An underwater data center system based on stepped power stations

Abstract

The application discloses an underwater data center system based on a ladder-shaped power station, and belongs to the fields of green computing power infrastructure and new energy digital economy; the system comprises: a multi-stage wheel group underwater data center arranged between an upstream river surface and a downstream river surface, arranged in a ladder shape by utilizing water level difference, and adjacent stages having equal height difference; each stage of the wheel group comprises an underwater data center main body structure, a reservoir bottom anchoring foundation, a cross-river underground operation and maintenance tunnel and an interface device and an extreme working condition safety isolation unit; the main body structure is composed of one or more weathering steel cabin bodies connected by welding, and has negative buoyancy and sits on the bottom; the operation and maintenance tunnel is connected with the cabin body sealing gate through a telescopic trestle, and forms a dry access environment after drainage; the safety isolation unit is used for quickly disconnecting and sealing the cabin body under extreme working conditions; the application has the energy efficiency advantages of an underwater constant temperature cold source, the dry, fast and low-cost operation and maintenance capability of a land-based computer room, and the structure and interface safety isolation capability under extreme working conditions.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the fields of green computing infrastructure and new energy digital economy. Specifically, it relates to the integration of deep water reservoir projects, hydraulic tunnel projects, modular steel structure cabin projects and data center electromechanical systems. In particular, it relates to a data center and its operating system that relies on the cold water resources and near-source low-cost electricity of a stepped hydropower station reservoir, is deployed at the bottom of a deep water reservoir, and can be dry-maintained through underground operation and maintenance channels on both banks. Background Technology

[0002] 1) Onshore data centers typically rely on grid power and mechanical cooling (air cooling, water cooling, cooling towers or chillers). Cooling energy consumption accounts for a high proportion under high computing density, and PUE control is limited by ambient temperature, power supply conditions and civil space. In addition, being far away from load centers or power centers will introduce long-distance transmission losses and power supply reliability configuration costs.

[0003] 2) Existing approaches to data centers located underwater or near water bodies often employ "sealed hull placement / near-water arrangement" to obtain natural cooling sources and physical security. However, these approaches generally suffer from the following drawbacks: maintenance relies on diving, ROV, or overall recovery, resulting in low maintenance efficiency and long equipment replacement cycles; once the connection interface or part of the hull fails, the handling is complex; and it is difficult to achieve "all-weather, large-scale, and routine" maintenance and expansion like land-based data centers.

[0004] 3) Although underground or tunnel computer rooms can provide better environmental stability and protection, their cooling still largely relies on electromechanical systems or geothermal / water heat exchange, making it difficult to simultaneously possess the combined advantages of "underwater natural cooling + dry operation and maintenance".

[0005] Therefore, existing underwater data center technologies still have significant shortcomings in terms of energy efficiency, ease of operation and maintenance, and ability to cope with extreme conditions. There is a need for an underwater data center system that can take into account the energy efficiency advantages brought by the constant temperature cold source underwater, the dry, fast, and low-cost operation and maintenance capabilities similar to land-based data centers, and the structural and interface security isolation capabilities under extreme conditions. Summary of the Invention

[0006] The purpose of this invention is to overcome the above-mentioned problems existing in the prior art, and on the basis of the original technology: (1) significantly reduce the largest cost items of data centers, namely electricity cost and cooling cost, by using the low-cost hydropower in the reservoir area of ​​the stepped power station for energy supply, and using the constant temperature cold water resources at the bottom of the reservoir for basic cooling; (2) propose a normalized operation and maintenance scheme that can achieve "no launching and no moving of ships" through underground channels on both banks, solving the problems of difficult maintenance, long downtime and high risk of traditional underwater data centers; (3) achieve rapid isolation and self-sustaining stability under extreme working conditions, and improve system resilience; To this end, this invention provides an underwater data center system based on a stepped power station, which includes: A multi-stage underwater data center for wheel sets; the multi-stage underwater data center for wheel sets is located between the upstream and downstream river surfaces. Utilizing the height difference between the upstream and downstream river surfaces, each stage of the underwater data center is arranged in a stepped manner underwater, with equal height differences between adjacent stages; each stage of the underwater data center for wheel sets includes: the main structure of the underwater data center, anchoring foundations at the bottom of the reservoir, underground maintenance tunnels on both banks and interface devices, and a safety isolation unit for extreme working conditions.

[0007] The main structure of the underwater data center comprises one or more modular steel structure cabins, which are welded together and interconnected. The steel structure uses high-performance weathering steel and is coated with a heavy-duty anti-corrosion coating and a sacrificial anode protective layer. Each cabin has a standard large database room layout, including server racks, in-row air conditioning, power distribution systems, monitoring systems, and gas fire suppression systems. All cable and pipe interfaces are pre-embedded in the top and side walls of the cabin. The cabin itself is designed for negative buoyancy, relying on gravity to support its weight. The anchoring foundation at the bottom of the reservoir is a pre-constructed giant reinforced concrete platform, with guide pins and seismic supports on its top precisely matched to the bottom of the steel structure cabin. The foundation is embedded in the bedrock at the bottom of the reservoir by deep piles; the underground operation and maintenance tunnels and interface devices on both banks are the core of the convenience of operation and maintenance of this invention; a permanent operation and maintenance channel is constructed by excavating inside the mountains on both banks of the reservoir, with the channel outlet directly reaching the bottom of the water below the central area of ​​the reservoir, and connecting to the large sealed gate on the side of the main structure of the underwater data center via a retractable connecting trestle; when the trestle is retracted, the gate is closed, isolating it from the water; when the trestle is extended and locked to the gate, the water in the docking channel is discharged, forming a dry access environment; the extreme working condition safety isolation unit includes a quick-cut-off valve group and a gate locking mechanism, which are used to quickly disconnect the connection between the cabin and the tunnel, lock the gate, and independently seal the cabin when triggered.

