Leak detection and mitigation for data centers

Abstract

A leak mitigation system for a thermal management system of a data center. The leak mitigation system includes one or more leak detectors; one or more valves; and circuitry to identify leaks of the thermal management system. The one or more leak detectors comprise a battery, a printed sensor, a power connection, a data connection and a transceiver.

Description

LEAK DETECTION AND MITIGATION FOR DATA CENTERSBACKGROUND

[0001] Data centers rely on liquid-based cooling systems to dissipate heat and control operating temperatures of the servers operating within the facility.

[0002] However, fluid systems are susceptible to leaks. These leaks can lead to damage to the servers, leading to a server being damaged resulting in reduction of capacity or potentially several servers being affected and resulting in shutdown events.

[0003] What is needed are techniques for early leak detection to mitigate leak damage to servers in data centers.BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0004] Fig. 1 is a diagram illustrating a system 100 of a data center with a leak mitigation system in accordance with one or more embodiments.

[0005] Fig. 2 is a diagram further illustrating example components of the thermal management system 104, 200 in accordance with one or more embodiments.

[0006] Fig. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a leak mitigation system 300 in accordance with one or more embodiments.

[0007] Fig. 4 is a flow diagram illustrating a method 400 of leak mitigation of a thermal management system for a data center in accordance with one or more embodiments.

[0008] Fig. 5 is a diagram illustrating a leak detector 304, 500 in accordance with one or more embodiments.

[0009] Fig. 6 is a diagram illustrating a leak detector 600 attached to a hose in accordance with one or more embodiments.

[0010] Fig. 7 is a diagram illustrating examples of a sensor installation geometries 700 in accordance with one or more embodiments.DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0011] The following description of the variations is merely illustrative in nature and is in no way intended to limit the scope of the disclosure, its application, or uses. The description is presented herein solely for the purpose of illustrating the various embodiments of the disclosure and should not be construed as a limitation to the scope and applicability of the disclosure. In the summary of the disclosure and this detailed description, each numerical value should be read once as modified by the term “about” (unless already expressly so modified), and then read again as not so modified unless otherwise indicated in context. Also, in the summary of the disclosure and this detailed description, with the understanding that a value range listed or described as being useful, suitable, or the like, is intended that any and every value within the range, including the end points, is to be considered as having been stated. For example, “a range of from 1 to 10” is to be read as indicating each and every possible number along the continuum between about 1 and about 10. Thus, even if specific data points within the range, or even no data points within the range, are explicitly identified or refer to only a few specific data points, it is to be understood that inventors appreciate and understand that any and all data points within the range are to be considered to have been specified, and that inventors had possession of the entire range and all points within the range.

[0012] Unless expressly stated to the contrary, "or" refers to an inclusive or and not to an exclusive or. For example, a condition A or B is satisfied by any one of the following: A is true (or present) and B is false (or not present), A is false (or not present) and B is true (or present), and both A and B are true (or present).

[0013] In addition, use of the "a" or "an" are employed to describe elements and components of the embodiments herein. This is done merely for convenience and togive a general sense of concepts according to the disclosure. This description should be read to include one or at least one, and the singular also includes the plural unless otherwise stated.

[0014] The terminology and phraseology used herein is for descriptive purposes and should not be construed as limiting in scope. Language such as "including", "comprising", "having", "containing", or "involving", and variations thereof, is intended to be broad and encompass the subject matter listed thereafter, equivalents, and additional subject matter not recited.

[0015] Also, as used herein, any references to "one embodiment" or "an embodiment" means that a particular element, feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment. The appearances of the phrase "in one embodiment" in various places in the specification are not necessarily referring to the same embodiment.

[0016] Data centers are facilities that house and operate computer systems and associated components. Data centers can operate for data storage and management, cloud computing, web hosting, data analytics, disaster recover, data protection, enterprise applications, artificial intelligence and the like.

[0017] Data centers typically employ cooling systems or thermal management system to enhance and / or improve energy efficiency, equipment reliability, costeffectiveness, performance, and the like. Additionally, the computer systems and associated electronics in data centers are susceptible to damage from humidity and liquid.

