Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Experimental evaluation of flow and dialysis performance of hollow-fiber dialyzers with different packing densities

  • Original Article
  • Published:
Journal of Artificial Organs Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The dialyzer housing structure should be designed in such a way that high dialysis performance is achieved. To achieve high dialysis performance, the flow of the dialysis fluid and blood should be uniform, without channeling and dead spaces. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of fiber packing density on the flow of dialysis fluid and blood, and on the dialysis performance of a hollow-fiber dialyzer at defined flow rates for blood (Q B = 200 mL/min), dialysis fluid (Q D = 500 mL/min), and filtrate (Q F = 0 mL/min). We measured Q D, Q B, and solute clearance for 3 test dialyzers with dialyzer housing different diameters. To evaluate the flow of dialysis fluid and blood, we measured the residence time of the dialysis fluid and blood in the test dialyzers by use of the pulse–response method. We also measured the clearances of urea, creatinine, vitamin B12, and lysozyme to evaluate the dialysis performance of the test dialyzers. At packing densities ranging from 48 to 67%, higher packing densities and lower housing diameters of the dialyzer resulted in higher dialysis performance because the dialysis fluid and blood entered the hollow-fiber bundle smoothly and, hence, increased contact area between the dialysis fluid and the blood led to better dialysis performance.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6
Fig. 7
Fig. 8

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Hirano A, Yamamoto K, Matsuda M, Ogawa T, Yakushiji T, Miyasaka T, Sakai K. Evaluation of dialyzer housing structure and hollow-fiber dialysis membranes to achieve high dialysis performance. Ther Aphaer Dial. 2011;15:66–74.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  2. Kim JC, Kim JH, Kim H-C, Kang E, Ronco C, Kim HC. Analysis of blood and dialysis-fluid flow in a hemodialyzer by perfusion computed tomography. WC2009, IFMBE Proceedings 2009; 25/VII; 831–834.

  3. Ronco C, Brendolan A, Crepaldi C, Rodighiero M, Scabardi M. Blood and dialysis-fluid flow distributions in hollow-fiber hemodialyzers analyzed by computerized helical scanning technique. J Am Soc Nephrol. 2002;13:S53–61.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  4. Hoenich NA, Kerr DNS. Engineering design of hemodialysis. J Biomed Eng. 1983;5:55–8.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  5. Fukuda M, Miyazaki M, Uezumi S, Yoshida M. Design and assessment of the new APS dialyzer. J Artif Organs. 2006;9:192–8.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  6. Fijimura T, Uchi Y, Fukuda M, Miyazaki M, Uezumi S, Hiyoshi T. Development of a dialyzer with enhanced internal filtration to increase the clearance of low molecular weight proteins. J Artif Organs. 2004;7:149–54.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  7. Sato Y, Mineshima M, Ishimori I, Kaneko I, Akiba T, Terasawa S. Effect of hollow fiber length on solute removal and quantification of internal filtration rate by Doppler ultrasound. Int J Artif Organs. 2003;26:129–34.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  8. Leypoldt JK, Cheung AK, Chirananthavat T, Gilson JF, Kamerath CD, Deeter RB. Hollow fiber shape alters solute clearances in high flux hemodialyzers. ASAIO J. 2003;49:81–7.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  9. Yang M-C, Lin C-C. Influence of design of the hemodialyzer inlet chamber on red blood damage during hemodialysis. ASAIO J. 2001;47:92–6.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  10. Lu J, Lu W. Blood flow velocity and ultra-filtration velocity measured by CT imaging system inside a densely bundled hollow fiber dialyzer. Intern J Heat Mass Transf. 2010;53:1844–50.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  11. Yamashita AC, Fujita R, Tomisawa N, Jinbo Y, Yamamura M. Effect of packing density of hollow fibers on solute removal performances of dialyzers. Hemodial Int. 2009;13:S2–7.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  12. Yamamoto K, Matsuda M, Hirano A, Takizawa N, Iwashima S, Yakushiji T, Fukuda M, Miyasaka T, Sakai K. Computational evaluation of dialysis fluid flow in dialyzers with variously designed housings. J Artif Organs. 2009;33:481–6.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  13. Poh CK, Hardy PA, Liao Z, Huang Z, Gao Dl. Effect of flow baffles on the dialysate flow distribution of hollow-fiber hemodialyzers a nonintrusive experimental study using MRI. J Biomech Eng. 2003;125:481–9.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  14. Osuga T, Obata T, Ikehara H. Detection of small degree of nonuniformity in dialysate flow in hollow-fiber dialyzer using proton magnetic resonance imaging. Magn Reson Imaging. 2004;22:417–20.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  15. Takesawa S, Terasawa M, Sakagami M, Kobayashi T, Hidai H, Sakai K. Nondestructive evaluation by X-ray computed tomography of dialysate flow patterns in capillary dialyzers. ASAIO J. 1988;34:794–9.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  16. Sakai Y, Wada S, Matsumoto H, Suyama T, Ohno O, Anno I. Nondestructive evaluation of blood flow in a dialyzer using X-ray computed tomography. Artif Organs. 2003;3:197–204.

    Google Scholar 

  17. Yamamoto K, Matsukawa H, Yakushiji T, Fukuda M, Hiroshi T, Sakai K. Technical evaluation of dialysis-fluid flow in a newly designed dialyzer. ASAIO J. 2007;53:36–40.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  18. Levenspiel O. Non-ideal flow. In: Chemical reaction engineering. 2nd ed. New York: Wiley; 1972. p. 253–325.

Download references

Acknowledgments

The authors thank Asahi Kasei Kuraray Medical Co., Ltd for providing hand-made dialyzers.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Chemical Engineering, Waseda University, 3-4-1, Okubo, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo, 169-8555, Japan

    Ayaka Hirano, Shoko Kida, Ken-ichiro Yamamoto & Kiyotaka Sakai

Authors
  1. Ayaka Hirano
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Shoko Kida
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Ken-ichiro Yamamoto
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Kiyotaka Sakai
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Ayaka Hirano or Kiyotaka Sakai.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Hirano, A., Kida, S., Yamamoto, Ki. et al. Experimental evaluation of flow and dialysis performance of hollow-fiber dialyzers with different packing densities. J Artif Organs 15, 168–175 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10047-011-0620-6

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10047-011-0620-6

Keywords

Search

Navigation