Is Liquid Cooling The Future Of Your Data Center?

The data center industry is facing unprecedented challenges. With chip densities skyrocketing, high-performance computing is being pushed to its limits, all while energy costs are soaring and environmental concerns are escalating. Securing approvals for new data center facilities has become more complex, often plagued by community objections and grid supply issues.

However, amidst these hurdles, liquid cooling technology is emerging as a game-changer. Once viewed with skepticism, liquid cooling in data centers has grown in popularity, or rather, become a necessity for those responsible for deploying the next generation of high-density compute. Vendors are now exploring advanced cooling methods, such as direct-to-chip cooling and whole-system immersion cooling, recognizing their potential to meet the demanding infrastructure needs of modern facilities. Curious about how liquid cooling can transform your data center? Let’s dive in!

What is liquid cooling?

Liquid cooling technology enhances traditional cooling methods by using liquid to dissipate heat directly from chips. This approach minimizes the reliance on air as an intermediary, making it possible to manage higher power densities effectively. Explained below are the two primary methods:

• Direct-to-Chip Liquid Cooling: This hybrid method employs cold plates that come into direct contact with hot components, efficiently drawing heat away while air assists in the process.
• Liquid Immersion Cooling: In this innovative method, entire server components are submerged in a specially designed liquid, allowing for unparalleled heat removal. These systems can utilize single-phase or two-phase fluids. Single-phase fluids remain in a liquid state throughout the cooling process, while two-phase fluids transition to gas, providing additional heat removal as the liquid changes state.
• Air cooling has been the standard for server racks operating below 20 kW. However, as power densities exceed 20-25 kW, traditional air-cooling struggles, making liquid cooling a more viable and efficient option.

Benefits of liquid cooling

Liquid cooling offers a wealth of advantages that align with the needs of today’s high-performance data centers:

• Handles High Densities: Effectively supports the higher computing densities and heat generation that modern data centers demand
• Increases Throughput: Enhances computing capacity for resource-intensive applications like AI
• Boosts Energy Efficiency: Aligns with sustainability goals by reducing energy consumption and the data center’s carbon footprint
• Repurposes Waste Heat: Offers the potential to reuse waste heat for residential heating or agricultural purposes
• Higher Cooling Capacity: Provides superior cooling efficiency compared to air
• Water Conservation: Utilizes significantly less water than many air-cooled adiabatic alternatives
• Environmentally Friendly: Promotes greener operations through reduced energy usage

Challenges in adoption of liquid cooling

While the benefits are substantial, several barriers hinder the widespread adoption of liquid cooling. Concerns about electrical safety, ease of maintenance, availability, and flexibility of components have historically stalled progress. However, innovations like negative pressure systems and dripless connectors significantly mitigate these risks.

Cost is another critical factor, especially for legacy data centers. Many operators hesitate to invest in liquid cooling due to its potential complexity and expense, particularly in smaller or less compute-intensive environments. Furthermore, retrofitting a new cooling system can disrupt the efficiency of existing air-cooling technologies.

Another often-forgotten challenge is that many liquid-cooled solutions are not 100% efficient at removing heat from the IT, leaving the remainder to be handled by the air cooling in the data center. As cabinets approach 150+ kW, even an 85% effective liquid cooling solution leaves a significant proportion of heat to be dealt with by the airside.

Is liquid cooling right for your data center?

Before proceeding with liquid cooling, designers and operators must assess its impact on data center performance. Advanced tools like Cadence’s digital twins, powered by computational fluid dynamics (CFD), provide invaluable insights into how new technologies like liquid cooling affect the data center and cooling infrastructure performance. While traditional 3D models can be heavy on computations, Cadence’s sophisticated software streamlines this process by integrating 3D models with flow networks, allowing for quicker analysis and smoother implementation.

Liquid cooling presents a transformational opportunity for modern data centers, offering a scalable and efficient solution to the challenges posed by increased power densities and energy costs. As the industry evolves, understanding and embracing these advanced cooling technologies may be the key to future success. Read the eBook “Is Liquid Cooling Right for Your Data Center?” before taking a plunge into liquid cooling!