Method for cooling a plant and cooling system with energy recovery

Abstract

The invention relates to a method for cooling a system and a cooling system with energy recovery. In order to provide a method for cooling a system and a cooling system that enable efficient cooling of a system, and in particular of IT systems, with high efficiency and correspondingly low energy consumption, are also particularly resource-saving and, in particular, have low water consumption, and furthermore ensure a particularly long service life of the system through particularly low-contamination and corrosion-protective operation, the method steps are initially conducted by passing a liquid cooling medium in a primary circuit over the system to be cooled for heat absorption, followed by feeding the heated cooling medium via an outlet opening onto disks of a disk-type turbine with a power generator coupled to a shaft of the disk-type turbine.A turbine chamber with a reduced ambient pressure is provided at the outlet side of the disc turbine, so that the liquid, heated cooling medium evaporates in the region of the outlet opening and drives the disc turbine disks in gaseous form. Heat is then exchanged between the cooling medium and a refrigerant conducted in a secondary circuit by means of a heat exchanger arrangement within the disc turbine, followed by feeding the heated refrigerant to a turbine disk with outlet nozzles, wherein the refrigerant is evaporated upstream of the outlet nozzles and / or within the turbine disk. The turbine disk is also coupled to the power generator. The pre-cooled cooling medium coming from the heat exchanger arrangement is then condensed by means of the cooled refrigerant that has escaped from the turbine disk due to evaporation.

Description

[0001] The invention relates to a method for cooling a system with energy recovery, a cooling system with energy recovery for cooling a system, a cooling housing for a server blade or an electronic system to be cooled for the cooling system and a use of a cooling system for cooling at least one IT system.

[0002] Numerous state-of-the-art solutions for cooling systems, particularly electrical systems that generate waste heat, such as servers in IT centers, are known. One common cooling solution involves a constant exchange of air in or around the system to be cooled with fresh, cool air. However, this presents a number of problems. Such air cooling is relatively inefficient, so the large amount of fresh air required requires powerful fans with high energy consumption. Furthermore, the supplied air must at least be dedusted and dried to prevent contamination, increasing clogging of ventilation openings, and condensation of humidity on electrical components.Finally, the temperature difference is small, especially in summer, due to the hot outside air, so that the supplied air must be pre-cooled with additional, high energy expenditure in order to ensure sufficient cooling performance.

[0003] Alternatively, cooling systems based on a coolant, particularly water cooling systems, are also known, but these also have high energy consumption. Another problem is that the water used as a cooling medium, after absorbing heat in the server area, is either released into the environment, which leads to additional high water consumption and environmentally harmful water warming, or has to be cooled again after absorbing heat, which is energy- and time-consuming. Overall, the high energy consumption combined with the relatively low efficiency of these cooling systems leads to high operating costs and a significant environmental impact, particularly due to the CO2 emissions associated with energy generation.

[0004] The invention is therefore based on the object of providing a method for cooling a system and a cooling system which enable efficient cooling of a system and in particular of IT systems with a high degree of efficiency and correspondingly low energy consumption, are also particularly resource-saving and in particular have low water consumption and furthermore ensure a particularly long service life of the system through particularly low-contamination and corrosion-protective operation.

[0005] The object is achieved according to the invention by a method for cooling a system according to claim 1, by a cooling system for cooling a system according to claim 5, by a cooling housing for a server blade or an electronic system to be cooled according to claim 14, and by a use of a cooling system for cooling at least one IT system according to claim 15. Advantageous developments are specified in the dependent claims.

[0006] The method according to the invention for cooling a system, in particular as part of a circulation process, comprises the following process steps: first, passing a liquid cooling medium in a primary circuit over the system to be cooled for heat absorption by the cooling medium, followed by feeding the heated cooling medium via an outlet opening onto disks of a disk turbine with a power generator coupled to a shaft of the disk turbine, wherein a turbine chamber with a reduced ambient pressure is provided on the output side of the disk turbine, so that the liquid, heated cooling medium evaporates in the region of the outlet opening and drives the disks of the disk turbine in gaseous form.Subsequently, a heat exchange takes place by means of a heat exchanger arrangement within the disc rotor turbine between the heated cooling medium supplied to the disc rotor turbine and a refrigerant supplied in a secondary circuit, followed by feeding the refrigerant heated in the heat exchanger arrangement to a turbine disc with outlet nozzles for the rotational drive of the turbine disc, wherein the refrigerant is evaporated in front of the outlet nozzles and / or within the turbine disc and wherein the turbine disc is also coupled to the power generator via a shaft.Subsequently, the gaseous cooling medium coming from the heat exchanger arrangement and pre-cooled there is condensed by means of the coolant that has cooled due to evaporation and escaped from the turbine disk. The condensed and cold cooling medium is then kept ready for recirculation over the system to be cooled and / or immediately recirculated to the system to be cooled, in particular in the direct circuit. In parallel and / or independently, the refrigerant is compressed and / or condensed, in particular by means of a compressor and / or in a condenser, and kept ready for recirculation to the heat exchanger arrangement of the disk-type turbine.

[0007] The cooling system according to the invention with energy recovery for cooling a system, in particular an IT system, has a primary circuit containing a cooling medium, a secondary circuit containing a refrigerant, and a cooling housing through which the cooling medium can flow for cooling a system component arranged therein, wherein the cooling medium heats up during cooling of the system component. Furthermore, a disc-type turbine connected to a power generator via a rotatable shaft is provided, having discs for drive by means of the evaporating and thereby accelerated cooling medium fed thereto through an outlet opening of a supply line from the cooling housing. A heat exchanger arrangement is arranged within the disc-type turbine between the primary circuit and the secondary circuit, so that the gaseous, heated cooling medium can transfer its thermal energy to the liquid refrigerant.For further energy generation, a turbine disk is also provided, which is also directly or indirectly connected to the power generator via the rotating shaft. It has outlet nozzles for the heated refrigerant coming from the heat exchanger arrangement, preferably evaporated at or before the outlet nozzles. To prepare the cooling medium for further use, particularly in a circulation process, a condensation unit is provided for condensing the cooling medium pre-cooled in the heat exchanger arrangement, particularly using the refrigerant coming from the outlet nozzles and cooled during evaporation. Finally, the cooling system has a compressor and / or a condenser for returning the refrigerant to its initial liquid state.

