Composite Liquid Cooling Device for Data Centers
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Solution Overview
Problem
Data centers face challenges in thermal management, especially with high power density electronic racks and edge computing devices that require efficient cooling in varying environments, as existing air and liquid cooling techniques struggle to maintain optimal thermal conditions, particularly in harsh environments and within fully enclosed packaging.
Innovation Solution
A composite liquid cooling device is designed with an upper cooling component for liquid-to-air heat exchange and a base cooling component for direct liquid cooling, utilizing internal fluid channels and air movers to distribute cooling fluid effectively across electronic devices, allowing for flexible operation in different scenarios.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If liquid cooling is used for high power density electronic racks, then cooling efficiency is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines liquid cooling and air cooling systems into a single integrated cooling device. The liquid cooling component directly contacts high power density electronics for efficient heat removal, while the air cooling component handles lower power devices and provides backup cooling. This merging allows the system to achieve high cooling efficiency for critical components while maintaining overall system simplicity through unified structure and control.
2Temperature
If both air cooling and liquid cooling techniques are used, then thermal management capability is improved, but facility adaptability worsens
Solution Approach 1:
The cooling device is designed with multi-functionality to handle diverse cooling requirements. It includes both liquid cooling channels for high power density electronics and air cooling pathways for lower power devices, allowing a single facility to support various IT deployment requirements. The unified structure can adapt to different thermal management needs without requiring separate cooling systems, thereby improving facility versatility while maintaining superior thermal management capability.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If fully enclosed packaging is used for edge computing devices, then environmental protection is improved, but thermal control worsens
Solution Approach 1:
The cooling device is segmented into distinct liquid cooling and air cooling components, each optimized for specific thermal control functions. The liquid cooling segment provides direct, efficient heat removal for high power edge computing processors, while the air cooling segment handles heat from lower power components and provides supplemental cooling. This segmentation allows the fully enclosed packaging to maintain environmental protection while achieving effective thermal control through specialized cooling zones.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The composite liquid cooling device provides efficient thermal management for both data centers and edge computing devices by effectively distributing cooling fluid and air, maintaining optimal temperatures even in harsh environments and ensuring continuous operation in case of fluid circulation failure.
Implementation Method 1
a cooling plate that forms a lower surface, the lower surface to be positioned on a top surface of one or more electronic devices to extract heat from the one or more electronic devices through the cooling plate using at least a portion of the cooling liquid
Implementation Method 2
an upper cooling unit having a second liquid distribution channel to exchange heat with air contacting the upper cooling unit using at least a portion of the cooling liquid received from the external cooling liquid source
Implementation Method 3
utilizing internal fluid channels and air movers to distribute cooling fluid effectively across electronic devices
Data Source
AI summary
In one embodiment, an electronic cooling device includes an inlet port to receive cooling liquid from an external cooling liquid source. The cooling device further includes a base cooling unit having a first liquid distribution channel therein. The base cooling unit includes a cooling plate that forms a lower surface to be positioned on a top surface of one or more electronic devices to extract heat from the devices through the cooling plate using at least a portion of the cooling liquid from the external cooling liquid source. The cooling device further includes an upper cooling unit having a second liquid distribution channel to extract heat from air contacting the upper cooling unit using at least a portion of the cooling liquid received from the external cooling liquid source. The cooling device further includes an outlet port to return the cooling liquid to the external cooling liquid source. Internal fluid channel structural design can be used and customized for different applications and use cases.