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Hello all,

I'm having a really strange problem with a microfluidics device that I've created. It's a device that's supposed to mimic human vasculature, so essentially just a branching tree. I've used a non-newtonian Carreau model to simulate blood flow, but am getting insanely high pressures within the device when I reach flow velocities that match physiological parameters. Essentially, the smallest vessels are supposed to have a blood flow of approximately 30 mm/s according to the literature, and when I use an input velocity that gives me that, the pressures at the input side are around 55 million Pa. We've created a physical version of this model in a silicone, and can reach similar flow rates in that without hitting anything even remotely close to these kinds of pressures. I'll attach some pictures of the model below, so you can get an understanding of what it looks like. I've looked through the model to see if I can find any leaks, but none seem apparent. If anyone has any ideas as to why this would be happening, I would very much appreciate the help! (In this model, the bottom is cut off, as it's a line of symmetry)