[0008] In addition, the invention also relates to a cooling housing for a server blade or an electronic system to be cooled, in particular as part of the cooling system according to the invention or for use in the method according to the invention, with an inlet for supplying cold, liquid cooling medium, an outlet for conducting heated, liquid cooling medium to a disc rotor turbine and an interior space for accommodating the system to be cooled between the inlet and the outlet, wherein the interior space and in particular the walls of the interior space are formed such that the cooling medium can be held therein at a liquid pressure greater than 1 bar, preferably greater than 2 bar, particularly preferably between 1.2 bar and 10 bar and very particularly preferably between 1.5 bar and 5 bar, in particular in order to also keep the heated cooling medium in the liquid state,For this purpose, the wall preferably has support struts and particularly preferably a honeycomb or diamond-shaped support grid structure and / or at least part of the walls has a concave curvature. In general, however, it is also conceivable to direct the cooling medium through the cooling housing and / or over the system to be cooled, in particular a server blade, without pressure or at only a slight overpressure, preferably between 0.01 bar and 2 bar, particularly preferably between 0.05 bar and 1 bar, and most particularly preferably between 0.1 bar and 0.5 bar.

[0009] Finally, one aspect of the present invention is directed to the use of a cooling system according to the invention for cooling at least one IT system, in particular at least one server having server blades, wherein the cooling medium is passed directly through cooling housings, in particular cooling housings according to the invention, for the components to be cooled, preferably the server blades and particularly preferably each of the server blades.

[0010] The inventors recognized that high efficiency and low energy consumption can only be achieved through efficient energy recovery from the waste heat of the cooling process, which would otherwise be released as unused waste heat. Furthermore, the kinetic energy of the cooling medium can also be harnessed. This is particularly valuable for cooling IT centers, data processing centers, and / or data hubs, but also for any other heat-generating systems, such as solar systems and, in particular, solar panels. The solution according to the invention enables a significant increase in the efficiency and effectiveness of the cooling system by generating electricity from waste heat and kinetic energy. Overall, an energy recovery of approximately 30% can typically be achieved.This results in savings in CO2 and energy allowances, and unlike air cooling, this cooling method prevents dust accumulation and corrosion on electrical equipment. Furthermore, space is saved, and dehumidification and dust removal of the supply air are not necessary, which further saves energy and simplifies the overall process and the required equipment.

[0011] According to the invention, the method and the cooling system are each provided for cooling a system. This system can initially be designed as desired, consist of any number of components, and be constructed for any purpose. This is preferably a system that heats up during operation or generates waste heat, which is then at least partially, preferably largely, dissipated by the cooling according to the invention. The system is preferably an electrically operated, power-consuming and / or heat-generating system or component. Particularly preferably, this is, at least partially, an electronic system. In particular, IT and / or computer systems, for example servers or server blades, are conceivable in this case. However, the method according to the invention and the cooling system according to the invention can also be used for cooling photovoltaic systems, and in particular solar panels or photovoltaic modules.Cooling of any production or industrial processes is also conceivable. However, it is generally preferred that the system to be cooled does not exceed a temperature of 100°C, particularly preferably 80°C, and most preferably 70°C. Cooling also preferably takes place in a temperature range between 0°C and 100°C, particularly preferably between 10°C and 90°C, and most preferably between 20°C or room or ambient temperature and 70°C.

[0012] Cooling in the sense of the invention is understood to mean a reduction in temperature or a removal of heat. For this purpose, according to the invention, a cooling medium is provided in a primary circuit, wherein the cooling medium has the task of absorbing the heat in the area of ​​the system to be cooled and subsequently releasing it again outside the system to be cooled. Accordingly, the cooling medium is preferably also a heat-conducting medium. The heat is preferably absorbed by the cooling medium in direct contact with the system to be cooled, wherein the cooling medium is particularly preferably at least in contact with a housing and / or at least one heat sink on or in the system to be cooled. The cooling medium particularly preferably flows around or through the system to be cooled, at least in sections and very particularly preferably essentially completely.For this purpose, preferably at least a portion of the system to be cooled, and particularly preferably the entire system, for example, a server blade or a computing unit, is arranged within a cooling housing through which the cooling medium flows. The cooling housing is preferably also part of the primary circuit and / or completely sealed from the environment, so that no cooling medium can escape.

[0013] The system to be cooled can be arranged arbitrarily within the cooling housing, and the cooling housing can, in principle, be designed arbitrarily. However, the cooling housing is preferably formed and / or the system is arranged within the cooling housing such that the parts of the system requiring the greatest cooling are located in the region of an inlet, and / or the parts of the system with the lowest cooling requirement and / or the greatest heat generation are located in the region of an outlet of the cooling housing. An arrangement of the parts of the system with decreasing cooling requirement and / or increasing waste heat generation along the flow direction of the cooling medium between the inlet and the outlet is also preferred.

[0014] In principle, however, it is also conceivable for the cooling medium to be only indirectly connected to the system to be cooled. For this purpose, for example, a heat sink can be arranged on the system to be cooled, through which the cooling medium flows. Furthermore, it is also conceivable for a further circuit to be in contact with the system to be cooled upstream of the primary circuit, and then particularly preferably the contact or heat exchange with the cooling medium in the primary circuit takes place by means of a heat exchanger. For this purpose, it is particularly preferred that the heat of the system to be cooled is removed by means of a coolant, with the coolant very particularly preferably flowing through or around the system to be cooled. The coolant is then preferably guided in a closed circuit and in particular circulated by means of a pump.The circuit preferably further comprises a heat exchanger through which the cooling medium flows on the secondary side, so that the heat is transferred from the coolant to the cooling medium, and the cooling medium can then be fed to the disc turbine. In this case, the cooling medium does not come into direct contact with the system to be cooled. This approach is particularly advantageous when an expensive cooling medium is to be used, particularly due to advantageous properties for use with the disc turbine, in which case only a small volume of cooling medium is required, since the system to be cooled is cooled or flowed through with the much larger volume of coolant.

[0015] The inventive conducting of the cooling medium over the system to be cooled is generally understood to mean bringing the cooling medium into at least partial, indirect or direct contact with a part of the system for heat absorption. This is preferably achieved by flowing or conducting the cooling medium through a cooling housing and / or through the system to be cooled. Furthermore, the conducting of the cooling medium over the system to be cooled is preferably carried out in a continuous flow and / or at a substantially constant flow rate. Furthermore, the conducting can also be regulated and / or dependent on the heating of the cooling medium, for which purpose the temperature of the cooling medium is then preferably recorded, in particular in or immediately after the system to be cooled.