[0008] The height of the underwater data center hull of each stage of the wheel assembly is less than the height difference between adjacent stages of the wheel assembly.

[0009] The self-weight of the steel structure cabin under design conditions satisfies the negative buoyancy condition.

[0010] Where W is the gravity acting on the cabin, including the equipment installed on the cabin and the ballast; ρ w Let g be the density of water, g be the acceleration due to gravity, and V be the acceleration due to gravity. d For the volume of water discharged, γ b >1 is the buoyancy safety factor.

[0011] The seismic piers and guide positioning pins of the anchor foundation at the bottom of the reservoir are used to maintain the absolute stability of the cabin under water flow impact and seismic loads. After the sealing gate on the side of the cabin is docked and locked with the retractable connecting trestle, a dry access environment is formed by draining the water in the docking section, allowing personnel and equipment to walk from the tunnel or directly enter the cabin by maintenance vehicle for full-function maintenance. The underground maintenance tunnels on both banks are equipped with ventilation, drainage, power supply, fire protection and transportation systems.

[0012] The extreme condition safety isolation unit is also used to trigger rapid isolation actions when the water level or flow velocity exceeds the threshold, the seismic acceleration exceeds the threshold, or a landslide or deformation is detected at the tunnel end, and to perform interface checks, docking section drainage verification, and gradual restoration of connection after the disaster.

[0013] In addition, the present invention also provides a method for deploying and operating an underwater data center based on a stepped power station according to the above-described system. The method includes: a deployment phase, an operation phase, an operation and maintenance phase, and a safety response phase for extreme operating conditions.

[0014] The deployment phase includes: selecting reservoir locations that meet the requirements of deep water, low temperature stability, local hydropower supply, and tunnel construction conditions on both banks; determining the design water depth, external water pressure level, target computing power scale, and number of modules for the underwater data centers of each wheel group; excavating operation and maintenance tunnels in the mountains on both banks and setting up supporting systems; setting up docking cavities at the tunnel ends to cooperate with retractable connecting trestle bridges to form a dry access section with drainage function; pouring reinforced concrete platforms at the bottom of the reservoir corresponding to each wheel group and arranging guide positioning pins and seismic supports; ensuring the stability of the foundation under water flow impact and earthquakes through deep pile driving into the rock; completing the modular steel structure cabin welding and manufacturing, internal electromechanical prefabrication, heavy anti-corrosion system, and sacrificial anode arrangement in the dry dock; simultaneously, pre-burying power cables, optical fibers, cooling pipes, and monitoring sensor interfaces; subsequently, using floating and large lifting equipment to position and sink the cabins of each wheel group step by step, so that each cabin is accurately placed on the corresponding seismic supports of the reservoir bottom foundation and connected to the bottom hydropower and data dry interfaces.

[0015] The operational phase includes: power supply from the onshore power station to each level of the cabin via pre-buried cables; critical loads employing dual-circuit or ring network redundancy; basic cooling provided by heat exchange between the outer wall of the cabin and the constant-temperature water at the bottom of the tank, with secondary cooling circuits installed inside the cabins to achieve precise cooling based on heat load; wherein, the total heat dissipation of the data center is approximately equal to the IT power consumption: i.e., Q IT =P IT The heat exchange capacity between the bulkhead and the water body meets Q. cool =UAΔT; where U is the overall heat transfer coefficient, A is the effective heat exchange area, ΔT is the temperature difference between the cooling medium inside the cabin and the external water, and Q is the temperature difference between the cooling medium inside the cabin and the external water. IT P represents the total heat dissipation rate of the data center. ITThis refers to the total input power of the IT equipment; the design must meet the Q requirement. cool ≥Q IT ·η, where η is the sharing ratio, and the remainder is borne by the fine cooling inside the cabin; the health of the cabin structure, the machine room environment, power, cooling and the status of the gate and trestle are uniformly connected to the monitoring platform, and transmitted to the onshore monitoring center in real time via fiber optics.

[0016] The operation and maintenance phase includes: the onshore monitoring center issuing a maintenance work order and switching the target compartment to maintenance mode; controlling the retractable connecting trestle to extend from the tunnel end, relying on the guide structure to position and lock with the sealing gate on the side of the target compartment, and performing multi-point mechanical locking after docking to form a sealed boundary of the docking section; starting the drainage system of the docking section, first pumping out free water, and then using gas replacement or drying treatment until dry passage conditions are achieved; opening the sealing gate on the side of the compartment to form a continuous dry passage of tunnel-trestle-compartment, and operation and maintenance personnel can enter the compartment on foot or using an operation and maintenance vehicle to carry out maintenance; after maintenance is completed, closing the gate, pressurizing and leak detection of the docking section, and after confirming that there are no problems, retracting the trestle and restoring system operation.

