Immersion cooling device for data center

Abstract

The present invention provides an immersion cooling device for a data center, comprising: a main body having a first accommodation space in which a first working fluid and a heat-radiating body are accommodated and a second accommodation space in which a second working fluid is accommodated; at least one heat pipe provided in the main body such that an evaporation unit is disposed in the first accommodation space and a condensation unit is disposed in the second accommodation space; and a fluid circulation unit communicating with the second accommodation space and circulating the second working fluid inside and outside the second accommodation space.

Description

Liquid immersion cooling system for data centers

[0001] The present invention relates to an immersion cooling device for a data center that cools a plurality of server computers in a data center by immersing them in a working fluid.

[0002] Generally, a data center refers to a building or facility that provides server computers and network lines.

[0003] To provide uninterrupted service every day, data centers require stable power supply, internet connectivity, and security. Data centers are structured by installing cages for each user group, each containing multiple racks. Each rack is equipped with a switch, connecting multiple server computers.

[0004] Data centers require large-capacity cooling systems to cool the heat emitted by server computers.

[0005] Conventional data center cooling methods use a typical mechanical refrigeration cycle, where power is supplied to a compressor to compress a refrigerant, the compressed refrigerant releases heat in a condenser, and absorbs heat in an evaporator.

[0006] However, in the case of these cooling cycles, a lot of energy is consumed, resulting in high cooling costs, which is a burden to the operators of the data centers.

[0007] The related technology for such a cooling device for data centers is presented in Korean Patent Publication No. 10-2476032 (December 9, 2022).

[0008] The purpose of the present invention is to provide an immersion cooling device for a data center that minimizes energy consumption and operation and maintenance costs by providing a stable cooling environment without adding a separate cooling cycle for cooling the working fluid containing a server computer.

[0009] The present invention provides an immersion cooling device for a data center, comprising: a main body having a first receiving space in which a first working fluid and a heat radiator are received; a second receiving space in which a second working fluid is received; at least one heat pipe disposed in the main body such that an evaporation unit is disposed in the first receiving space and a condensation unit is disposed in the second receiving space; and a fluid circulation unit communicating with the second receiving space and circulating the second working fluid into and out of the second receiving space.

[0010] In addition, the first receiving space and the second receiving space are partitioned by a first partition wall provided on the inside of the main body, and the heat pipe can be arranged to penetrate the first partition wall.

[0011] Additionally, the second receiving space may include a plurality of second bulkheads arranged in an alternating state on the inside of the main body.

[0012] Additionally, the main body may further include a stirrer that causes the first working fluid to flow within the first receiving space.

[0013] In addition, the heat pipe may be provided such that the length of the evaporator disposed in the first receiving space is longer than the length of the condenser disposed in the second receiving space.

[0014] In addition, the fluid circulation unit may include a circulation pipe connected to the main body so as to be in communication with the second receiving space, and a circulation pump connected to the circulation pipe and generating a pumping force so that the second working fluid in the second receiving space is circulated through the circulation pipe.

[0015] In addition, the system may further include a working fluid cooling unit that cools the second working fluid moving inside the circulation pipe.

[0016] In a liquid immersion cooling device for a data center according to the present invention, an evaporation section of a heat pipe is arranged in a first receiving space of a main body containing a first working fluid and a heat radiator, and a condensation section of a heat pipe is arranged in a second receiving space of the main body containing a second working fluid, so that heat generated in the heat radiator evaporates a cooling fluid in the evaporation section through the first working fluid, and the evaporated cooling fluid condenses while exchanging heat with the second working fluid in the condensation section, thereby minimizing energy consumption and operation and maintenance costs required for cooling the heat radiator.

[0017] In addition, the second working fluid contained in the second receiving space is cooled by circulating it inside and outside the main body through the fluid circulation unit, thereby increasing the heat exchange efficiency with the cooling fluid in the condensation unit of the heat pipe, and stably maintaining the cooling of the second working fluid.

[0018] FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a liquid immersion cooling device for a data center according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0019] Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along line II-II shown in Figure 1.

[0020] Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view of a liquid immersion cooling device for a data center according to another embodiment of the present invention.

[0021] Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the attached drawings. Prior to this, it should be noted that the terms and words used in this specification and claims should not be construed as limited to their conventional or dictionary meanings. Based on the principle that the inventor can appropriately define the concepts of terms to best explain his or her invention, they should be interpreted in a way that conforms to the technical spirit of the present invention.