[0016] A disc turbine is basically understood to be a device in which a flow of liquid and / or gaseous cooling medium transfers at least a portion, in particular the predominant portion, of its kinetic energy to one or more disks due to viscosity and adhesion, wherein the disc turbine preferably has no significant rotating components apart from the shaft, the disks and the base body including the heat exchanger arrangement. The disc turbine is particularly preferably designed without blades. Furthermore, it is preferred that all components of the disc turbine are either static, i.e. arranged immovably relative to the turbine chamber, or rotate together with the shaft, the disks and the base body.

[0017] For interaction with the heated cooling medium, the disc-type turbine has a plurality of discs arranged at intervals from one another and / or in parallel. All of the discs preferably have an identical diameter and / or are completely round. Particularly preferably, all of the discs are identical to one another. In principle, the discs can be made of any desired material, such as a composite material, a carbon fiber reinforced material, metal, or plastic. However, the discs are preferably formed essentially from a single material, particularly preferably from a material with high thermal conductivity and / or with a low thermal expansion coefficient, and very particularly preferably from a metal or a metal alloy. Aluminum or steel or a corresponding alloy of one of these metals is particularly preferred.Furthermore, the discs are preferably thin, with the material thickness of the disc preferably being less than 5% of the radius, more preferably less than 1% of the radius, most preferably less than 0.5% of the radius, and most preferably less than 0.1% of the radius. Furthermore, it is preferred that the discs extend entirely in one plane and / or have a smooth and / or completely closed surface.

[0018] In addition, the discs are preferably arranged at intervals from one another, with particular preference for multiple discs, in particular all discs, to be spaced identically from one another, or for the gap between adjacent, parallel discs to be identical for all discs. However, it is also conceivable for the discs to be arranged in groups, in particular with an identical gap width within the group and with a different gap between the discs of two adjacent groups.

[0019] To drive the disc rotor turbine and in particular the discs, at least one stream of heated cooling medium is directed, in particular tangentially, onto the discs. The stream can be directed across the full width, i.e. onto all parallel discs at the same time. It is also conceivable to direct a stream of cooling medium onto the discs at at least two positions and optionally also at several positions along the circumference of the disc, with the orientation preferably being tangential in each case. According to the invention, the stream of heated cooling medium is directed onto the discs by means of at least one or more outlet openings, with each outlet opening preferably being designed as a nozzle, for example a Laval nozzle, which particularly preferably directs the stream tangentially onto the parallel discs.

[0020] According to the invention, the liquid, heated cooling medium evaporates in the region of the outlet opening and drives the disks of the disc turbine in gaseous form. Furthermore, it is generally also conceivable for the cooling medium to only partially evaporate and be directed partially and / or completely as a liquid onto the disks of the disc turbine, although operation with completely evaporated cooling medium is clearly preferred. According to the invention, a turbine chamber is provided at least on the outlet side of the disc turbine, i.e., at least in the region in which the cooling medium exits the disc turbine.Preferably, the disc rotor turbine is arranged entirely within the turbine chamber, wherein the turbine chamber can also be divided into several, optionally separated areas, for example an inlet area with the outlet opening and a discharge area for the cooling medium emerging from the disc rotor turbine.

[0021] To support the evaporation of the cooling medium in the region of the outlet opening, the turbine chamber has a reduced internal pressure, wherein the internal pressure is preferably lower than the ambient pressure or normal pressure. The internal pressure of the turbine chamber is particularly preferably less than 1 bar, particularly preferably less than 900 mbar, and most preferably less than 800 mbar. It is also preferred that the internal pressure of the turbine chamber is adjustable in order to regulate the evaporation rate of the cooling medium.

[0022] While the kinetic energy of the cooling medium evaporated and accelerated in the outlet opening is absorbed by the disks of the disk turbine or converted into rotation of the disk turbine, according to the invention the thermal energy of the heated cooling medium should also continue to be used in addition to its use for evaporation. For this purpose, a refrigerant is provided in a secondary circuit in order to be able to make the best possible use of at least part of the remaining thermal energy of the cooling medium. The secondary circuit, like the primary circuit, is preferably a closed circuit. Preferably, at least the circulation of the cooling medium is ensured by active pumping, with a pump preferably being arranged in the primary circuit. Furthermore, it is preferred that the refrigerant is under pressure in the entire secondary circuit, i.e.the internal pressure of the secondary circuit is consistently higher than the external pressure. This pressure is preferably higher than 5 bar, particularly preferably higher than 8 bar, and most preferably between 8 bar and 10 bar.

[0023] According to the invention, the disc-rotor turbine has a heat exchanger arrangement which is intended to enable the heat exchange according to the invention from the heated and preferably temporarily evaporated cooling medium to the refrigerant. The heat exchanger arrangement is preferably formed from a plurality of components or assemblies, each of which can be formed integrally with the base body or arranged thereon. However, no part of the heat exchanger arrangement is preferably movable relative to the base body when the disc-rotor turbine is in the ready-to-operate state, or accordingly forms part of a multi-piece base body. Furthermore, all parts of the heat exchanger arrangement are preferably arranged in a region between the shaft and the parallel discs, in particular the inner side in the radial direction of the parallel discs, and / or adjacent to another component of the base body and / or adjacent to another part of the heat exchanger arrangement.Furthermore, it is preferred that several parts, and particularly preferably all parts, of the heat exchanger arrangement are in thermal contact with one another, and for this purpose, the parts of the heat exchanger arrangement are in direct contact with one another and / or are arranged on both sides of a part of the base body in direct contact therewith. Furthermore, it is preferred that a heat-conducting medium, in particular a heat-conducting paste, a metal paste, or so-called liquid metal, is provided between two parts of the heat exchanger arrangement and / or between a part of the heat exchanger arrangement and the base body to improve heat conduction.

[0024] Furthermore, a complete separation of the primary circuit, i.e. the cooling medium, and the secondary circuit, i.e. the refrigerant, is provided throughout the entire system, within the disc turbine and / or in particular by means of the heat exchanger arrangement. Furthermore, at least the heat exchanger arrangement and in particular all components coming into contact with the refrigerant are preferably designed such that superheating of the refrigerant can be achieved, for which purpose the refrigerant is preferably under pressure. The heat exchanger arrangement is preferably made of metal and / or a thermally conductive material, in particular of aluminum or steel or a corresponding alloy of one of these metals.

