Enhancing heat transfer in a channel with unsteady flow perturbations

Recent studies have used optimization to determine fluid flows that can efficiently cool heated objects. This paper examines recently discovered steady optimal flows through a heated channel, and uses a perturbation method to find nearby unsteady flows that convect more heat - up to 80% - for a given amount of power needed to move the flow. The unsteady perturbations consist of vortices, small or large, that move along the channel walls and disrupt the thermal boundary layer.