[0017] The extreme working condition safety response phase includes: when the water level, flow velocity or seismic acceleration is detected to exceed the threshold, or when a landslide deformation occurs at the tunnel end, rapid isolation actions are performed, including: gate locking, rapid disconnection of water, electricity and data interfaces, retraction and locking of the trestle bridge and sealing of the tunnel end docking cavity; the cabin relies on the strength of the steel structure and the seismic support piers of the reservoir bottom foundation to withstand external impacts, and after the disaster, interface inspection and docking section drainage verification are performed, and the connection and load are gradually restored.

[0018] Specifically, during the deployment phase, an underwater robot is used to assist in the dry interface connection when connecting the bottom hydroelectric and data interfaces.

[0019] Specifically, during the operation phase, the secondary cooling circuit includes a cold plate, a rear door heat exchanger or an in-row air conditioner, and is equipped with a variable frequency pump to achieve adjustment according to the heat load.

[0020] Specifically, during the operation and maintenance phase, the dry passage conditions include setting humidity thresholds and leakage rate thresholds; after maintenance is completed, the pressure maintenance curve of the docking section and leakage sensor data are included in the operation and maintenance records for long-term health assessment.

[0021] Specifically, during the extreme working condition safety response phase, the quick disconnection of water, electricity and data interfaces is a dry quick-connect or a disconnectable through-cabin connection structure; during post-disaster recovery, interface checks and docking section drainage verification are performed sequentially, and connections and loads are gradually restored.

[0022] The beneficial effects of this invention are: 1) Significant energy efficiency and cost advantages: Utilizing the near-source power supply of the hydropower station reduces electricity costs, and the constant-temperature water at the bottom of the reservoir provides basic cooling for the data center, significantly reducing the inter-row air conditioning load and overall energy consumption; 2) Overcoming the bottleneck of underwater data center operation and maintenance: Constructing a dry access channel that can drain water through underground operation and maintenance tunnels on both banks, retractable connecting trestle bridges, and sealed gates, achieving all-weather operation and maintenance without going into the water or moving the ship, with maintenance efficiency and accessibility approaching that of land-based data centers; 3) Enhanced safety and resilience: Under extreme conditions such as massive floods and strong earthquakes, the underwater interface can be automatically cut off, allowing the hull to become an independent sealed unit and stably sit on the bottom, avoiding the risk of water ingress caused by damage to the channel interface, and can be restarted after the operating conditions are restored. 4) Modular and scalable: It adopts one or more giant modular welded steel structure cabins, which can be deployed in stages and expanded in parallel according to computing power requirements, reducing one-time investment and construction risks; 5) Improved operation and maintenance safety: personnel do not need to dive to work, avoiding high-risk underwater working conditions; equipment replacement is completed through tunnel transportation and dry channels, reducing downtime and maintenance costs; 6) Faster heat dissipation: the invention arranges the underwater data centers of each stage of the wheel group in a stepped shape, and uses the natural height difference between the upstream and downstream river surfaces to form a continuous natural water flow from top to bottom around each stage of the cabin; this water flow can promptly remove the heat accumulated on the outer wall of the cabin due to heat exchange, avoiding a decrease in heat exchange efficiency due to local water temperature rise. Attached Figure Description

[0023] Figure 1 This is a side view of the stepped data center of the present invention.

[0024] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the underwater data center configuration for each stage of the wheel assembly in this invention. Detailed Implementation

[0025] The specific embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings; it should be understood that the following embodiments are only used to illustrate the present invention and should not be regarded as limiting the scope of the present invention.

[0026] Example 1: Overall structure of a stepped data center layout.

[0027] like Figure 1 The image shows a side view of the stepped data center provided by the present invention; it includes a multi-stage underwater data center; the multi-stage underwater data center is located between the upstream and downstream river surfaces; there is a natural height difference (i.e., water flow height difference) between the upstream and downstream river surfaces, which is equal to the vertical distance between the upstream and downstream river surface sections.

[0028] Utilizing this natural height difference, the underwater data centers of each wheel assembly are arranged in a stepped pattern underwater along the water flow direction. In this embodiment, a five-level underwater data center is used as an example, namely, the level 1, level 2, level 3, level 4, and level 5 underwater data centers. These five levels of underwater data centers are arranged sequentially from top to bottom, with the level 1 underwater data center located at the upstream (highest) position and the level 5 underwater data center located at the downstream (lowest) position. The height difference between adjacent levels of underwater data centers is equal, that is, the height difference between level 1 and level 2, level 2 and level 3, level 3 and level 4, and level 4 and level 5 are all the same. Thus, the underwater data centers of each level of wheel assembly form a uniform stepped layout between the upstream and downstream river surfaces.