[0025] In order to achieve reliable separation of the primary circuit and the secondary circuit within the disc turbine, any sealing system can be provided. However, this presents the difficulty that the secondary circuit runs through both the stationary part and the rotating part of the disc turbine. To achieve a particularly reliable seal, particularly when using ammonia as a refrigerant, a triple shaft seal is particularly preferably provided between the stationary part and the rotating part of the disc turbine, in particular with four shaft rings and thus three sealing chambers in between. In this case, the middle sealing chamber is particularly preferably filled with water, in particular filled with water under excess pressure, in order to achieve particularly good protection against ammonia leakage.The external sealing spaces are preferably filled with gas, in particular with nitrogen, and / or also have an increased internal pressure compared to the environment.

[0026] In order to be able to arrange the disc-type turbine and in particular the discs so as to be rotatable relative to the environment, the turbine chamber and / or a housing, at least one shaft, preferably exactly one shaft, is provided, wherein at least some of the discs, preferably all of the discs, rotate about the central longitudinal axis of the shaft. The shaft can in principle be formed as a component or as an assembly consisting of several parts and made of any desired material, although a metal, a composite material, a carbon fiber reinforced material and / or a plastic is again preferred. However, a metal, in particular aluminum, an aluminum alloy, steel or a corresponding alloy is particularly preferred. The rotatable fixing of the shaft to the housing, oron a component connected to the housing, is preferably carried out by means of bearings, in particular ball or roller bearings, wherein particularly preferably at least one bearing is arranged on the shaft on both sides of the base body.

[0027] In order to convert the rotation of the disks generated by the kinetic energy of the cooling medium into electrical energy, the shaft is coupled directly or indirectly to a power generator. The power generator can initially be any device for converting rotational movement into electrical energy.

[0028] The turbine disk can also be designed in any way, creating rotation that is then used to generate electrical energy. A steam turbine or another turbine with blades could be used for this purpose. However, a turbine disk with directed outlet openings or nozzles for rotational drive is preferred, with the refrigerant still preferably being directed into the interior of the turbine disk and then exiting through the outlet nozzles. To achieve the best possible rotational drive, the refrigerant is preferably completely evaporated by the time it exits the outlet nozzles.

[0029] The turbine disk can have its own rotating shaft or be connected to the shaft of the disc turbine, so that at least two devices, the disc turbine and the turbine disk, act on a common shaft and jointly drive the power generator. Accordingly, the turbine disk can be rigidly connected to the shaft of the disc turbine. However, it is preferred that the power generator and / or the disc turbine and / or the turbine disk be mechanically decoupled from the shaft or decoupled in at least one direction of rotation, for example, to enable different speeds of rotation of the disc turbine and the turbine disk.

[0030] Such decoupling can be achieved in any way, in particular by means of any freewheel mechanism in at least one direction of rotation. However, this is preferably done via a planetary gear, the planet gears of which are particularly preferably connected to one another via a plate. The planet gears connected in this way very particularly preferably engage, on the one hand, with a convex gear mounted axially on the shaft, and, on the other hand, with the turbine disk or disc turbine, in particular by means of a concave gear or toothed disk fixed to the turbine disk or disc turbine, which can rotate freely on the shaft. The resulting speed of the connecting plate then produces a total speed which is the result of the speeds of the shaft and the turbine disk or disc turbine divided by the transmission ratio of the planetary gear.

[0031] According to the invention, the cooling medium is condensed by means of the refrigerant, for which purpose the refrigerant is preferably selected such that its temperature after evaporation and / or exit from the turbine disk is lower than the temperature of the evaporated cooling medium exiting the disk turbine. Particularly preferably, the temperature of the refrigerant is lower than the boiling or condensation temperature of the cooling medium, so that the latter liquefies exclusively due to heat being transferred to the refrigerant. This preferably takes place without active cooling of the refrigerant and / or the cooling medium. Alternatively, an external coolant or an external cooling device can also be provided, in particular to assist condensation or to increase the condensation rate.

[0032] A preferred embodiment of the cooling method according to the invention provides that the cooling medium in the primary circuit is maintained at overpressure at least in the region of the system to be cooled and / or upstream of the outlet opening to the disc-type turbine in order to prevent evaporation or boiling of the cooling medium within this region of the primary circuit and in particular within a cooling housing of the cooling system. Additionally or alternatively, it is preferred that in the primary circuit, the reduced ambient pressure in the turbine chamber on the outlet side is so low that the pressurized, heated, in particular superheated, cooling medium immediately evaporates in the region of the outlet opening. Overpressure initially only means its increased pressure compared to the ambient pressure and / or the pressure in the turbine chamber.The fluid pressure is preferably greater than 0.1 bar, more preferably greater than 0.5 bar, most preferably between 0.5 bar and 1.5 bar, and especially preferably between 0.8 bar and 1.2 bar. However, higher pressures are generally also conceivable, for example 2 bar, 5 bar, or between 1 bar and 10 bar. The level of the overpressure can be controlled or regulated by controlling or regulating the reduced ambient pressure in the turbine chamber and / or by a control or regulating valve upstream of or in the region of the outlet opening of the primary circuit to the disks of the disk turbine.

[0033] Preferably, the condensation of the pre-cooled cooling medium discharged from the disc-type turbine into the turbine chamber takes place by introducing it into a heat exchanger through which the cooled refrigerant discharged from the turbine disk flows and / or by flowing around a container of the cooling medium, in particular at least a portion and particularly preferably the entire outlet-side turbine chamber, with the cooled refrigerant discharged from the turbine disk. Preferably, at least a portion and particularly preferably substantially the entire turbine chamber is surrounded by a shell through which the cooled refrigerant discharged from the turbine disk is conducted, wherein the refrigerant is most preferably conducted through the shell and / or around the turbine chamber in a countercurrent direction to the flow direction of the cooling medium.In addition to condensing the cooling medium, the cooling medium is further cooled by means of the refrigerant to well below the boiling point of the cooling medium, with cooling to a temperature below 25 °C being preferred, below 20 °C being particularly preferred and below 15 °C being most preferred.

[0034] The condensed cooling medium can in principle be removed in any desired manner, with a preferred embodiment of the method according to the invention in which the cooling medium is pumped out after condensation by means of a pump, in particular by means of a three-piston pump, in order to maintain the reduced ambient pressure in the turbine chamber. Preferably, the reduced ambient pressure in the turbine chamber is controlled and particularly preferably regulated by means of the pump, in particular via the pumping rate. Additionally or alternatively, the pressure of the cooling medium and / or the refrigerant can be controlled via a temperature sensor, in particular in the region upstream of the outlet opening and / or at the inlet to the heat exchanger arrangement of the disc turbine.

