Modular Liquid Cooling Rack for Mixed Air and Immersion Cooling
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing cooling systems for computer hardware in datacenters face challenges in managing disparate cooling needs across different components, leading to inefficiencies, unnecessary expenses, and difficulties in accessing immersion cooling systems, especially when direct communication between components with varying heat generation is not required.
Innovation Solution
A modular liquid cooling system comprising infrastructure and payload modules, where the infrastructure module supports convective air cooling and houses a programmable logic controller (PLC) to govern both air cooling and immersion cooling systems in payload modules, allowing for flexible distribution of cooling fluids and power, and enabling easy access and management.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If components with different cooling needs are placed in the same immersion cooling tank, then direct communication between components is enabled, but unnecessary expense and crowding of the tank occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the cooling system into separate modules: immersion cooling modules for high-power components and air cooling modules for low-power components. This segmentation allows components with different cooling needs to be cooled appropriately without mixing them in a single tank, thus avoiding tank crowding and unnecessary expenses while still enabling communication through the modular rack structure.
2Ease of operation
If components that cannot be immersion cooled are placed in communication with immersion cooled components, then direct communication is achieved, but significant difficulty arises
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses a modular rack structure as an intermediary that houses both immersion cooling modules and air cooling modules. This intermediary structure enables communication between components with different cooling requirements without requiring direct physical connection between incompatible cooling systems, thus reducing complexity while maintaining connectivity.
3Temperature
If immersion cooling systems are used for all components, then high-power components are effectively cooled, but access to the system becomes difficult and disruptive
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the cooling system into separate immersion cooling modules and air cooling modules within the rack structure. This allows technicians to access and service air-cooled components without disrupting the immersion cooling system, while still providing effective immersion cooling for high-power components that require it.
4Loss of energy
If separate cooling systems are used for components with different cooling needs, then cooling efficiency is optimized, but additional labor is required to access hardware distributed across different locations
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges separate cooling systems (immersion and air cooling) into a single integrated rack structure that houses both types of modules. This combination allows components with different cooling needs to be cooled efficiently with their appropriate systems while being physically co-located in one rack, thereby reducing the labor and time required to access hardware compared to distributed separate locations.
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 system optimizes cooling efficiency and reduces operational complexity by allowing independent cooling of components with different power consumption levels, simplifying maintenance, and facilitating easy access to immersion cooling systems, thereby improving overall system performance and resource utilization.
Implementation Method 1
a heat exchanger configured to cool the cooling fluid by transferring heat from the cooling fluid to air
Implementation Method 2
a condenser configured to condense the vapor to liquid, returning the cooling fluid to the liquid state
Implementation Method 3
the payload module, containing higher powered IT or other computing equipment, may rely on two phase immersion cooling to transfer heat immediately to facility water
Data Source
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AI summary
A housing and cooling system for computer hardware includes an infrastructure module and a payload module. The infrastructure module is configured for housing computer hardware and is equipped with either or both of a convective air cooling system and an arrangement of metal plates connected by one or more conduits for carrying liquid for cooling computer equipment housed by the infrastructure module. The infrastructure modules also houses a programmable logic controller ("PEC"). The payload module includes an immersion cooling system governed by the PEC and is located outside of the infrastructure module.