Self-Contained Immersion Cooling Server Assemblies for Rack Retrofit
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing air-cooling techniques in datacenters are thermodynamically inefficient and require costly and error-prone retrofitting of immersion cooling tanks, leading to high operating costs and downtime due to coolant loss and pressure issues.
Innovation Solution
A self-contained immersion cooling enclosure designed to fit into existing rack structures, incorporating a condenser assembly, pre-charged dielectric coolant, and optional inert gas assembly, allowing for server-level serviceability and reduced installation complexity.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If air cooling techniques are used to dissipate heat from hardware components, then the system can operate with simpler infrastructure, but the heat transfer efficiency is an order of magnitude below liquid cooling and component density is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The patent transitions from air cooling to liquid immersion cooling by submerging hardware components in a dielectric coolant. This hydraulic approach enables significantly higher heat transfer coefficients, allowing much higher densities of heat-producing components on server blades while maintaining effective heat dissipation.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the physical state and properties of the cooling medium from gas (air) to liquid (dielectric coolant). This parameter change from air cooling to liquid immersion cooling fundamentally improves heat transfer efficiency by an order of magnitude, enabling higher component densities without proportionally increasing cooling infrastructure complexity.
2Loss of energy
If traditional immersion cooling tanks are retrofitted into existing datacenters, then heat removal efficiency improves, but the retrofitting process is costly and error-prone requiring concrete pads and complex installation procedures
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the immersion cooling system into modular rack-mounted units that can be independently installed and configured. Each rack unit contains its own immersion enclosure with dielectric coolant, eliminating the need for large centralized tanks and complex concrete pad installations. This segmentation allows incremental deployment and simplifies retrofitting into existing datacenters.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent nests the immersion cooling enclosure within existing rack structures. The self-contained immersion cooling units are designed to fit into standard rack configurations, allowing the cooling system to be integrated within the existing datacenter infrastructure rather than requiring separate installation space and foundation work.
3Temperature
If immersion cooling is implemented with large centralized tanks, then heat dissipation improves, but coolant loss due to leakage and pressure issues causes extended downtime for maintenance
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the immersion cooling system into multiple independent rack-mounted units, each containing its own dielectric coolant. This isolation means that if one unit experiences a leak or pressure issue, only that specific rack unit is affected and can be serviced independently, while other units continue operating without interruption.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements self-contained rack units with integrated coolant containment and monitoring systems. Each unit can maintain its own pressure and detect leaks independently, allowing for automated or rapid response to issues without requiring shutdown of the entire cooling system or manual intervention across multiple units.
4Ease of operation
If air cooling fans are activated to reduce temperature when threshold is exceeded, then cooling response is initiated, but the low heat transfer rates of cooling air cause the temperature to remain above threshold for a long period
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces air-based cooling with liquid dielectric coolant immersion, which has heat transfer coefficients an order of magnitude higher than air. This hydraulic cooling approach dramatically reduces the time required to remove heat from hardware components, enabling rapid temperature recovery after load changes or control adjustments without the long lag times associated with air cooling.
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
Enables efficient heat removal with reduced downtime and operating costs by maintaining coolant levels and pressure, facilitating fast deployment and hybrid cooling solutions in existing datacenters.
Implementation Method 1
During operation, a dielectric coolant can remove heat from heat producing components on a server blade via evaporation, and thus forming a two-phase fluid in a server enclosure.
Implementation Method 2
Vapor of the dielectric coolant (referred to herein as 'dielectric vapor') can then be cooled and condensed via a coolant circulation system to remove heat from the dielectric vapor.
Data Source
AI summary
Self-contained server assemblies for housing servers or server blades and associated computing facilities are disclosed herein. In one embodiment, a server assembly includes an enclosure having an interior space housing a server blade, a dielectric coolant submerging heat producing components of the server blade, and a condenser assembly having a condenser coil in fluid communication with a vapor gap in the interior space. The condenser coil is configured to receive a coolant that removes heat from a vapor of the dielectric coolant in the vapor gap, thereby condensing the vapor into a liquid form to be returned to the server blade.