Project Info

*Ocular trauma due to blast wave exposure

Veronica Eliasson
eliasson@mines.edu
Simply stated: we hope to help a lot of people subjected to blast wave exposures. Military personnel are often subjected to repeated blast events, both during training and deployment, and as a result, ocular injuries are the fourth most common injury on the battlefield. Additionally, industrial blasts, accidental or otherwise, can also cause severe injuries to personnel. Examples of controlled blasts include construction and demolition for major civil infrastructure building such as railroad tunnels and large-scale water-diversion projects. Thus, ocular injury is one concern to our community at larger. Depending on the type of explosive, the weather, and the surroundings, the blast-generated pressure and temperature histories may vary significantly from case to case. Furthermore, structures near the person may contribute to complex shock reflections and thus one might be subjected to multiple shock waves of varying strength within a very short time period. Therefore, it is crucial to perform a controlled parameter study where blast parameters are varied and the ocular response is recorded. Parameters of interest are blast over pressure, minimum negative pressure magnitude, the time duration of the positive and negative pressure loads, the time rise of the initial shock wave (or pressure pulse if not a fully formed shock), and temperature changes. We will start by using simplified eye models and shock tube experiments, and then modify the eye models to include more complex and realistic features. The goal is to eventually use bovine or porcine eyes subjected to real blast waves, which are experiments that can be performed at Edgar Mine's outdoor site for Explosives Research. Note: at this stage in the project, we are interested in the mechanical response of the eye, not the biological response.

More Information:

Grand Challenge: Not applicable
Mikulas Chavko, Tomas Watanabe, Saleena Adeeb, Jason Lankasky, Stephen T. Ahlers, Richard M. McCarron, "Relationship between orientation to a blast and pressure wave propagation inside the rat brain," Journal of Neuroscience Methods 195 (2011) 61–66. Choi et al, "Pathophysiology of blast-induced ocular trauma in rats after repeated exposure to low-level blast overpressure," Clinical and Experimental Ophthalmology 2015; 43: 239–246 doi: 10.1111/ceo.12407.

Primary Contacts:

eliasson@mines.edu

Student Preparation

Qualifications

Strong interest in hands-on experimentation, interest in photography and some base knowledge or willingness to learn Matlab (we use this for image processing). Be happy to work in a team with other undergraduate students, graduate students, and postdoc. Responsible and can follow instructions.

TIME COMMITMENT (HRS/WK)

4-6 hours

SKILLS/TECHNIQUES GAINED

Design of experiments. Running experiments and collecting quantitative and qualitative data. Processing of the collected data. Ultra high-speed photography skills (schlieren and digital image correlation, maybe photoelasticity). Learn about shock waves, blast waves and high strain rate impact. Work in a diverse group environment.

MENTORING PLAN

The student will become part of our research group. We have weekly group meetings where student groups present two slides (results from last week and plans for next week along with questions that we together brain storm on to help them move forward). The student is also invited to our Slack group chat, where we all talk to each other. We also have individual meetings as needed (depending on the student's preference), and my postdoc and I meet with the students in the lab to train them to use the equipment.

PREFERRED STUDENT STATUS

Sophomore
Junior
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