Liquid-Cooling Pump Speed Control for Rack Server Heat Dissipation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current liquid-cooling systems for rack servers face inefficiencies due to the lack of effective dynamic flow control methods, leading to unnecessary energy consumption and time delays in data acquisition, primarily because of the reliance on coolant temperature monitoring and manual adjustment of pump flow rates, which is time-consuming and inefficient.
Innovation Solution
A liquid-cooling system with a control device that uses a pre-stored parameter table to determine target control parameters based on temperature differences, adjusting the rotational speed of the liquid-cooling pump dynamically, incorporating proportional, integral, and differential coefficients to optimize coolant flow.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If coolant temperature monitoring and manual adjustment of pump flow rate are used, then the liquid-cooling system can maintain stable operation, but the control process is time-consuming and requires case-by-case re-adjustment for different configurations
Solution Approach 1:
The patent pre-calculates and stores optimal pump flow rates corresponding to different coolant temperatures in a lookup table before actual operation. When the system runs, the controller directly retrieves the pre-determined flow rate based on measured temperature, eliminating the need for real-time calculation and manual adjustment. This preliminary preparation resolves the contradiction by making the control process instantaneous while maintaining stability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a simplified copy of the complex thermal management problem in the form of a lookup table that maps temperatures to optimal flow rates. Instead of solving the full thermal dynamics problem in real-time, the system uses this pre-computed representation to quickly determine pump settings, thereby reducing control time while preserving operational stability.
2Reliability
If liquid-cooling pump operates at 100% capacity, then sufficient cooling is provided for all scenarios, but unnecessary energy consumption occurs when full cooling is not required
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dynamic pump speed control by continuously monitoring coolant temperature and adjusting the pump flow rate according to pre-stored optimal values. The pump operates at variable speeds rather than fixed 100% capacity, matching the cooling demand to actual thermal conditions. This dynamic adjustment ensures sufficient cooling when needed while reducing energy consumption during low-demand periods.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the operational parameters of the pump from fixed 100% capacity to variable flow rates selected from a range of optimal values stored in the lookup table. By selecting appropriate flow rates based on temperature conditions, the system maintains cooling sufficiency while optimizing energy consumption across different operating scenarios.
3Adaptability or versatility
If data is retrieved from all rack servers for dynamic control, then comprehensive control decisions can be made, but time delay increases due to large data volume and acquisition time
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts only the essential data element (coolant temperature) needed for pump control from the full set of server data. Instead of retrieving and processing comprehensive data from all servers including temperature, power, and other parameters, the system focuses solely on the coolant temperature measurement that directly determines optimal pump flow rate, thereby enabling fast response without sacrificing control effectiveness.
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 allows for adaptive and efficient heat dissipation, reducing unnecessary pump operation and minimizing energy consumption while addressing time delays in data acquisition for multiple servers.
Implementation Method 1
a liquid-cooling pump configured to set a rotational speed according to a heat dissipation control parameter to output coolant
Implementation Method 2
at least one liquid-cooling plate in thermal contact with the at least one power component and connected to the liquid-cooling pump
Data Source
AI summary
A liquid-cooling dynamic flow control method includes performing by a control device: obtaining at least one temperature difference between a set temperature and at least one current operating temperature of at least one power component; obtaining a set of target control parameters corresponding to the at least one temperature difference according to a pre-stored parameter table, wherein the pre-stored parameter table records the correspondence between a plurality of preset temperature intervals and a plurality of sets of preset control parameters, and each of the plurality of sets of preset control parameters includes a proportional coefficient, an integral coefficient and a differential coefficient; using the target control parameter and the at least one temperature difference to obtain a heat dissipation control parameter; and adjusting a rotational speed of a liquid-cooling pump with the heat dissipation control parameter.