[0022] Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a liquid immersion cooling device for a data center according to one embodiment of the present invention may include a main body (100), a heat pipe (200), and a fluid circulation unit (300).

[0023] The above main body (100) accommodates a heat sink (not shown) such as a server computer while being immersed in a working fluid.

[0024] The above body (100) may be provided in a tubular shape having an internal space to accommodate a heat sink and an operating fluid.

[0025] The main body (100) may be provided with a first partition wall (110) that divides the internal space of the main body (100) into a first receiving space (100a) and a second receiving space (100b). The first partition wall (110) may be horizontally arranged on the inside of the main body (100) so that the first receiving space (100a) and the second receiving space (100b) are vertically aligned.

[0026] The first bulkhead (110) may be provided with at least one connecting hole (111) to allow a heat pipe (200) to be placed in a penetrating state, which will be described later.

[0027] A first working fluid may be accommodated in the first receiving space (100a) of the main body (100), and a second working fluid may be accommodated in the second receiving space (100b). The first working fluid may exchange heat with the evaporation section (200a) of the heat pipe (200), and the second working fluid may exchange heat with the condensation section (200b) of the heat pipe (200). Here, the first working fluid and the second working fluid may be non-conductive working fluids, and as an example, synthetic oil may be applied.

[0028] In addition, the main body (100) may be provided with an injection port (not shown) for injecting or discharging the first working fluid and the second working fluid. The injection port may be provided with a stopper (not shown) for opening and closing the injection port.

[0029] The above main body (100) may be provided with a circulation inlet (101b) and a circulation outlet (102b) that are connected to the second receiving space (100b). The circulation inlet (101b) and the circulation outlet (102b) may be connected to both sides in the longitudinal direction of the circulation pipe (310) of the fluid circulation unit (300) to be described later.

[0030] The second receiving space (100b) may be provided with a plurality of second partition walls (120) arranged in an alternating state on the inside of the main body (100). The plurality of second partition walls (120) form the second receiving space (100b) into a zigzag-shaped flow path, thereby maximizing the time that the second working fluid remains in the second receiving space (100b) when circulating through the fluid circulation unit (300), thereby enabling stable heat exchange between the condensing unit of the heat pipe (200) and the second working fluid. Here, the circulation inlet (101b) described above may be arranged to communicate with one side of the flow path provided by the second partition wall (120) based on the movement direction of the second working fluid, and the circulation outlet (102b) may be arranged to communicate with the other side of the flow path.

[0031] In addition, the main body (100) may be equipped with a stirrer (130) that causes the first working fluid accommodated in the first receiving space (100a) to flow in the first receiving space (100a). The stirrer (130) may be placed in the first receiving space (100a).

[0032] At least one of the above heat pipes (200) is arranged inside the main body (100), and a cooling fluid is arranged inside the heat pipe (200). The cooling fluid provided inside the heat pipe (200) transfers heat of the first receiving space (100a) to the second receiving space (100b) while repeating phase changes of evaporation and condensation in the first receiving space (100a) and the second receiving space (100b), thereby cooling the first working fluid in the first receiving space (100a). The heat pipe (200) receives heat from the first working fluid heated by the radiator accommodated in the first receiving space (100a), thereby evaporating the cooling fluid, and as the evaporated cooling fluid moves upward, it radiates heat again to the second working fluid accommodated in the second receiving space (100b), thereby condensing the cooling fluid.

[0033] To this end, both sides of each of the heat pipes (200) may be arranged in the first receiving space (100a) and the second receiving space (100b) through the connecting hole (111) of the first partition wall (110). In a specific embodiment, the evaporation section (200a) that causes evaporation of the cooling fluid within the heat pipe (200) may be arranged in the first receiving space (100a) that accommodates the heat radiator, and the condensation section (200b) that causes condensation of the cooling fluid within the heat pipe (200) may be arranged in the second receiving space (100b).

[0034] In addition, a plurality of heat dissipation fins (210) may be provided on the outer surface of the evaporation section (200a) and the outer surface of the condensation section (200b) of the heat pipe (200) so that heat transfer between the first working fluid in the first receiving space (100a) and the second working fluid in the second receiving space (100b) can be stably performed.

[0035] The fluid circulation unit (300) communicates with the second receiving space (100b) of the main body (100), and circulates the second working fluid into and out of the second receiving space (100b), thereby cooling the second working fluid.

[0036] The above fluid circulation unit (300) may include a circulation pipe (310) and a circulation pump (320).

[0037] The above circulation pipe (310) is connected to the main body (100) so as to communicate with the second receiving space (100b) and guides the second working fluid to circulate inside and outside the second receiving space (100b).