[0035] In principle, any substance or mixture of substances suitable for this purpose can be used as the cooling medium, whereby it is preferred that the cooling medium in the primary circuit has electrically insulating properties for conducting the cooling medium in direct contact with an electrical system and / or is a dielectric liquid and / or comprises at least one fluoroketone and is preferably a single fluoroketone or a mixture of different fluoroketones. Additionally or alternatively, it is preferred that the cooling medium has a boiling point between 30°C and 120°C, preferably between 40°C and 100°C, particularly preferably between 45°C and 80°C, very particularly preferably between 45°C and 65°C, and in particular of 49°C at atmospheric pressure. Furthermore, the cooling medium preferably has no ozone depletion potential (ODP = 0) and / or only a low global warming potential, in particular of 1 (GWP = 1, 100-year ITH).In addition, the cooling medium preferably has a high heat capacity, resulting in particularly good heat transport capacity, with the heat capacity preferably being at least 800 J / gK, more preferably at least 1000 J / gK, and most preferably at least 1100 J / gK. As an alternative to one or more fluoroketones, a silicon alkane, in particular silicon octane, or a mixture thereof is also conceivable as the cooling medium. Furthermore, the cooling medium can be based essentially on unsaturated aliphatic hydrocarbons, for example, 1-octene or 1-decene. In this case, the boiling point is preferably above 120 °C.

[0036] The refrigerant can also initially be any substance or mixture of substances suitable for this purpose. However, it is preferred that the refrigerant in the secondary circuit contains ammonia and particularly preferably is essentially ammonia and / or has a lower evaporation temperature than the cooling medium and / or the evaporation temperature of the refrigerant at a pressure between 8 and 10 bar is above 10 °C and particularly preferably above 20 °C. As an alternative to ammonia, carbon dioxide, for example, is also conceivable as a refrigerant.

[0037] Furthermore, a preferred development of the cooling system and / or method according to the invention is one in which the heated refrigerant coming from the disc turbine is fed, in particular axially or via a hollow shaft, to a turbine disk formed as a hollow disk with Laval nozzles as outlet nozzles, and / or an internal outlet valve and / or an evaporation nozzle is provided between the disc turbine and the turbine disk, in the region of which the refrigerant evaporates. The Laval nozzles or any other outlet openings preferably discharge the evaporated refrigerant counter to the direction of rotation of the hollow disk to support its rotation.Instead of the Laval nozzle, the outlet nozzle can in principle also have a different shape and / or design, although a Laval nozzle is preferred due to the conversion of thermal energy of the refrigerant into kinetic energy, since on the one hand more torque is generated for the power generator and on the other hand the temperature of the refrigerant is further reduced, which is advantageous for the subsequent cooling of the cooling medium for condensation of the cooling medium by means of the refrigerant.

[0038] A preferred embodiment of the cooling system according to the invention and / or of the cooling method comprises a storage tank for the cooling medium and / or for the refrigerant, in particular for subsequently conducting the cooling medium over the system to be cooled and / or for supplying the refrigerant to the heat exchanger arrangement of the disc turbine. The storage tank can in principle be formed as desired, with the storage tank preferably being formed as a pressure tank for keeping the cooling medium and / or the refrigerant available at the required operating pressure. Furthermore, the storage tank preferably has precisely a single, enclosed interior space. In addition, the storage tank preferably has precisely one inlet and / or precisely one outlet for a cooling medium or refrigerant line. Furthermore, it is preferred that the storage tank is at least partially and particularly preferably completely insulated.In principle, any insulation material can be chosen, although a foam material and in particular an aerogel are particularly preferred.

[0039] Furthermore, an embodiment of the cooling system and / or method according to the invention is preferred in which an expansion vessel is arranged on the storage container and / or on the cooling housing, which expansion vessel is preferably connected via a T-piece to an outlet of the storage container or the cooling housing and / or has a protective or inert gas filling. The expansion vessel is provided to prevent excess pressure, to equalize pressure and / or to prevent damage in the event of the cooling medium and / or the refrigerant beginning to boil. The expansion vessel is preferably filled partly with a gas phase and partly with a liquid phase of the cooling medium or the refrigerant, wherein the gas phase typically consists of a mixture of the evaporated cooling medium or refrigerant and the inert gas.Any gas or gas mixture that does not react, or at least reacts only very slowly and / or to a very small extent, with the cooling medium or refrigerant can be used as an inert gas. In particular, noble gases, nitrogen, carbon dioxide, and / or sulfur hexafluoride are conceivable. Nitrogen is particularly preferred due to its easy availability and low cost.

[0040] In order to achieve particular reliability and to protect the system to be cooled particularly well, an advantageous embodiment of the cooling system and / or method according to the invention has an emergency cooling system on the primary circuit for cooling the system in the event of a failure of the disc turbine and / or a component in the secondary circuit of the cooling system, for which purpose a heat exchanger and / or further cooling system for cooling the cooling medium is preferably arranged in the primary circuit parallel to the secondary circuit. The further cooling system can preferably be operated completely independently of the cooling system according to the invention and / or is not connected to it. The further cooling system can be any system for directly cooling the cooling medium or for cooling the cooling medium via a heat exchanger.

[0041] Although the disc rotor turbine can be formed in any way to utilize the kinetic and thermal energy of the cooling medium, it is preferred that it has a plurality of parallel discs arranged at a distance from one another for absorbing kinetic energy of the heated cooling medium directed tangentially thereto and / or a shaft, in particular a hollow shaft, for rotatably fixing the parallel discs relative to a housing and / or the turbine chamber. The disc rotor turbine can comprise a base body arranged between the shaft and the discs. An inlet for the cold refrigerant can be arranged on one side of the base body, in particular at one end of the hollow shaft, and / or an outlet for the refrigerant heated and / or evaporated by heat exchange with the heated cooling medium can be arranged, in particular at the other end of the hollow shaft.Alternatively or additionally, the disc rotor turbine can have one or more outlet openings for the cooling medium coming from the parallel discs in a gas flow direction behind the heat exchanger arrangement and / or in the region of the base body, wherein the heat exchanger arrangement for conducting the coolant is preferably provided at least in sections within the base body for absorbing the thermal energy from the heated cooling medium coming from the parallel discs.

