Data Center Heat Wheel Cooling for Recirculation Air Separation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current cooling methods in data centers using recirculation air are inefficient, leading to high energy consumption, environmental impact, and limited equipment capacity due to refrigerant leakage and complex cooling units, with issues like air mixing and temperature disparities within system cabinets.
Innovation Solution
Employing a rotary air-to-air heat exchanger, or heat wheel, to efficiently cool recirculating air in data centers, eliminating the need for refrigerants and intermediate media, while maintaining air humidity and achieving a stable temperature close to the operating range by separating cooled and heated air streams.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If a compression cooling unit with refrigerant is used to cool the space, then the space temperature can be maintained, but energy consumption increases and environmental impact occurs due to refrigerant leakage
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and eliminates the refrigerant cooling system from the data center cooling architecture. Instead of using compression cooling units with refrigerants, the invention introduces a direct free-cooling system that uses cold outside air to cool the recirculating air stream through a heat exchanger, completely removing the harmful refrigerant cycle while maintaining effective cooling.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces outside air as an intermediary cooling medium. The cold outside air stream serves as a natural heat sink that absorbs heat from the recirculating warm air through a heat exchanger, replacing the need for mechanical compression cooling and refrigerants with a passive thermal exchange process.
2Temperature
If a compression cooling unit with refrigerant is used to cool the space, then the space temperature can be maintained, but environmental impact increases due to refrigerant leakage
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and eliminates the refrigerant cooling system from the data center cooling architecture. Instead of using compression cooling units with refrigerants, the invention introduces a direct free-cooling system that uses cold outside air to cool the recirculating air stream through a heat exchanger, completely removing the harmful refrigerant cycle while maintaining effective cooling.
3Temperature
If cold air is blown into the system cabinet at the bottom and transported upwards, then equipment can be cooled, but the air stream heats up gradually limiting the amount of equipment that can be placed
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces horizontal air flow paths within the cabinet in addition to the vertical recirculation. Cold air is supplied horizontally at the front of equipment racks, creating a multi-dimensional cooling pattern that increases cooling efficiency and allows denser equipment placement without excessive heat buildup in any single region.
4Temperature
If cooled air stream is passed horizontally through equipment by fans, then equipment can be cooled, but heated air stream from one cabinet can mix with cooled air stream of another cabinet
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the air cooling zones using vertical partitions and dedicated return air pathways for each cabinet or rack section. This segmentation prevents hot air from one cabinet from mixing with cold air in adjacent cabinets, maintaining stable temperature zones and improving overall cooling efficiency by keeping thermal streams separate.
5Temperature
If the air stream is cooled to a temperature considerably lower than the operating temperature, then the space can be cooled, but energy consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies partial cooling by using outside air only when its temperature is suitable (free-cooling mode), avoiding the excessive energy consumption of mechanical refrigeration. The system partially uses natural cooling resources and only activates the heat exchanger when conditions are favorable, rather than continuously over-cooling the air stream.
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
This solution significantly reduces energy consumption and costs, minimizes environmental impact, and allows for nearly 80% continuous operation with minimal additional cooling needed, as the heat wheel efficiently transfers heat with minimal moisture transfer and no refrigerant leakage, ensuring optimal equipment cooling.
Implementation Method 1
a heat wheel, for cooling a recirculation air (first air stream) of an air humidity- and temperature-conditioned space (1) in a data center in which ICT and/or telecom equipment (2) is arranged
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
AI summary
An apparatus for cooling an air humidity- and temperature-conditioned space in a data center in which ICT and/or telecom equipment is arranged. The space is cooled using air flow that recirculates in the space. The apparatus is characterized in that the air stream heated by the equipment is supplied as a first air stream to an air-to-air heat exchanger designed as a heat wheel, in which the first air stream is cooled by means of a separate second air stream.