[0018] One suitable approach to provide thermal management for data centers is liquid cooling or thermal management system. Generally, a liquid medium or coolant flows through hoses and components to selectively cool various components of a data center using one or more heat exchangers. The coolant then flows to a radiator and the like to dissipate the acquired thermal energy. Additionally, a reservoir is employed to store and provide coolant as needed. The hoses include fittings and attach the heatexchangers, radiator(s), reservoir and the like. The system can also include vans to facilitate cooling.

[0019] The heat exchangers can be used to thermally manage the various components including, but not limited to, computer processing units (CPUs), graphical processing units (GPUs), artificial intelligence (Al) modules, vision processing units, tensor processing units (TPUs), drive storage systems, solid state drives (SSDs), hard disk drives (HDDs), and the like.

[0020] It is appreciated that liquid thermal management systems can develop leaks over time. This damage can be due to extended periods of use, damage to the hose structure resulting in a lose of integrity, punctures, physical damage to threads, crimp tubes or connective fittings, loosen of the fittings / connections over time, worn washers, and the like. As described above, the majority of failures of these systems occur where hoses are connected to the cooling circuit fittings by crimp, quick-connect, spring clamp, screw down hose clamp, or the like.

[0021] A damaged / leaky system can fail to provide adequate thermal management resulting in reduced performance, damaged equipment due to lose of cooling efficiency and the like. A leaky coolant circuit can, more catastrophically, allow for the coolant fluid to become in direct contact with the electronics within the equipment which can result in circuit degradation or directly engage in the electric circuitry to generate a short circuit or arcing event, and the like.

[0022] One or more embodiments are provided early detection of thermal leaks by detecting the leak and its location, alerting the maintenance team of the leak in order to prevent or mitigate data center equipment damage. The mitigating action may be to remove that part of the coolant circuit and its associated electronics until a repair can be completed, or if time, replacing the hose or fitting to allow for full function of the the liquid thermal management system. The one or more embodiments include leak detectors, valves, and isolation components.

[0023] Fig. 1 is a diagram illustrating a system 100 of a data center with a leak mitigation system in accordance with one or more embodiments. The leak mitigation system can work independently or actively with the thermal management system to identify and mitigate leaks in the thermal management system. The system 100 is provided for illustrative purposes and suitable variations are contemplated.

[0024] The system 100 includes a data center 102 that utilizes a thermal management system 104 and a leak mitigation system 106.

[0025] The data center 102 houses and operates computer systems and associated components. Data centers can operate for data storage and management, cloud computing, web hosting, data analytics, disaster recover, data protection, enterprise applications, artificial intelligence and the like.

[0026] The thermal management system 104 serves to enhance and / or improve energy efficiency, equipment reliability, cost-effectiveness, performance, and the like. The thermal management system 104 employs a liquid medium as coolant that is circulated through the data center components to manage and dissipate heat from the data center 102 and its various components including, but not limited to, computer processing units (CPUs), graphical processing units (GPUs), artificial intelligence (Al) modules, vision processing units, tensor processing units (TPUs), drive storage systems, solid state drives (SSDs), hard disk drives (HDDs), and the like.

[0027] The leak mitigation system 106 include one or more leak detectors about the thermal management system 104 and the data center 102. The leak mitigations system 106 performs leak mitigation, such as the methods and variations described below, in Fig. 4, and suitable variations thereof.

[0028] Fig. 2 is a diagram further illustrating example components of the thermal management system 104, 200 in accordance with one or more embodiments.

[0029] The thermal management system 104 includes one or more heat exchangers 204, a coolant reservoir 206, a radiator 208 and a pump 210. The thermalmanagement system 104 can also include other components such as fans to facilitate thermal management.

[0030] The heat exchangers 204 dissipate heat from data center components 202, such as the components described above. The heat exchangers 204 can be proximate and / or direct contact with the components. The heat exchangers 204 typically comprises a thermal transfer material, such as aluminum to transfer heat away from the components 202. Coolant flows through the heat exchangers 204 to transfer heat away from the heat exchangers 204.

[0031] The reservoir 206 maintains and stores coolant for the system 104, 200.

[0032] The radiator 208 is configured to dissipate heat or thermal energy away from the coolant and thereby reduce its temperature.

[0033] The pump 210 is controllable and configured to move and / or flow coolant throughout the system 200.

[0034] Hoses connect the various components of the thermal management system 104, 200 to transfer the coolant.