[0029] The height of the underwater data center hull of each stage of the wheel assembly is less than the height difference between adjacent stages of the wheel assembly, thus ensuring that each hull is completely submerged in the water layer of its respective stage, neither protruding above the water surface nor interfering vertically with the hulls of adjacent stages.

[0030] The horizontal spacing between the underwater data centers of each stage of the wheel assembly is determined according to the actual topography of the reservoir bottom. The various stages of the hull are connected by pre-buried cross-stage cables and pipes to form a cascaded power supply and data link. Specifically, the power output of the upper stage wheel assembly is connected to the power input of the lower stage wheel assembly through cross-stage power cables, and the data networks of each stage of the wheel assembly are connected in series through cross-stage optical fibers, thus forming a complete cascaded power supply architecture and data transmission link. When a stage of the wheel assembly needs maintenance or fails, the upper and lower stage wheel assemblies can bypass the power and data through the cascaded link to ensure the continuous operation of the entire data center system.

[0031] In this diagram, water flows from the upstream river surface into the stepped layout area and then flows sequentially through the underwater data center of the first to fifth stage wheel sets. As the various stages of the cabins are arranged in a stepped shape, the water flows from top to bottom under the action of gravity, continuously scouring the outer walls of each stage of the cabins during the flow process. This promptly removes the heat accumulated on the cabin walls due to heat exchange, thereby maintaining a stable temperature difference between the cabin walls and the water body, ensuring the continuous effectiveness of the cabin walls' natural heat exchange capacity, and avoiding a decrease in heat exchange efficiency due to local water temperature rise.

[0032] Example 2: The specific composition of the underwater data center for each stage of the wheel assembly.

[0033] like Figure 2As shown, each stage of the underwater data center consists of four components: the main structure of the underwater data center, the anchoring foundation at the bottom of the reservoir, the underground operation and maintenance tunnels and interface devices on both banks, and the extreme working condition safety isolation unit. The following section will take any one stage of the underwater data center as an example to explain each component in detail.

[0034] The main structure of the underwater data center consists of one or more modular steel structure compartments. When there are multiple compartments, adjacent compartments are sealed and fixedly connected by welding, and the connecting walls of adjacent compartments are provided with connecting openings to allow the internal spaces of each compartment to be interconnected, forming an integrated main structure. The adjacent compartments are connected by a double-sided symmetrical welding process, with two welders simultaneously welding at 180 degrees to each other on both sides of the compartment joint to ensure that the weld penetration and width are uniform and consistent, meeting the sealing and structural strength requirements for long-term underwater service.

[0035] The steel structure uses high-performance weathering steel, which has good corrosion resistance and mechanical properties. A heavy-duty anti-corrosion coating is applied to the surface of the steel structure. This coating is made of multi-layer epoxy resin system or polyurethane system, which can effectively isolate water from direct contact with the steel structure. At the same time, a sacrificial anode protective layer is arranged on the outer wall of the steel structure. The sacrificial anode is made of aluminum-based or zinc-based alloy material, which provides cathodic protection to the steel structure through electrochemical action, further extending the service life of the steel structure.

[0036] Each compartment is laid out like a standard large database server room, equipped with server racks, in-row air conditioning, power distribution systems, monitoring systems, and gas fire suppression systems. The server racks are arranged longitudinally along the compartment to house various IT equipment. In-row air conditioning is located between the server racks to provide precise airflow cooling to the rack area. The power distribution system includes transformers, UPS power supplies, and distribution cabinets to provide a stable and reliable power supply to all equipment in the compartment. The monitoring system includes temperature and humidity sensors, smoke detectors, and water leakage detection sensors to monitor environmental parameters in the compartment in real time. The gas fire suppression system uses inert gases (such as IG541 or heptafluoropropane) as the extinguishing medium, which can quickly extinguish fires without damaging IT equipment.

[0037] All cable and pipe interfaces are pre-embedded in the top and side walls of the hull; specifically, the top of the hull has pre-embedded interfaces for power cables, optical fibers, and cooling pipes; the side walls of the hull have pre-embedded interfaces for cross-level cables and pipes that connect to adjacent hulls; all pre-embedded interfaces adopt a watertight through-hull sealing structure to ensure watertight performance at the interfaces.

[0038] The hull itself is designed for negative buoyancy, meaning that the total weight of the hull (including internal equipment and ballast) is greater than the buoyancy corresponding to its displacement volume. The hull rests on an anchored foundation at the bottom of the reservoir under its own weight. Under design conditions, the hull's self-weight must meet the following negative buoyancy conditions:

[0039] Where W is the gravity acting on the cabin, including the equipment installed on the cabin and the ballast; ρ w Let g be the density of water, g be the acceleration due to gravity, and V be the acceleration due to gravity. d For the volume of water discharged, γ b >1 represents the buoyancy safety factor; by reasonably configuring the cabin wall thickness, internal equipment weight and additional ballast, the cabin can maintain a stable bottoming state under any design working condition and will not float or shift due to buoyancy.