[0042] The base body preferably extends exclusively in the area between the outer side of the shaft and / or the inner side of the parallel discs. In particular, it is preferred that the base body does not protrude into the area of ​​the parallel discs. The primary task of the base body is to fix the functional components, such as the heat exchanger arrangement and the parallel discs, and to keep them rotatable. Although the base body can have any shape for this purpose, the base body is preferably disc-shaped and / or cylindrical. Again, it is preferred that the base body is made of a metal, a composite material, a carbon fiber reinforced material and / or a plastic. However, a metal, in particular aluminum, an aluminum alloy, steel or a corresponding alloy or alternatively a material with high thermal conductivity is particularly preferred.

[0043] In addition to its function as the basic component of the disc turbine or for securing the remaining components, the base body can also have other functions. In particular, it is preferred that lines for the cooling medium are provided in the material of the base body in order to conduct the cooling medium between various components of the heat exchanger arrangement and / or from a component of the heat exchanger arrangement to an outlet and / or from an inlet to a component of the heat exchanger arrangement.

[0044] The heat exchanger arrangement can be formed in any desired manner, but a design of the cooling system according to the invention is preferred in which the base body of the disc rotor turbine has a central central disc and the heat exchanger arrangement is formed from a plurality of heat exchanger segments arranged on both sides of the central disc, wherein the central disc preferably has return lines in the interior for conducting heated and / or evaporated refrigerant from the respective heat exchanger segment to the outlet and in particular to the interior of the hollow shaft.

[0045] In this case, an embodiment of the cooling system according to the invention is particularly preferred in which each heat exchanger segment of the disc-type turbine is designed for arrangement on one side and / or extending over part of the circumference of the central disc and / or has two heat exchanger sections arranged successively along the circumferential direction of the central disc. The first heat exchanger section is preferably designed to conduct the heated cooling medium from the spaces between the parallel discs to lateral outlet slots and at the same time to absorb heat from the heated cooling medium. The second heat exchanger section preferably has a receiving opening on an underside for conducting still cold refrigerant from the inlet or outlet.from the hollow shaft, an inner heat exchange medium line extending substantially over the entire surface of the second heat exchanger section and / or from the inner region near the shaft to the outer region near the disc in the heat exchanger segment, and on an upper inner surface of the second heat exchanger section, a discharge opening directed towards the central disc for discharging the heated and / or evaporated refrigerant, in particular to the outlet arranged within the hollow shaft.

[0046] Although the heat exchanger segments can be arranged arbitrarily on the base body, it is preferred that the heat exchanger segments extend on both sides of the base body and in particular on both sides of the central disk over the entire circumference and / or radially completely between the shaft and the parallel disks. Furthermore, the same number of heat exchanger segments, in particular three heat exchanger segments each, is preferably arranged on each side of the base body. Particularly preferably, the heat exchanger segments on the opposite sides of the base body or the central disk are shifted relative to one another by half the length of the heat exchanger segment or by one heat exchanger segment in the circumferential direction, so that a first heat exchanger section of a first heat exchanger segment on one side is arranged opposite a second heat exchanger section of a second heat exchanger segment on the other side.

[0047] An embodiment of the cooling system according to the invention and the method according to the invention are explained in more detail below with reference to the drawings. The figures show: Fig. 1 a schematic perspective view of a disc rotor turbine with a sectional view of a turbine chamber, Fig. 2 a schematic sectional view through the center of the Fig. 1 shown disc turbine with a heat exchanger arrangement and parallel discs, Fig. 3 a schematic perspective view of the Fig. 1 shows the essential components of the disc turbine with a transparent representation of an outer cover of the heat exchanger arrangement, and Fig. 4 a schematic enlarged view of an internal exhaust valve arranged within a shaft of the disc turbine.

[0048] Due to the very high energy requirements of IT centers, such as data processing centers or data hubs, it makes economic and ecological sense to capture the waste heat generated and convert it back into electrical energy, which can effectively increase the cooling efficiency significantly.

[0049] The method and cooling system were developed for this purpose. A liquid cooling medium with electrically insulating properties cools server blades in a data center by directing the cooling medium directly over the server blades within cooling housings. A special feature of this embodiment of the method according to the invention is that the cooling medium is kept at a slight overpressure in the cooling housings of the server blades, thus preventing it from boiling.

[0050] The thus superheated cooling medium, which has a temperature of approximately 55 °C - 60 °C, is then directed through a cooling medium supply line 20 via a nozzle as an outlet opening onto several parallel discs 1 of a disc-type turbine 2, wherein the disc-type turbine 2 is connected on the output side to a turbine chamber 4 with a negative pressure (see Fig. 1). The cooling medium, a mixture of fluoroketones with a boiling point of approximately 50°C, evaporates in gaseous form during or after exiting the nozzle and drives the disc turbine 2. During this step, part of the thermal energy of the cooling medium is used for the phase transition and the associated acceleration of the evaporated cooling medium in the area of ​​the outlet opening formed as a nozzle. The kinetic energy of the evaporated, still hot cooling medium can be almost completely absorbed by the disc turbine 2 and leads to a rotation of the discs 1 around a shaft 3, which is coupled at one end to a power generator, so that electrical energy can be generated directly.

[0051] The heat remaining in the cooling medium can be absorbed by the disc turbine 2. For this purpose, the disc turbine 2 has a heat exchanger arrangement 5 through which the cooling medium is passed. To absorb the heat of the cooling medium, a liquid, cold refrigerant, in this case ammonia at 10 °C - 20 °C, is also introduced into the heat exchanger arrangement 5 (see Fig. 2 and Fig. 3). Preferably, a thermal oil is also added to the refrigerant. The refrigerant is under a pressure greater than 9 bar and absorbs the residual heat of the cooling medium, whereby the gaseous cooling medium cools further and the liquid refrigerant heats up, in particular to a temperature above the boiling point at normal or ambient pressure.

[0052] After heat absorption, the refrigerant is discharged via an internal outlet valve 22, which is mounted axially in the disc turbine 2, in particular inside the shaft 3 (see Fig.4), flowing out again. The internal outlet valve 22 is provided to regulate the amount of evaporated refrigerant discharged. In order to be able to regulate the thermodynamic parameters of the refrigerant, in particular its pressure and temperature, at the outlet 8, the internal outlet valve 22 also has a temperature and pressure sensor 23.

