Heat transfer enhancement over passive motion inducing surfaces

Biofouling is a main cause of decreased performance in applications that rely on heat transfer. To reduce biofouling, coatings are often applied. However, these coatings typically have low thermal conductivity, resulting in reduced performance. Liquid Infused Surfaces (LIS) have been shown as an interesting option for such coatings, and have also been shown to reduce drag in both laminar and turbulent flows. LIS rely on internal motion within the material to create a mobile interface with the external flow. Here we study this internal flow to enhance convection within the material, which has the potential to yield anti-biofouling without loss of thermal performance. An experimental study is performed based on a numerical study which indicated that these surfaces can increase heat transfer significantly. Various surface modifications and designs are explored that mimic the features of the canonical surfaces used in the numerical study. Drag reduction and heat transfer measurements are performed in a small-scale water setup which allows both laminar and turbulent flows to be studied.