[0040] Reservoir Bottom Anchorage Foundation: The reservoir bottom anchorage foundation is a pre-constructed reinforced concrete platform. This platform is made of high-strength concrete and has sufficient self-weight and rigidity. The top of the platform is equipped with guide positioning pins and seismic supports that precisely match the bottom of the steel structure cabin. The guide positioning pins are conical or cylindrical steel components, and their number and position correspond one-to-one with the positioning holes at the bottom of the cabin, used to guide the cabin to accurately settle into place when it sinks. The seismic supports are steel or reinforced concrete piers, arranged at key load-bearing positions on the top of the platform, used to support the bottom of the cabin and evenly transfer the load to the foundation platform.

[0041] The anchoring foundation at the bottom of the reservoir is constructed by embedding deep piles into the bedrock. These deep piles are made of steel pipe or cast-in-place concrete, penetrating the overburden layer and embedding into the stable bedrock to a certain depth, thus ensuring the absolute stability of the foundation under water flow impact and seismic loads. The seismic piers work in conjunction with guide positioning pins: as the cabin sinks, the guide positioning pins are first inserted into the positioning holes at the bottom of the cabin for coarse positioning; as the cabin continues to sink, the bottom of the cabin gradually contacts the upper surface of the seismic piers, achieving precise positioning and load-bearing capacity; under the action of water flow impact and seismic loads, the seismic piers transfer horizontal and vertical forces to the reinforced concrete platform, which are then transferred to the bedrock by the deep piles, thus ensuring the stability of the cabin's position under various working conditions.

[0042] Underground maintenance tunnels and interface devices on both sides of the reservoir: Underground maintenance tunnels and interface devices on both sides of the reservoir are the core components of this invention to achieve convenient operation and maintenance; permanent maintenance tunnels are excavated and constructed inside the mountains on both sides of the reservoir; the tunnels are equipped with a ventilation system (for supplying fresh air into the tunnel and expelling exhaust gas), a drainage system (for removing seepage water that may accumulate in the tunnel), a power supply system (for supplying power to the tunnel lighting, ventilation equipment and trestle drive mechanism), a fire protection system (for fire protection in the tunnel) and a transportation system (for transporting maintenance personnel and equipment in the tunnel).

[0043] The tunnel end is equipped with a docking chamber (also known as an antechamber); this docking chamber is an enlarged space used to cooperate with the retractable connecting trestle to form a drainable dry access section; one end of the retractable connecting trestle is connected to the docking chamber, and the other end can extend and dock with and lock to the sealed gate on the side of the underwater data center main structure; the trestle adopts a multi-section sleeve-type or folding telescopic structure, and its extension and retraction are controlled by a hydraulic or electric drive mechanism.

[0044] During normal operation, the trestle is in the retracted state, and the sealing gates on the side of the cabin remain closed, completely isolating the interior of the cabin from the external water. When maintenance is required, the onshore monitoring center first issues a maintenance work order and switches the target cabin to maintenance mode (including operations such as reducing IT load, migrating business to other wheelsets, and disconnecting unnecessary circuits). Subsequently, the retractable connecting trestle is extended from the tunnel end and achieves self-positioning by relying on the guide structure and the frame of the sealing gates on the side of the cabin. After docking, multi-point mechanical locking (including wedge locking, pin locking, or hydraulic locking) is performed to form a sealed boundary of the docking section.

[0045] The docking section drainage system is activated to first pump out the free water in the docking section, and then gas replacement or drying is used until the docking section reaches the set dry passage conditions (including set humidity threshold and leakage rate threshold). After the dry passage conditions are achieved, the sealing gate on the side of the cabin is unlocked and opened, thus forming a continuous dry passage of "tunnel-trestle-cabin". At this time, maintenance personnel can walk or use maintenance vehicles to directly enter the cabin from the tunnel via the trestle to carry out full-function maintenance operations such as cabinet replacement, power distribution maintenance and cooling system maintenance, just like entering an ordinary underground computer room.

[0046] After maintenance, the sealing gate on the side of the cabin is closed, the docking section is pressurized and leak tested, and the trestle is retracted after confirming that the sealing performance is correct, and the system resumes operation. During the reset and sealing verification process, the pressure holding curve of the docking section and the leakage sensor data are included in the operation and maintenance record for long-term health assessment of the system.

[0047] Extreme Condition Safety Isolation Unit: The extreme condition safety isolation unit includes a quick-shut-off valve assembly and a gate locking mechanism; the quick-shut-off valve assembly is located at the water, electricity and data interface between the cabin and the tunnel, and adopts a dry quick-connect or disconnectable through-cabin connection structure; the gate locking mechanism is linked with the sealing gate on the side of the cabin, and is used to forcibly lock the gate in the closed position in an emergency.

[0048] When extreme conditions occur (including but not limited to: water level or flow velocity exceeding a preset threshold, seismic acceleration exceeding a preset threshold, and landslides or deformations detected at the tunnel end), the extreme condition safety isolation unit is triggered to perform rapid isolation actions. Specifically, this includes: the gate locking mechanism immediately locking the sealing gate to the closed position; the rapid shut-off valve group performing a rapid disconnection operation, cutting off the power cables, optical fibers, and data interfaces between the cabin and the tunnel within milliseconds; the trestle drive mechanism retracting and locking the trestle; and the sealing door of the tunnel end docking cavity simultaneously closing. After the above isolation actions, the underwater data center cabin becomes a completely independent and sealed entity, completely detached from the external tunnel and interface devices, effectively preventing problems such as water leakage caused by damage to the channel interface.

