The global data centre liquid cooling market is expected to hit USD 7.8 billion by 2028, from USD 6.8 billion in 2023. That’s a whopping 24.4% CAGR throughout the forecast period (2023-2028).
The soaring market growth implies rising demand for liquid cooling solutions in data centres. Also, have you considered the adoption rate of technologies such as cloud computing and the Internet of Things? Such technologies propel the development of data-intensive solutions, which demand a high processing power to perform operations such as data analysis. As such, the applications call for efficient cooling systems to support the changing data processing demands.
Liquid cooling is one such cooling system. With it, you can reduce the cooling energy consumption rate by 40%-50%, improving the power usage effectiveness (PUE)in data centres.
But what exactly does liquid cooling entail? This article discusses liquid cooling in data centres, how it works, and why it is important. But before then, let’s first understand what data centre cooling is.
What is data centre cooling?
Data centre cooling is a system designed to monitor and regulate the heat produced by data centre equipment. The cooling is meant to provide suitable working conditions for the IT equipment, avoiding damage that may arise from overheating.
Data centres account for about 3% of global electricity consumption in 2023, which is expected to rise to 4% by 2030.
Of all the energy consumed in a data centre, 40% goes into cooling systems, dramatically increasing power consumption. Hence, data centres demand efficient cooling systems to lower power consumption costs.
Various efficient data centre cooling systems are available, including:
- Liquid cooling
- Air cooling
- Hold/cold aisle containment.
The systems vary in design and operation; we will focus on liquid cooling in this article.
What is liquid cooling in data centres?
Water and other fluids contain high thermal transfer properties and can be over 3,000 times more effective than air. Liquid cooling utilises these thermal properties to support efficient yet cost-effective cooling for high-density racks.
It is a globally proven strategy for data centre operators to safeguard rack-mounted servers.
How does liquid cooling work in data centres?
Liquid cooling can be implemented in three different ways. Each of the ways works differently. So, let’s dive into each of the three liquid cooling methods.
Direct-to-chip (DTC) liquid cooling
Direct-to-chip is also called direct liquid cooling (DLC) or cold plate cooling. This method is used to cool servers and involves directly circulating liquid overheated components, causing them to dissipate heat.
So, how does DTC work?
A highly conducive material (cold plate), say copper, is attached to the heat-generating components of a server. The plate contains tubes through which a coolant, such as water, flows.
While the coolant passes through the heat-generating components, it absorbs the heat, cooling them down. The coolant, which is now heated, is expelled from the system or cooled in an external cooling chamber.
Direct plate cooling only applies to the hottest data centre components, such as CPUs. As such, it is used alongside air cooling to help dissipate heat from the other components indirectly exposed to cold plate cooling.
Rear door heat exchangers (RDHx)
Rear door heat exchangers are the most cost-efficient cooling systems for mission-critical data centres. These are data centres whose operations demand high energy usage.
RDHx works by removing heat from IT equipment’s exhaust air via a radiator-like heat exchanger installed at the back of the server rack. The heat exchanger has coils and cooling fins for exchanging heat with coolant water or gas.
Cooled air is returned to the data centre. Hence, the cooling system doesn’t require traditional air conditioning units (CRAC).
RDHx cooling is favourable where the data centre’s with high heat load and the IT equipment’s density is high.
Immersion cooling
Immersion cooling involves submerging racks with their components in a thermally conductive dielectric fluid (fluid based on hydrocarbon compounds) or water. Since all the components are submerged in a coolant, it eliminates the need for air cooling.
Hence, immersion cooling is the most effective form of liquid cooling.
There are two forms of immersion cooling: single-phase and two-phase.
Single-phase immersion cooling: The IT hardware is submerged in a dielectric coolant such as mineral oils and other synthetic fluids. The heat from the components is directly transferred to the coolant.
How does single-phase immersion work?
The system contains an immersion tank with a coolant distribution unit (CDU). The unit entails a plate heat exchanger and a pump.
The pump distributes the dielectric fluid through the tank to extract heat released by the servers. The heated fluid is then moved through a plate heat exchanger with water for cooling.
With single-phase immersion, the coolant hardly evaporates. Hence, it utilises open baths. Servers are placed side-by-side in the immersion tanks, operating at atmospheric pressure.
Two-phase immersion cooling: Like in single-phase immersion, the IT hardware is submerged in a pool of liquid. The heat from the components dissipates into the liquid, causing it to change into a gas.
The gas is directed into a condenser, where it’s converted back to liquid. Then, the liquid is returned to the pool to repeat the process.
How can Blackthorne help you?
Whether you are supplying data centres or a data centre looking to purchase or move equipment internationally our IOR service may be of use.
New equipment doesn’t come without its fair share of challenges from an import/export point of view, changes in the technology often also mean changes in the classification when looking at commodities. Different permissions, approvals or even licenses may be required depending on the equipment in question.
This is where our Global Network can be of service, with our own offices in over 70 countries worldwide and an extensive network of local experts, we can ensure any shipment is fully compliant and therefore passes through customs as smoothly as possible.
Please contact our dedicated sales team to find out more.
