How to cool the equipment in the data center - three new technologies
More and more companies are switching to virtual infrastructure, which is why the load on servers in data centers is increasing, and with it electricity consumption. In 2017, the power of data centers accounted for 3% of all electricity generated on the planet. In some cases, 40% of the electricity consumed the air conditioning of the engine rooms.
To reduce the cost of equipment maintenance and reduce the "check" for electricity, new technological solutions are being developed in the industry. Then we will talk about immersion cooling, intelligent air conditioning systems and 3D printing of radiators.
/ photo by Rolf Brink CC BY-SA
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Water effectively optimizes the cost of cooling equipment in the data center. This is due to the fact that the fluid passing through the radiators, better removes heat from the equipment than air. However, modern data centers care not only about the financial component of the issue, but also about the image. Gradually, the data center is becoming more "green", reducing water consumption.
For this reason, the industry often pays attention to immersion cooling technology, which uses special dielectric fluids into which server boards are completely immersed. This approach removes heat from iron better and helps reduce the noise typical of data centers in the engine room.
In 2017, Horizon Computing presented its development in this area. They created a modular data center consisting of several boxes. The boxes are filled with mineral oil, which contains iron. The design of the module case is a radiator, so the product automatically maintains the desired temperature of the servers due to natural convection.
Another example of immersion technology is the Green Revolution Cooling project. We are talking about a special oil liquid , which, according to the manufacturer, assures that heat from the equipment is more efficient than air a thousand times. This feature gives data center administrators more time to fix breakdowns, as the iron heats up to critical temperatures longer.
Large IT companies have decided to go further. Now they submerge entire data centers. There is even an opinion that the data centers of the future will be underwater. One such center called Natick, which is immersed in the ocean off the islands of Scotland, can be watched live .
To cool the servers, the developers have adapted the technology that is used in submarines to reduce the temperature of the reactors. The air conditioning system takes water directly from the ocean and delivers it to radiators on racks with equipment. After - she goes back to the ocean. This saves water and reduces the cost of air conditioning.
Artificial intelligence systems are actively used to solve various problems in the data center. For example, they optimize hardware performance and protect networks from hacker attacks. Cooling control is another strategic direction for AI.
In 2018, Google entrusted the algorithm with managing the cooling system in one of its data centers. It uses a network of sensors that monitor the system for various parameters - from the level of air humidity to wind speed outside. Based on the AI ​​data, it makes predictions how the environmental conditions will affect the temperature in the data center and energy consumption.
Forecasts allow the algorithm to make the best decision and send recommendations to the air conditioning control system. Once the system independently “guessed” to use cold air from the street in winter time to cool the water in the chillers. This helped cut energy costs by 30%.
/ photo by Alexis LĂŞ-QuĂ´c CC BY-SA
A similar work principle was presented in Litbit. The smart system analyzes the ultrasonic frequencies and abnormal vibrations of the floor in the engine room. Based on the data, she is able to determine if all the equipment is working correctly. Another example is the Nlyte Software solution. It collects data on the temperature in the machine room, the amount of electricity consumed, etc. On the basis of this data, the system gives administrators advice on what can be improved.
The IT industry today is improving not only methods of cooling machine rooms entirely. Technology is proposed to remove heat from individual processors. Not so long ago, engineers at Binghamton University presented a solution that delivers water and coolants directly to server chips. In the future, the development can replace thermal paste.
Engineers applied a layer of an alloy of titanium, tin and silver on the crystal. Then, using 3D printing, they formed channels in it for the passage of coolant. The thickness of the material obtained does not exceed the diameter of a human hair, which allows the refrigerant to take excess heat directly from the chip.
Experts believe that this method can reduce energy consumption in data centers by 5% compared with the already used technologies. This method was tested in the laboratory of the university, but it has not yet reached commercial application.
Industry experts say that the infrastructure in data centers is becoming increasingly distributed, and the individual equipment takes up less and less space. This dictates new requirements for cooling systems - data centers are likely to take up less space than they do now, but will produce more heat per square meter. This means that point methods (for example, using heat sinks on processors) and immersion cooling are becoming more relevant.