[0049] Example 3: Data center deployment and operation methods.

[0050] This invention also provides a method for deploying and operating an underwater data center based on a stepped power station, including: a deployment phase, an operation phase, an operation and maintenance phase, and a safety response phase for extreme operating conditions.

[0051] Deployment Phase: First, select reservoir locations that meet the requirements of deep water conditions, stable low water temperature year-round, on-site hydropower supply, and tunnel construction conditions on both banks. Based on the actual water depth, water temperature, geological conditions, and hydropower resources of the reservoir area, determine the design water depth, external water pressure level, target computing power scale, and number of modules for the underwater data centers of each wheel crew. Second, excavate permanent operation and maintenance tunnels inside the mountains on both banks, and install supporting systems such as ventilation, drainage, power supply, fire protection, and transportation within the tunnels. A docking cavity is installed at the tunnel end to form a dry access section with drainage function in conjunction with a retractable connecting trestle. Third, pour reinforced concrete platforms at the corresponding reservoir bottom locations for each wheel crew, arrange guide positioning pins and seismic supports on the top of the platforms, and embed the foundations into the reservoir bottom bedrock using deep piles to ensure absolute stability of the foundations under water flow impact and seismic loads. Finally, complete the modules in the dry dock. The process involves welding and manufacturing the steel structure hull, prefabricating the internal electromechanical components, applying a heavy-duty anti-corrosion coating, and arranging sacrificial anodes. Simultaneously, power cables, optical fibers, cooling pipes, and monitoring sensor interfaces are pre-embedded in the top and side walls of the hull. Finally, the hulls of each wheel assembly are transported to their designated installation positions using a floating method, and then launched into the water using large lifting equipment. The hulls of each wheel assembly are positioned and sunk step by step: first, the first-level wheel assembly hull is sunk to its corresponding anchoring foundation position, precisely positioned on the seismic support pier under the guidance of guide pins; then, the second, third, fourth, and fifth-level wheel assembly hulls are sunk sequentially, ensuring each hull is precisely positioned on its corresponding seismic support pier at the bottom of the reservoir. After each hull is in place, an underwater robot assists in connecting the bottom water, electricity, and data dry interfaces. Simultaneously, pre-embedded cross-level cables and pipes connect the hulls of each level, forming a cascaded power supply and data link.

[0052] Operational Phase: During operation, power is supplied to each stage of the wheel assembly cabins via pre-buried cables from the shore power station. Critical loads utilize dual-circuit power supply or a ring network with N+1 redundancy, allowing automatic switching to the other circuit in case of failure of any power supply, ensuring uninterrupted operation of IT equipment. For cooling, natural heat exchange is achieved through the temperature difference between the cabin's outer wall and the constant-temperature water at the bottom of the tank, providing basic cooling. Simultaneously, secondary cooling circuits (including cold plates, rear door heat exchangers, or inter-row air conditioners) are installed within the cabins, along with variable frequency pumps for precise adjustment based on heat load. The total heat dissipation of the data center is approximately equal to the total input power of the IT equipment, i.e., Q. IT =P IT , where Q IT P represents the total heat dissipation rate of the data center. IT The total input power of the IT equipment; the heat exchange capacity between the bulkhead and the water body is estimated according to the following heat transfer model: Q cool =UAΔT; where U is the overall heat transfer coefficient (depending on factors such as bulkhead material, coating, surface condition, and water flow state), A is the effective heat exchange area (i.e., the area of ​​the outer wall of the hull submerged in water), and ΔT is the temperature difference between the cooling medium inside the hull and the external water; the design must satisfy Q. cool ≥Q IT ·η, where η is the proportion of the total heat dissipation caused by natural heat exchange of the bulkhead, and the remaining part is undertaken by the fine cooling system inside the bulkhead; the health monitoring data of the bulkhead structure (strain, displacement and leakage, etc.), the environmental parameters of the machine room (temperature, humidity and smoke detection, etc.), the status of the power system, the operating parameters of the cooling system, and the status of the gate and the trestle are uniformly connected to the monitoring platform and transmitted to the shore monitoring center in real time through optical fiber to realize remote centralized monitoring and management.

[0053] Operation and Maintenance Phase: When maintenance is required on the underwater data center of a certain stage of the wheel assembly, the onshore monitoring center issues a maintenance work order and switches the target hull to maintenance mode (including operations such as reducing IT load, migrating services to other wheel assemblies, and disconnecting unnecessary loops); the retractable connecting trestle extends from the tunnel end and achieves self-positioning by relying on the guide structure and the sealing gate frame on the side of the target hull; after docking, multi-point mechanical locking is performed (including wedge locking, locking pin locking, or hydraulic locking) to form a sealed boundary of the docking section; the docking section drainage system is activated to first pump out the free water in the docking section, and then use gas replacement or drying treatment until the docking section reaches the required level. Once the set dry passage conditions are met (including set humidity and leakage rate thresholds), the sealing gate on the side of the cabin is unlocked and opened, forming a continuous dry passage of "tunnel-pier-cabin". Maintenance personnel walk or use maintenance vehicles to enter the cabin from the tunnel via the pier to perform full-function maintenance operations such as cabinet replacement, power distribution maintenance, and cooling system maintenance. After maintenance, the sealing gate on the side of the cabin is closed, the docking section is pressurized and leak tested, and after confirming that the sealing performance is correct, the pier is retracted and the system resumes operation. The pressure maintenance curve of the docking section and the leakage sensor data are included in the maintenance record for long-term health assessment of the system.