[0035] It is appreciated that leaks can occur in the thermal management system 104, 200, but are mitigated by the leak mitigation system 106.

[0036] Fig. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a leak mitigation system 300 in accordance with one or more embodiments. It is appreciated that the system 300 is provided for illustrative purposes and suitable variations are contemplated.

[0037] The system 300 is an example of a suitable leak mitigation system 106.

[0038] The leak mitigation system 300 monitors the thermal management system 104 to detect leaks, manage leaks, and the like. The system 300 includes leak control circuitry 302, leak detectors 304, and valves 306.

[0039] The leak control circuitry 302 has one or more processors 308, storage 310, and interface(s) 312.

[0040] The one or more processors 308 execute instructions to perform functions of the circuitry 302.

[0041] The storage 310 can store the instructions and other information related to the leak mitigation system 300 and additional information.

[0042] The interfaces 312 can include network interfaces to communicate with the thermal management system 104, the data center 102 and user interfaces for communicating with users and the like.

[0043] The leak detectors 304 can be located at hoses, fittings and the like of the thermal management system 104. The leak detectors 304 detect leaks and can also provide an indication of an amount or severity of detected leaks. This leak information can be provided to the circuitry 302.

[0044] The valves 306 can be located in the hoses, fittings and the like of the thermal management system 104. The valves 306 can isolate leaking areas of the thermal management system 10, such as by stopping flow to that area and mitigating leakage. The valves 306 can also reactivate the leaking areas after corrective action has taken place.

[0045] Fig. 4 is a flow diagram illustrating a method 400 of leak mitigation of a thermal management system for a data center in accordance with one or more embodiments. The method 400 is provided for illustrative purposes and it is appreciated that suitable variations are contemplated.

[0046] The method 400 is performed with the systems 100 and 200, described supra.

[0047] The one or more leak detectors 304 detect a leak at 402.

[0048] The leak detection circuitry 302 contains the leak at 404. The leak can be contained by alerts, notifications, using valves to stop supply of coolant to a leak area, and the like. This can also include deactivating components of the data center 102 to mitigate damager thereto and reduce risk of short circuits.

[0049] Damaged components are isolated and removed from the thermal management system 104 at 406. The damaged components can includes hoses, fittings, heat exchangers and the like.

[0050] Affected areas are cleaned at 408 by personnel and / or automated equipment. This cleaning can include removal of leaked coolant and any additional contaminants that were generated during the leakage event.

[0051] The circuitry 302 identifies one or more causes of the leak at 410. The causes can include, for example, equipment misuse, improperly installed components, physical degradation such as puncturing and the like.

[0052] The circuitry 302 develops a solution based on the one or more identified causes at 412.

[0053] The circuitry 302 implements the solution, inspects and recommissions the thermal management system 104 at 414.

[0054] Fig. 5 is a diagram illustrating a leak detector 304, 500 in accordance with one or more embodiments.

[0055] The leak detector 304, 500 includes a battery 502, a power and / or data connection 504, an insulating sleeve 506, a printed sensor 508 and a transceiver 510.

[0056] The battery 502 can be a primary or secondary type battery and provides power to the printed sensor 508 and the transceiver 510.

[0057] The connection 504 can supply power and transfer data between the printed sensor 508 and the transceiver 510.

[0058] The insulating sleeve 506 can be in the form of a heat shrink sleeve. The insulating sleeve 506 can provide electrical and / or thermal insulation for the connection, the battery, the transceiver 510, and / or the printed sensor 508.

[0059] In one example, the printed sensor 508 is configured to detect a leak from liquid contacting the sensor 508 and creating a short between sensor terminals.

[0060] Fig. 6 is a diagram illustrating a leak detector 600 attached to a hose in accordance with one or more embodiments.

[0061] The detector 304, 500 as described above is attached to a hose 602. In this example, a tape wraps around the printed sensor and puts the detector 304, 500 in contact with a surface of the hose.

[0062] Additionally, the detector 304, 500 can be positioned on or about a fitting 604.

[0063] The hose 602 and the fitting 604 are part of the thermal management system 104.

[0064] Fig. 7 is a diagram illustrating examples of a sensor wrap 700 in accordance with one or more embodiments.

