Evaporative Data Center Airflow Cleaning Under Contaminated Outside Air
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Solution Overview
Problem
Data centers face high energy costs due to power consumption and cooling requirements, and air-side economization methods risk contaminating the cooling airflow with outside pollutants, affecting server reliability and performance.
Innovation Solution
An air handling system operable in multiple modes that uses direct and indirect evaporative cooling modules to condition airflow, with adjustable cooling fluid rates to remove contaminants and maintain setpoint temperatures, and includes modes for handling contaminated outside air and mixing return airflow for efficient cooling.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Use of energy by moving object
If outside air is used for cooling, then energy efficiency is improved, but contamination risk increases
Solution Approach 1:
A liquid cooling medium is introduced as an intermediary substance between the outside air and the data center equipment. The liquid absorbs heat from the air stream through evaporative cooling while preventing direct contact between outside air contaminants and the equipment, thus achieving both energy efficiency and contamination prevention
2Temperature
If direct evaporative cooling is used, then cooling effectiveness is improved, but water consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically adjusts the water flow rate parameter based on environmental conditions and cooling demands. By optimizing this parameter, the system achieves effective cooling while minimizing water consumption through precise control of the evaporative cooling process
3Object-affected harmful factors
If cooling fluid rate is increased to remove contaminants, then air quality is improved, but temperature control precision deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The system incorporates sensors and control mechanisms that continuously monitor both air quality parameters and temperature. Based on this feedback, the cooling fluid rate is dynamically adjusted to maintain optimal balance between contaminant removal and temperature precision, preventing over-cooling while ensuring air quality
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 approach reduces energy consumption, minimizes water usage, and enhances environmental sustainability by effectively cleaning and cooling data center airflows while preventing contamination, thus improving energy efficiency and server reliability.
Implementation Method 1
an outside airflow is circulated through a direct evaporative cooling module of the air handling system to cool the outside airflow
Implementation Method 2
a return airflow is circulated through an indirect evaporative cooling module of the air handling system to cool the return airflow
Implementation Method 3
circulating the cooling fluid into the direct evaporative cooling module at a second rate to precipitate a plurality of contaminants from the outside airflow into the cooling fluid
Data Source
AI summary
Techniques for treating an outside airflow with a direct evaporative economizer include circulating an airflow from an ambient environment into a direct evaporative economizer; circulating a cooling fluid into the direct evaporative economizer at a first rate so that a temperature condition of a supply airflow meets a predetermined range of setpoint temperatures; evaporating at least a portion of the cooling fluid circulated at the first rate into the airflow; determining that a measured air contaminant level of the airflow is greater than a setpoint contaminant level; and based on the determination, circulating the cooling fluid into the direct evaporative economizer at a second rate to precipitate a plurality of contaminants from the airflow into the cooling fluid, the second flow rate of the cooling fluid operable to adjust the temperature condition of the supply airflow outside of the predetermined range of setpoint temperatures of the supply airflow.