At the same time, the IT industry is committed to automation, so artificial intelligence systems will play an increasing role in the management of data centers. Including in terms of cooling.
Additional reading in our blog:
To reduce the cost of equipment maintenance and reduce the "check" for electricity, new technological solutions are being developed in the industry. Then we will talk about immersion cooling, intelligent air conditioning systems and 3D printing of radiators.
/ photo by Rolf Brink CC BY-SA
')
Immersion cooling
Water effectively optimizes the cost of cooling equipment in the data center. This is due to the fact that the fluid passing through the radiators, better removes heat from the equipment than air. However, modern data centers care not only about the financial component of the issue, but also about the image. Gradually, the data center is becoming more "green", reducing water consumption.
For this reason, the industry often pays attention to immersion cooling technology, which uses special dielectric fluids into which server boards are completely immersed. This approach removes heat from iron better and helps reduce the noise typical of data centers in the engine room.
In 2017, Horizon Computing presented its development in this area. They created a modular data center consisting of several boxes. The boxes are filled with mineral oil, which contains iron. The design of the module case is a radiator, so the product automatically maintains the desired temperature of the servers due to natural convection.
Another example of immersion technology is the Green Revolution Cooling project. We are talking about a special oil liquid , which, according to the manufacturer, assures that heat from the equipment is more efficient than air a thousand times. This feature gives data center administrators more time to fix breakdowns, as the iron heats up to critical temperatures longer.
Large IT companies have decided to go further. Now they submerge entire data centers. There is even an opinion that the data centers of the future will be underwater. One such center called Natick, which is immersed in the ocean off the islands of Scotland, can be watched live .
To cool the servers, the developers have adapted the technology that is used in submarines to reduce the temperature of the reactors. The air conditioning system takes water directly from the ocean and delivers it to radiators on racks with equipment. After - she goes back to the ocean. This saves water and reduces the cost of air conditioning.
AI systems for controlling coolers
Artificial intelligence systems are actively used to solve various problems in the data center. For example, they optimize hardware performance and protect networks from hacker attacks. Cooling control is another strategic direction for AI.
In 2018, Google entrusted the algorithm with managing the cooling system in one of its data centers. It uses a network of sensors that monitor the system for various parameters - from the level of air humidity to wind speed outside. Based on the AI ​​data, it makes predictions how the environmental conditions will affect the temperature in the data center and energy consumption.
Forecasts allow the algorithm to make the best decision and send recommendations to the air conditioning control system. Once the system independently “guessed” to use cold air from the street in winter time to cool the water in the chillers. This helped cut energy costs by 30%.
/ photo by Alexis LĂŞ-QuĂ´c CC BY-SA
A similar work principle was presented in Litbit. The smart system analyzes the ultrasonic frequencies and abnormal vibrations of the floor in the engine room. Based on the data, she is able to determine if all the equipment is working correctly. Another example is the Nlyte Software solution. It collects data on the temperature in the machine room, the amount of electricity consumed, etc. On the basis of this data, the system gives administrators advice on what can be improved.
Cooling with 3D printing
The IT industry today is improving not only methods of cooling machine rooms entirely. Technology is proposed to remove heat from individual processors. Not so long ago, engineers at Binghamton University presented a solution that delivers water and coolants directly to server chips. In the future, the development can replace thermal paste.
Engineers applied a layer of an alloy of titanium, tin and silver on the crystal. Then, using 3D printing, they formed channels in it for the passage of coolant. The thickness of the material obtained does not exceed the diameter of a human hair, which allows the refrigerant to take excess heat directly from the chip.
Experts believe that this method can reduce energy consumption in data centers by 5% compared with the already used technologies. This method was tested in the laboratory of the university, but it has not yet reached commercial application.
What will happen next
Industry experts say that the infrastructure in data centers is becoming increasingly distributed, and the individual equipment takes up less and less space. This dictates new requirements for cooling systems - data centers are likely to take up less space than they do now, but will produce more heat per square meter. This means that point methods (for example, using heat sinks on processors) and immersion cooling are becoming more relevant.
At the same time, the IT industry is committed to automation, so artificial intelligence systems will play an increasing role in the management of data centers. Including in terms of cooling.
Additional reading in our blog:
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/442562/
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