[0054] Extreme operating condition safety response phase: When the water level or flow velocity exceeds the preset threshold, the seismic acceleration exceeds the preset threshold, or a landslide or deformation occurs at the tunnel end, a rapid isolation action is immediately executed. This includes: the gate locking mechanism locking the sealed gate in the closed position; the rapid shut-off valve group quickly disconnecting the water, electricity, and data interfaces between the cabin and the tunnel; the trestle drive mechanism retracting and locking the trestle; and the sealing door of the tunnel end docking cavity being closed. After the above isolation actions, the underwater data center cabin becomes a completely independent and sealed entity, relying on the strength of its steel structure and the protection of the seismic support piers of the reservoir foundation to withstand external impacts. After the disaster, interface inspections are performed sequentially (to confirm that each interface is undamaged) and docking section drainage verification (to confirm that the sealing performance is qualified). Then, the connections of each interface are gradually restored, and finally, the normal operating load of the cabin is restored.

[0055] The above description is only a preferred embodiment of the present invention and does not limit the patent scope of the present invention. Any equivalent structural or procedural transformations made based on the content of the present invention specification and drawings, or direct or indirect applications in other related technical fields, shall fall within the patent protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. An underwater data center system based on a stepped power station, characterized in that, The system includes: A multi-stage underwater data center for wheel sets; the multi-stage underwater data center for wheel sets is located between the upstream and downstream river surfaces. Utilizing the height difference between the upstream and downstream river surfaces, each stage of the underwater data center is arranged in a stepped manner underwater, with equal height differences between adjacent stages; each stage of the underwater data center for wheel sets includes: the main structure of the underwater data center, anchoring foundations at the bottom of the reservoir, underground maintenance tunnels on both banks and interface devices, and extreme condition safety isolation units; The main structure of the underwater data center includes one or more modular steel structure hulls, which are welded and connected to each other. The steel structure uses high-performance weathering steel and is coated with a heavy-duty anti-corrosion coating and a sacrificial anode protective layer. Each hull has a standard large database room layout, including server racks, in-row air conditioning, power distribution system, monitoring system and gas fire suppression system. All cable and pipe interfaces are pre-embedded in the top and side walls of the hull. The hull itself is designed for negative buoyancy and rests on the bottom by gravity. The bottom anchorage foundation of the reservoir is a pre-constructed giant reinforced concrete platform, with guide positioning pins and seismic supports on its top that are precisely matched with the bottom of the steel structure cabin; the bottom anchorage foundation of the reservoir is embedded in the bedrock of the reservoir bottom by deep piles. The underground maintenance tunnels and interface devices on both banks are the core of the convenience of operation and maintenance in this invention. By excavating and constructing a permanent maintenance channel inside the mountains on both banks of the reservoir, the channel outlet directly reaches the bottom of the water below the central area of ​​the reservoir, and connects to the large sealed gate on the side of the main structure of the underwater data center via a retractable connecting trestle. When the trestle is retracted, the gate is closed and isolated from the water. When the trestle is extended and locked to the gate, the water in the docking channel is discharged, forming a dry access environment. The extreme condition safety isolation unit includes a rapid shut-off valve group and a gate locking mechanism, which are used to quickly disconnect the connection between the cabin and the tunnel, lock the gate, and independently seal the cabin when triggered.

2. The underwater data center system based on a stepped power station according to claim 1, characterized in that, The height of the underwater data center hull of each stage of the wheel assembly is less than the height difference between adjacent stages of the wheel assembly.

3. The underwater data center system based on a stepped power station according to claim 1, characterized in that, The self-weight of the steel structure cabin under design conditions satisfies the negative buoyancy condition. Where W is the gravity acting on the cabin, including the equipment installed on the cabin and the ballast; ρ w Let g be the density of water, g be the acceleration due to gravity, and V be the acceleration due to gravity. d For the volume of water discharged, γ b >1 is the buoyancy safety factor.

4. The underwater data center system based on a stepped power station according to claim 1, characterized in that, The seismic piers and guide positioning pins of the anchor foundation at the bottom of the reservoir are used to maintain the absolute stability of the cabin under water flow impact and seismic loads. After the sealing gate on the side of the cabin is docked and locked with the retractable connecting trestle, a dry access environment is formed by draining the water in the docking section, allowing personnel and equipment to walk from the tunnel or directly enter the cabin by maintenance vehicle for full-function maintenance. The underground maintenance tunnels on both banks are equipped with ventilation, drainage, power supply, fire protection and transportation systems.

