Affiliations: [a] Department of Basic Science, Beijing Polytechnic University, Beijing, China 100022 | [b] Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering Science, Osaka University, Toyonaka, Osaka 560, Japan
Correspondence:
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Address for correspondence: Li Xiao-yang, Department of Basic Science, Beijing Polytechnic University, Beijing, CHINA 100022 Fax: +86-10-67392297
Abstract: If an artery is cut transversely into rings, and the rings are then cut radially, they spring open into sectors. This phenomenon implies the existence of residual stresses and strains in the arterial wall in the non-loaded state. In the present paper, we propose a new method to calculate the residual strain from the measured wall dimensions and a polar angle of a specimen in the stress-free state, assuming that the wall is homogeneous and incompressible, and that a radially cut, stress-free specimen forms a circular sector. For this analysis, edge angles were measured at the edges of the opened-up specimen. Residual strains were obtained for the descending thoracic aorta, the common carotid artery, and the femoral artery in the rabbit. The results obtained indicated that the magnitude of residual strain was largest in the femoral artery and smallest in the aorta among the three arteries. The opening angle did not depend upon the length of a ring specimen if the ratio of the length to the diameter was ⩽ 3.
