Soluble Seal Cooling Layout for Automatic Coolant Drainage
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing liquid cooling systems in datacenters face challenges in managing coolant leaks within sealed airflow domains, leading to coolant pooling, which affects air cooling effectiveness and are difficult to scale due to complex drainage designs.
Innovation Solution
Implementing liquid soluble seals/gaskets made of sacrificial materials that dissolve upon contact with coolant, creating a drain path for automatic coolant drainage without the need for electromechanical devices, allowing flexible drain path design.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If unsealed drain outlet is used to allow drainage from the airflow domain, then coolant pooling is prevented, but air cooling effectiveness is negatively impacted
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-installing liquid soluble seals in the drain path before any leak occurs. These seals remain intact during normal operation to maintain airflow domain integrity, but automatically dissolve when coolant leaks, thereby preparing the drainage path in advance without compromising air cooling effectiveness during normal operation.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent utilizes parameter changes by employing seals whose physical state changes from solid (insoluble) to dissolved (soluble) upon contact with coolant. This parameter change allows the seal to transition from blocking the drain path during normal operation to opening the drain path when needed, resolving the contradiction between maintaining seal integrity and enabling drainage.
2Reliability
If separate drainage paths for each domain are implemented, then coolant pooling is prevented, but system complexity increases and scalability is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies universality by implementing a single common drain path that serves multiple airflow domains. Liquid soluble seals are installed at strategic locations where this common drain path intersects with different domains, allowing one drainage infrastructure to handle leaks from multiple domains, thereby reducing system complexity while maintaining effective drainage.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts the drainage function from individual domain-specific paths and consolidates it into a common drain path. By removing the requirement for separate drainage infrastructure for each domain and using liquid soluble seals to control access to the common path, the system achieves simplified complexity while maintaining drainage reliability.
3Reliability
If liquid soluble seals are used to seal the drain path, then airflow domain integrity is maintained during normal operation, but drain path blocking occurs until dissolution
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies self-service by designing seals that automatically dissolve upon contact with coolant without requiring external intervention. When a leak occurs, the liquid soluble seal autonomously dissolves to open the drain path, eliminating the need for manual seal removal or external actuation systems, thereby maintaining both seal integrity during normal operation and ease of operation during drainage events.
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 effective and scalable coolant drainage by dissolving upon leak detection, maintaining airflow domain integrity during normal operation and ensuring controlled coolant evacuation.
Implementation Method 1
the separating member includes a first section that is insoluble to a cooling liquid and one or more second sections, wherein each of the one or more second sections is soluble to the cooling liquid; and when the second sections of the separating member are dissolved by the cooling liquid, open spaces are formed in the separating member and the cooling liquid drains from the first volume into the second volume
Data Source
Figure 1A~1B
Figure 1C~1D
Figure 2A~2B
AI summary
An apparatus that first and second volumes are fluidly separated by a combination of a first section and second sections, where the first section is insoluble to a cooling liquid and the second section is soluble to the cooling liquid. In the event of a leak of coolant liquid, the second sections dissolve, forming a fluid path from the first volume to the second volume. The coolant liquid may then escape the first volume in spaces that result from the dissolution of the second sections.