抄録
A centrifugal pump utilizes the outer pressure of a swirl and do not need any airfoil. A centrifugal pump produces a constant swirl to obtain a constant pressure without regard to flow rate. Recent implantable VADs are mostly centrifugal pumps with non-contact bearings. There are two types for non-contact bearings: one is magnetic bearing and the other is hydrodynamic bearing. The magnetic bearing is composed of stator coils and position sensors to maintain the rotor at a position. The hydrodynamic bearing utilizes locally high pressures generated by fluid squeezed into a wedge-shape channel or a step channel composed of relatively moving surfaces. These allow patients to be discharged to home or to jobs.