[0053] The liquid, heated refrigerant is then fed to a turbine disk, which has outlet nozzles designed as Laval nozzles for rotating the turbine disk. The refrigerant is evaporated as it is fed to the outlet nozzles, in particular by a reduction in pressure or by being released into an environment of reduced pressure. The outlet nozzles thus discharge the accelerated, gaseous refrigerant against the direction of rotation of the turbine disk, thereby accelerating the rotation of the turbine disk. The turbine disk is also connected to the power generator via a shaft, so that the rotation of the turbine disk also contributes to the generation of electrical energy. The disk-type turbine 2 and the turbine disk can be arranged on a common shaft 3 and / or decoupled from one another in the direction of rotation to allow different rotational speeds.

[0054] Due to the change in state of matter, the coolant assumes a significantly lower temperature. This very cold, gaseous coolant is fed into an outer shell surrounding a section of the turbine chamber 4, where it recondenses the previously evaporated coolant that escaped from a coolant outlet 21. This now cold, liquid coolant is pumped into a storage tank and can then be fed back to the server blades, allowing the circulation process to begin again.

[0055] The gaseous, slightly warmed, but still cold refrigerant is now liquefied again by means of a compressor and a suitably designed condenser and temporarily stored in a pressure storage tank in order to subsequently be fed back into the heat exchanger arrangement of the disc rotor turbine 2.

[0056] The cooling housing preferably has an inlet for the cold cooling medium in a lower area and an outlet for the heated cooling medium in an upper area. In order to optimally ensure the cooling requirements of the individual components of a server blade, it is advantageous to design the structure of the cooling housing and the arrangement of the server blade in the cooling housing in such a way that computer chips and components with a particularly high cooling requirement are positioned on a vertically standing board in a lower area of ​​the cooling housing. Components with a lower energy requirement or low waste heat or a higher temperature tolerance should ideally be arranged in the middle area. These are, for example, memory and communication components. Supply components and / orComponents are positioned, which can include rectifiers, diodes, voltage regulators, resistors and capacitors, as well as the power supply. These components typically dissipate a lot of heat, but their properties and functions are not limited at higher temperatures.

[0057] The cooling housing is preferably a server blade housing and / or has the shape of a rectangular cuboid into which the server blade is inserted with as much precision as possible. The cooling housing is preferably designed such that it does not bulge outwards under an internal pressure load of 1 - 2 bar. This is achieved by a concave shape of the largest housing surfaces. The volumes formed by the concave, inwardly curved surfaces are each supported by a lattice structure, in particular a honeycomb- or diamond-shaped lattice structure. In addition, such a lattice structure can also extend over the entire area of ​​at least one housing surface, preferably all housing surfaces.

[0058] Cavities in the grid structure and / or the outer walls of the cooling housings generally preferably have an insulating material, particularly an aerogel. The server blade maintains electrical and optical contact through pressure-tight, encapsulated spring-loaded terminals for the power supply and / or through optocouplers for data inputs and outputs. In addition, sensors, particularly pressure and / or temperature sensors for the cooling medium, can be provided for internal parameter acquisition. The cooling medium is supplied via self-sealing hose connections.

[0059] Finally, it is advantageous if the heated cooling medium exiting the outlets of the server blades' cooling housings is constantly under pressure. Therefore, T-pieces must be installed at the appropriate points in the outlet lines, and expansion tanks are connected to their branches. These expansion tanks contain rubber bladders filled with nitrogen as a protective gas. The nitrogen pressure must be high enough to prevent boiling within the lines and also within the cooling housings. List of reference symbols 1 slice 2 disc rotor turbines 3 Wave 4 Turbine room 5 Heat exchanger arrangement 6 basic bodies 7 Entrance 8 Outlet 9 Exit opening 10 Central disc 11 Heat exchanger segment 12 Return line 13 first heat exchanger section 14 second heat exchanger section 15 space 16 Outlet slot 17 Receiving opening 18 Heat exchange medium line 19 Discharge opening 20 Cooling medium supply line 21 Cooling medium discharge 22 internal exhaust valve 23 Temperature and / or pressure sensor

