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Specialist magazine CONNECTIONS no. 65
Specialist magazine CONNECTIONS no. 65
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Trends<br />
Liquid Cooling:<br />
Worth Considering<br />
050.7379<br />
Can liquids cool data centers a thousand times more efficiently than air? Or is this<br />
just an exaggerated, general advertising statement from innovative manufacturers?<br />
The range is probably between 50 and 1,000 times more efficient. This article<br />
focuses on what data center providers should consider before investing.<br />
Data centers are increasingly compacting<br />
performance in computer rooms. Servers,<br />
switches and microelectronics are becoming<br />
ever more tightly packed. As processing<br />
power increases, so does the operating<br />
temperature in the racks.<br />
This is why heat dissipation management is<br />
given top priority. Cooling with liquids is basically<br />
much more efficient than conventional<br />
cooling with air. Due to their heat capacity<br />
and density, liquids dissipate heat around<br />
1,000 times more efficiently than air.<br />
Smaller PUE value feasible<br />
Air cooling is established and widespread.<br />
In a conventional computer room layout,<br />
cool air from the cold aisle is blown through<br />
the racks into the hot aisle where the air is<br />
collected. Ventilation ducts and blowers lead<br />
it to cooling units or other heat dissipation<br />
systems.<br />
This classic configuration is no longer<br />
sufficient today. In addition, it is becoming<br />
practically impossible to achieve a PUE (Power<br />
Usage Efficiency) value that meets climate<br />
targets. Operators must find new ways to<br />
make «green data centers» a reality. What is<br />
more, energy costs and legal regulations are<br />
also necessitating action.<br />
The challenge, then, is to operate systems<br />
with a high and continuous workload in an<br />
even more efficient and cost-effective manner.<br />
Air cooling generally achieves a PUE of<br />
1.35 to 1.69. According to a study by the U.S.<br />
Air Force, that figure can be reduced to 1.03<br />
with liquid cooling systems.<br />
In immersion cooling, individual servers or entire systems are immersed in a dielectric coolant.<br />
050.7380<br />
Types of liquid cooling<br />
Liquid cooling is a generic term for the way<br />
in which heat is dissipated. There are very<br />
different liquid cooling systems, although<br />
there are generally three main types: rear-<br />
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