5. The underwater data center system based on a stepped power station according to claim 1, characterized in that, The extreme condition safety isolation unit is also used to trigger rapid isolation actions when the water level or flow velocity exceeds the threshold, the seismic acceleration exceeds the threshold, or a landslide or deformation is detected at the tunnel end, and to perform interface checks, docking section drainage verification, and gradual restoration of connection after the disaster.

6. A method for deploying and operating an underwater data center based on a stepped power station using the system described in any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that, The method includes: deployment phase, operation phase, maintenance phase, and extreme condition security response phase; The deployment phase includes: selecting reservoir locations that meet the requirements of deep water, low temperature stability, local hydropower supply, and tunnel construction conditions on both banks; determining the design water depth, external water pressure level, target computing power scale, and number of modules for the underwater data centers of each wheel group; excavating operation and maintenance tunnels on both banks and setting up supporting systems; setting up docking cavities at the tunnel ends to cooperate with retractable connecting trestle bridges to form a dry access section with drainage function; pouring reinforced concrete platforms at the bottom of the reservoir corresponding to each wheel group and arranging guide positioning pins and seismic supports; ensuring the stability of the foundation under water flow impact and earthquakes through deep pile driving into the rock; completing the modular steel structure cabin welding and manufacturing, internal electromechanical prefabrication, heavy anti-corrosion system, and sacrificial anode arrangement in the dry dock; simultaneously, pre-burying power cables, optical fibers, cooling pipes, and monitoring sensor interfaces; subsequently, using floating and large lifting equipment to position and sink the cabins of each wheel group step by step, so that each cabin is accurately placed on the corresponding seismic supports of the reservoir bottom foundation and connected to the bottom hydropower and data dry interfaces; The operational phase includes: power supply from the onshore power station to each level of the cabin via pre-buried cables; critical loads employing dual-circuit or ring network redundancy; basic cooling provided by heat exchange between the outer wall of the cabin and the constant-temperature water at the bottom of the tank, with secondary cooling circuits installed inside the cabins to achieve precise cooling based on heat load; wherein, the total heat dissipation of the data center is approximately equal to the IT power consumption: i.e., Q IT =P IT The heat exchange capacity between the bulkhead and the water body meets Q. cool =UAΔT; where U is the overall heat transfer coefficient, A is the effective heat exchange area, ΔT is the temperature difference between the cooling medium inside the cabin and the external water, and Q is the temperature difference between the cooling medium inside the cabin and the external water. IT P represents the total heat dissipation rate of the data center. IT This refers to the total input power of the IT equipment; the design must meet the Q requirement. cool ≥Q IT ·η, where η is the sharing ratio, and the remainder is borne by the fine cooling inside the cabin; the health of the cabin structure, the machine room environment, power, cooling and the status of the gate and trestle are uniformly connected to the monitoring platform and transmitted to the onshore monitoring center in real time via fiber optics; The operation and maintenance phase includes: the onshore monitoring center issuing a maintenance work order and switching the target compartment to maintenance mode; controlling the retractable connecting trestle to extend from the tunnel end, relying on the guide structure to position and lock with the sealing gate on the side of the target compartment; after docking, performing multi-point mechanical locking to form a sealed boundary of the docking section; starting the drainage system of the docking section, first pumping out free water, and then using gas replacement or drying treatment until dry passage conditions are met; opening the sealing gate on the side of the compartment to form a continuous dry passage of tunnel-trestle-compartment, and operation and maintenance personnel can enter the compartment on foot or using an operation and maintenance vehicle to perform maintenance; after maintenance is completed, closing the gate, pressurizing and leak detection of the docking section, and after confirming that there are no problems, retracting the trestle and restoring system operation; The extreme working condition safety response phase includes: when the water level, flow velocity or seismic acceleration is detected to exceed the threshold, or when a landslide deformation occurs at the tunnel end, rapid isolation actions are performed, including: gate locking, rapid disconnection of water, electricity and data interfaces, retraction and locking of the trestle bridge and sealing of the tunnel end docking cavity; the cabin relies on the strength of the steel structure and the seismic support piers of the reservoir bottom foundation to withstand external impacts, and after the disaster, interface inspection and docking section drainage verification are performed, and the connection and load are gradually restored.

7. The method according to claim 6, characterized in that, During the deployment phase, an underwater robot is used to assist in the dry interface connection when connecting the bottom hydroelectric and data interfaces.

8. The method according to claim 6, characterized in that, During the operation phase, the secondary cooling circuit includes a cold plate, a rear door heat exchanger or an in-row air conditioner, and is equipped with a variable frequency pump to achieve adjustment according to the heat load.

9. The method according to claim 6, characterized in that, During the operation and maintenance phase, the dry passage conditions include setting humidity thresholds and leakage rate thresholds; after maintenance is completed, the pressure maintenance curve of the docking section and leakage sensor data are included in the operation and maintenance records for long-term health assessment.

10. The method according to claim 6, characterized in that, During the extreme working condition safety response phase, the quick disconnection of water, electricity and data interfaces is a dry quick-connect or a disconnectable through-cabin connection structure; during post-disaster recovery, interface checks and docking section drainage verification are performed sequentially, and connections and loads are gradually restored.

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