Claims

[1] Method for cooling a system with energy recovery, comprising the steps: - passing a liquid cooling medium in a primary circuit over the system to be cooled for heat absorption, - feeding the heated cooling medium via an outlet opening onto discs (1) of a disc turbine (2) with a power generator coupled to a shaft (3) of the disc turbine (2), wherein a turbine chamber (4) with a reduced ambient pressure is provided on the outlet side of the disc turbine (2), so that the liquid, heated cooling medium evaporates in the region of the outlet opening and drives the discs (1) of the disc turbine (2) in gaseous form, - heat exchange by means of a heat exchanger arrangement (5) within the disc turbine (2) between the heated cooling medium and a liquid refrigerant guided in a secondary circuit, - feeding the coolant heated in the heat exchanger arrangement (5) to a turbine disc with outlet nozzles for the rotational drive of the turbine disc, wherein the coolant is evaporated in front of the outlet nozzles and / or within the turbine disc and wherein the turbine disc is also coupled to the power generator, - Condensation of the gaseous cooling medium coming from the heat exchanger arrangement, which is pre-cooled there, by means of the coolant which has cooled down due to evaporation and has escaped from the turbine disc, - Keeping and / or directing the condensed and cold cooling medium back to the system to be cooled and - Compressing and condensing the refrigerant, in particular by means of a compressor and / or in a condenser, and keeping the refrigerant ready for renewed feeding to the heat exchanger arrangement (5) of the rotor turbine (2). [2] A method for cooling according to claim 1, characterized bythat in the primary circuit, at least in the region of the system to be cooled and / or in front of the outlet opening to the disc rotor turbine (2), the cooling medium is kept at an overpressure in order to prevent evaporation or boiling of the cooling medium within this region of the primary circuit, and / or in the primary circuit, the reduced ambient pressure in the outlet-side turbine chamber (4) is so low that the pressurized, heated, in particular superheated cooling medium evaporates in the region of the outlet opening. [3] A method for cooling according to claim 1 or 2, characterized bythat the condensation of the pre-cooled cooling medium discharged from the disc rotor turbine (2) into the turbine chamber (4) takes place by introducing it into a heat exchanger through which the cooled refrigerant discharged from the turbine disk flows and / or by flowing around a container of the cooling medium, in particular the entire outlet-side turbine chamber (4), with the cooled refrigerant discharged from the turbine disk. [4] Method for cooling according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the cooling medium is pumped out after condensation by means of a pump, in particular by means of a three-piston pump, in order to maintain the reduced ambient pressure in the turbine chamber (4), wherein preferably a control and particularly preferably a regulation of the reduced ambient pressure in the turbine chamber takes place by means of the pump, in particular via the pumping rate. [5] Cooling system with energy recovery for cooling a system, with - a primary circuit comprising a cooling medium, - a secondary circuit comprising a refrigerant, - a cooling housing through which the cooling medium can flow for cooling a system part arranged therein, - a disc rotor turbine (2) connected to a power generator via a rotatable shaft (3) with discs (1) for driving by means of the evaporating and thereby accelerated cooling medium fed thereto through an outlet opening of a supply line from the cooling housing, - a heat exchanger arrangement (5) arranged within the disc turbine (2) between the primary circuit and the secondary circuit, so that the gaseous, heated cooling medium can transfer thermal energy to the liquid refrigerant, - a turbine disk, also connected to the power generator via a rotatable shaft, with outlet nozzles for the heated refrigerant coming from the heat exchanger arrangement (5) and evaporated at and / or in front of the outlet nozzles, - a condensation unit for condensing the cooling medium pre-cooled in the heat exchanger arrangement (5), in particular by means of the refrigerant coming from the outlet nozzles and cooled during evaporation, and - a compressor and / or a condenser to liquefy the refrigerant. [6] Cooling system and / or method for cooling according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the cooling medium in the primary circuit has electrically insulating properties for cooling in direct contact with an electrical system and / or is a dielectric liquid and / or is at least one fluoroketone and / or has a boiling point between 45 °C and 75 °C at atmospheric pressure. [7] Cooling system and / or method for cooling according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the refrigerant in the secondary circuit is ammonia and / or has a lower evaporation temperature than the cooling medium and / or the boiling temperature of the refrigerant is above 10 °C at a pressure between 8 - 10 bar. [8] Cooling system and / or method for cooling according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the heated refrigerant coming from the disc-type turbine (2) is fed to a turbine disc formed as a hollow disc with Laval nozzles and / or an internal outlet valve (22) and / or an evaporation nozzle is provided in or between the disc-type turbine (2) and the turbine disc, in the region of which the refrigerant evaporates. [9] Cooling system and / or method for cooling according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterized bya storage tank for the cooling medium and / or for the refrigerant, wherein an expansion vessel is preferably arranged on the storage tank and / or on the cooling housing, which expansion vessel is preferably connected via a T-piece to an outlet of the storage tank or the cooling housing and / or preferably has an inert gas filling. [10] Cooling system and / or method for cooling according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterized by an emergency cooling system on the primary circuit for cooling the system in the event of a failure of the disc turbine or a component in the secondary circuit of the cooling system, for which purpose a heat exchanger and / or another cooling system for cooling the cooling medium is preferably arranged in the primary circuit parallel to the secondary circuit. [11] Cooling system and / or method for cooling according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterized bythat the disc rotor turbine (2) is designed to utilize the kinetic and thermal energy of the cooling medium and - several parallel discs (1) arranged at intervals from one another for absorbing kinetic energy of the heated cooling medium directed tangentially thereto and / or - a shaft (3), in particular a hollow shaft, for rotatably fixing the parallel discs (1) relative to a housing and / or the turbine chamber (4), and / or - a base body (6) arranged between the shaft (3) and the discs (1), and / or - an inlet (7) for the cold refrigerant on one side of the base body (6), in particular at one end of the hollow shaft, and / or - an outlet (8) for the coolant heated and / or evaporated by heat exchange with the heated cooling medium, in particular at the other end of the hollow shaft, and / or - one or more outlet openings (9) for the cooling medium coming from the parallel discs (1) in a flow direction behind the heat exchanger arrangement (5) and / or in the region of the base body (6), wherein - the heat exchanger arrangement (5) for conducting the coolant is preferably formed at least in sections within the base body (6) for absorbing the thermal energy from the heated cooling medium coming from the parallel discs (1). [12] Cooling system and / or method for cooling according to claim 11, characterized byin that the base body (6) of the disc rotor turbine (2) has a central central disc (10) and the heat exchanger arrangement (5) is formed from a plurality of heat exchanger segments (11) arranged on both sides of the central disc (10), wherein the central disc (10) preferably has return lines (12) in the interior for conducting heated and / or evaporated refrigerant from the respective heat exchanger segment (11) to the outlet (8) and in particular to the interior of the hollow shaft. [13] Cooling system and / or method for cooling according to claim 12, characterized by that each heat exchanger segment (11) of the disc turbine (2) - is designed for arrangement on the central disc (10) on one side and / or extending over part of the circumference of the central disc (10) and / or - two heat exchanger sections (13, 14) arranged one after the other along the circumferential direction of the central disc (10), wherein - the first heat exchanger section (13) is preferably designed to conduct the heated cooling medium from spaces (15) between the parallel discs (1) to lateral outlet slots (16) and / or into the turbine chamber (4) and at the same time to absorb heat from the heated cooling medium and / or wherein - the second heat exchanger section (14) has on a bottom side a receiving opening (17) for supplying still cold refrigerant from the inlet (7) or from the hollow shaft, - an inner heat exchange medium line (18) extending substantially over the entire surface of the second heat exchanger section (14) and / or from the inner region near the shaft to the outer region near the disc in the heat exchanger segment (11), and - on an upper inner surface of the second heat exchanger section (14) there is a discharge opening (19) directed towards the central disc (10) for discharging the heated and / or evaporated refrigerant, in particular to the outlet (8) arranged within the hollow shaft. [14] Cooling enclosure for a server blade or an electronic system to be cooled, with - an inlet for supplying cold, liquid cooling medium, - an outlet for conducting heated, liquid cooling medium to a disc rotor turbine (2), - an interior space for accommodating the system to be cooled between the inlet and the outlet, whereby - the interior and in particular the walls of the interior are formed in such a way that the cooling medium can be held therein at a fluid pressure greater than 1 bar, preferably greater than 2 bar, particularly preferably between 1.2 bar and 10 bar and very particularly preferably between 1.5 bar and 5 bar, for which purpose - the wall preferably has a honeycomb or diamond-shaped support grid structure and / or at least part of the walls has a concave curvature. [15] Use of a cooling system according to at least one of claims 5-13 for cooling at least one IT system, in particular at least one server having server blades, wherein the cooling medium is passed directly through cooling housings, in particular cooling housings according to claim 14, for the components to be cooled, preferably the server blades and particularly preferably each of the server blades.

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