska; Artur Kwiatkowski; Błażej Poźniak; Konrad Kubicki; Marta Tikhomirov; Adam Druszcz; Leszek Chybowski

Archives of Civil and Mechanical Engineering

Ministerial score = 140.0
Journal Impact Factor (2023) = 4.4 (Q1)

The human head is a highly complex structure, with a combination of hard and soft tissues and a variety of materials and interactions. Many researchers have used computational approaches to model the head, and several human finite element head models can be found in the literature. However, most of them are not geometrically accurate – for instance, the brain is simplified to a smooth spherical volume, which poses some concerns regarding boundary conditions and geometrical accuracy. Therefore, an advanced head model of a 28-year-old, designated as aHEAD 28 yo (aHEAD: advanced Head models for safety Enhancement And medical Development), has been developed. The model consists entirely of hexahedral elements for 3D structures of the head such as the cerebellum, skull and cerebrum, with detailed geometry of the gyri and sulci. Additionally, it is one of the first human head approaches published in the literature that includes cerebrospinal fluid simulated by Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics (SPH) and a detailed model of pressurized bridging veins. To support the model’s credibility, this study is focused on physical material testing. A novel comprehensive experimental-computational approach is presented, which involves the brain tissue’s response to induced vibrations. The experiment successfully aimed to validate the material models used in the numerical analysis. Additionally, the authors present a kinematical model validation based on the Hardy experimental cadaver test. The developed model, along with its verification, aims to establish a further benchmark in finite element head modelling and can potentially provide new insights into injury mechanisms.

DOI:10.1007/s43452-023-00758-9

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