Investigation of convective heat transfer performance in nanochannels with fractal Cantor structures

•Fractal Cantor structures can enhance the convective heat transfer of nanochannels.•Fractal structures increase heat transfer areas and low potential energy regions.•The fractal nanochannel of n = 3 has the optimal thermal and flow characteristics.•Narrowest gaps in fractal structure of n = 3 induce the local hydrophobic effect.