[0038] The inlet (310a) of the circulation pipe (310) is connected to the circulation outlet (102b) of the main body (100), and the outlet (310b) of the circulation pipe (310) can be connected to the circulation inlet (101b) of the main body (100).

[0039] The above circulation pump (320) is connected to the circulation pipe (310) and generates a pumping force so that the second working fluid contained in the second receiving space is circulated through the circulation pipe (310).

[0040] Referring to FIG. 3, the liquid immersion cooling device for a data center may further include a working fluid cooling unit (330) for cooling a second working fluid circulated through the fluid circulation unit (300). Here, if the second working fluid circulated through the fluid circulation unit (300) is circulated at a temperature higher than a preset temperature, the cooling efficiency of the heat sink may be reduced. Therefore, to prevent this problem, cooling may be performed through the working fluid cooling unit (330) to prevent the second working fluid circulated through the fluid circulation unit (300) from becoming higher than the preset temperature.

[0041] In one embodiment, the working fluid cooling unit (330) may be used as an external heat pipe to stably cool the second working fluid through heat exchange with the outside air.

[0042] When applying an external heat pipe to the above-described operating fluid cooling unit (330), the evaporation unit (330a) of the external heat pipe can be placed on the inside of the circulation pipe (310), and the condensation unit (330b) of the external heat pipe can be placed on the outside of the circulation pipe (310).

[0043] In addition, a blower (not shown) that blows outside air to the condensing section (330b) of the external heat pipe (330) or a cooling tank (not shown) that stores cooling water to enable heat transfer between the condensing section (330b) of the external heat pipe (330) and the cooling water may be provided.

[0044] In this way, in the liquid immersion cooling device for a data center of one embodiment, the evaporation part (200a) of the heat pipe (200) is arranged in the first receiving space (100a) of the main body (100) where the first working fluid and the radiator are accommodated, and the condensation part (200b) of the heat pipe (200) is arranged in the second receiving space (100b) of the main body (100) where the second working fluid is accommodated, so that the heat generated in the radiator evaporates the cooling fluid in the evaporation part (200a) through the first working fluid, and the evaporated cooling fluid undergoes heat exchange with the second working fluid in the condensation part (200b), thereby minimizing energy consumption and operation and maintenance costs required for cooling the radiator.

[0045] In addition, the second working fluid accommodated in the second receiving space (100b) is cooled by circulating it inside and outside the main body (100) through the fluid circulation unit (300), thereby increasing the heat exchange efficiency with the cooling fluid in the condensation unit (200b) of the heat pipe (200) and stably maintaining the cooling of the second working fluid.

[0046] While the present invention has been described with reference to the embodiments illustrated in the drawings, these are merely exemplary, and those skilled in the art will appreciate that various modifications and equivalent alternative embodiments are possible. Therefore, the true scope of technical protection of the present invention should be determined by the technical spirit of the appended claims.

Claims

1. A main body having a first receiving space in which a first working fluid and a heat sink are received, and a second receiving space in which a second working fluid is received; At least one heat pipe arranged in the main body such that an evaporation unit is arranged in the first receiving space and a condensation unit is arranged in the second receiving space; and An immersion cooling device for a data center, comprising a fluid circulation unit that is connected to the second receiving space and circulates the second working fluid into and out of the second receiving space.

2. In claim 1, The first receiving space and the second receiving space are partitioned by a first bulkhead provided on the inside of the main body, A liquid immersion cooling device for a data center in which the above heat pipe is arranged to penetrate the first bulkhead.

3. In claim 1, A liquid immersion cooling device for a data center, wherein the second receiving space includes a plurality of second bulkheads arranged in an alternating state on the inside of the main body.

4. In claim 1, An immersion cooling device for a data center, wherein the main body further includes an agitator that causes the first working fluid to flow within the first receiving space.

5. In claim 1, The above heat pipe is an immersion cooling device for a data center, wherein the length of the evaporator disposed in the first receiving space is longer than the length of the condenser disposed in the second receiving space.

6. In claim 1, The above fluid circulation section A circulation pipe connected to the main body so as to be in communication with the second receiving space, An immersion cooling device for a data center, comprising a circulation pump connected to the above circulation pipe and generating a pumping force so that a second working fluid in the second receiving space is circulated through the circulation pipe.

7. In claim 6, An immersion cooling device for a data center further comprising a working fluid cooling unit that cools a second working fluid moving inside the above-mentioned circulation pipe.

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