[0065] The sensor wrap is a flexible material and includes one or more printed sensors for leak detection.

[0066] A first example on the upper left shows a sensor wrap 706 about an end of a hose at a fitting 604.

[0067] A second example on the right shows a sensor wrap 708 segmented inside and outside a hose 602 or fitting 604.

[0068] A third example in a middle shows a sensor wrap 710 as a single continuous film. The sensor wrap 710 can be mechanically or chemically attached to an outside of the hose 602 at the fitting 604.

[0069] A fourth example at a bottom of the page shows a sensor wrap 7612 positioned inside the hose 602 and between the hose 602 and the fitting 604.

[0070] The foregoing description of the embodiments has been provided for purposes of illustration and description. Example embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be sufficiently thorough and will convey the scope to those who are skilled in the art. Numerous specific details are set forth such as examples of specific components, devices, and methods, to provide a thorough understanding of embodiments of the disclosure but are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the disclosure. It will be appreciated that it is within the scope of the disclosure that individual elements or features of a particular embodiment are generally not limited to that particular embodiment, but, where applicable, are interchangeable and can be used in a selected embodiment, even if not specifically shown or described. The same may also be varied in many ways. Such variations are not to be regarded as a departure from the disclosure, and all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of the disclosure.

[0071] Also, in some example embodiments, well-known processes, well-known device structures, and well-known technologies are not described in detail. Further, it will be readily apparent to those of skill in the art that in the design, manufacture, and operation of apparatus to achieve that described in the disclosure, variations in apparatus design, construction, condition, erosion of components, gaps between components may present, for example.

[0072] Examples can include subject matter such as a method, means for performing acts or blocks of the method, at least one machine-readable medium including instructions that, when performed by a machine cause the machine to perform acts of the method or of an apparatus or system for concurrent communication using multiple communication technologies according to embodiments and examples described herein.

[0073] Although the terms first, second, third, etc. may be used herein to describe various elements, components, regions, layers and / or sections, these elements,components, regions, layers and / or sections should not be limited by these terms.These terms may be only used to distinguish one element, component, region, layer or section from another region, layer or section. Terms such as "first", "second", and other numerical terms when used herein do not imply a sequence or order unless clearly indicated by the context. Thus, a first element, component, region, layer or section discussed below could be termed a second element, component, region, layer or section without departing from the teachings of the example embodiments.

[0074] Spatially relative terms, such as "inner", “adjacent”, "outer", "beneath", "below", "lower", "above", "upper", and the like, may be used herein for ease of description to describe one element or feature's relationship to another element(s) or feature(s) as illustrated in the figures. Spatially relative terms may be intended to encompass different orientations of the device in use or operation in addition to the orientation depicted in the figures. For example, if the device in the figures is turned over, elements described as "below" or "beneath" other elements or features would then be oriented "above" the other elements or features. Thus, the example term "below" can encompass both an orientation of above and below. The device may be otherwise oriented (rotated 90 degrees or at other orientations) and the spatially relative descriptors used herein interpreted accordingly.

[0075] Although a few embodiments of the disclosure have been described in detail above, those of ordinary skill in the art will readily appreciate that many modifications are possible without materially departing from the teachings of this disclosure. Accordingly, such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of this disclosure as defined in the claims.

Claims

CLAIMSWhat is claimed is:

1. A leak mitigation system for a thermal management system, the leak mitigation system comprising:one or more leak detectors;one or more valves;circuitry to identify leaks of the thermal management system.

2. The system of claim 1 , wherein the thermal management system comprises liquid coolant.

3. The system of claim 1 , wherein the one or more leak detectors comprise a battery, a printed sensor, a power connection, a data connection and a transceiver.

4. The system of claim 1 , wherein the one or more leak detectors are embedded in a sensor wrap.

5. The system of claim 1 , wherein the circuitry is configured to isolate an identified leak using the one or more valves.

6. The system of claim 1 , the circuitry comprising a network interface connected to the thermal management system and a data center system.

7. The system of claim 4, the flexible sensor wrap attached to a fitting.

8. The system of claim 4, the flexible sensor wrap attached to a hose.

9. A leak mitigation system for a thermal management system, the leak mitigation system comprising:one or more leak detectors;circuitry to identify leaks of the thermal management system.5

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