Thermodynamics for Biomedical Engineering

Catalog description

Chemical processes, including material and energy balances and heat transfer with emphasis on biological and biomedical applications. BME 313 Thermodynamics for Biomedical Engineering (3) The course provides and introduction to thermodynamics, including the fundamentals of material and energy balances with specific emphasis placed on physiological and biomedical engineering applications. This course will cover equations of state, the first and second laws of thermodynamics in both open and closed systems, and Maxwell Relations. Examples of biological applications that can be considered are the application of thermodynamic analyses to understanding thermoregulation, the cardiac cycle, respiratory gas exchange, cell potentials and to osmosis. This course also covers heat transfer including Fourier's law of conduction, convective and radiative heat transfer. Specific biological examples that may be discussed include applications to bioinstrumentation, thermoregulation and tissue heating by radiation for cancer therapy. A general knowledge of physiology and chemistry are prerequisites; the analytical approach of the course will also require an ability to work with basic differential and multivariable calculus.