Patent Application
20240334656
This application claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. 202310307651.4, titled “LIQUID-COOLING HEAT EXCHANGE DEVICE AND CONTROL METHOD THEREOF” and filed to the China National Intellectual Property Administration on Mar. 27, 2023, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.
The present disclosure relates to the field of heat dissipation technology for electronic devices, and more particularly, to a liquid-cooling heat exchange device and a control method thereof.
With the rapid development of national informatization and digitization, data center rooms have become a significant constituent part of national economic development. With the expansion of data centers and large-scale use of high power density servers, heat production of a single cabinet has sharply increased. In one aspect, heat produced by the high power density servers needs to be taken away timely, otherwise damage may be caused to devices, resulting in economic losses. In another aspect, power of refrigeration devices required for high heat dissipation has increased manifold, which increases energy consumption of the data centers.
The existing data center rooms mainly adopt mature air-cooling technologies such as industrial air conditioning. However, higher energy consumption of air conditioning equipment generally leads to higher PUE values of the data center rooms. To solve the heat dissipation problem of high power consumption IT equipment, the data centers have begun to adopt liquid-cooling technologies. Cooling efficiency of the liquid-cooling technologies is significantly higher than that of the air-cooling technologies, such that the heat dissipation problem of high power consumption IT equipment can be effectively solved, and energy consumption of cooling systems can be reduced.
In the data center rooms that currently adopt the liquid-cooling technologies, temperature cannot rapidly rise up again for commonly-used liquid-cooling heat exchange devices after a round of heat exchange, which may lead to poor heat exchange effects subsequently.
Objectives of the present disclosure are to provide a liquid-cooling heat exchange device and a control method thereof. Air temperature of the liquid-cooling heat exchange device is changed by means of a cooling component, thereby affecting temperature of heat exchange components, such that the temperature is adjusted to room temperature or preset temperature, to solve a technical problem in the prior art that heat exchange effects are adversely affected because internal temperature of the liquid-cooling heat exchange device cannot be properly adjusted.
To achieve the above objectives, the present disclosure provides a liquid-cooling heat exchange device at least including a box body, which is internally provided with a temperature control component, a first pipeline, and a second pipeline. The temperature control component has a first runner and a second runner respectively interconnected to the first pipeline and the second pipeline to form a first loop and a second loop, where the first loop and the second loop exchange heat through contact. The box body is also internally provided with a cooling component. After the first loop exchanges heat with the second loop, temperature of the box body changes with the cooling component to adjust temperature of the first loop.
As a further improvement of the above technical solutions, the first pipeline includes a container return pipe and a container supply pipe, where the container return pipe and the container supply pipe are respectively connected to two ends of the first runner. The container return pipe and the container supply pipe are connected to a container at one end away from the first runner, such that a liquid inside the container flows through the first loop and exchanges heat with the second loop.
As a further improvement of the above technical solutions, a pump body is arranged on the container return pipe, and the liquid in the container circulates along the first loop by means of the pump body.
As a further improvement of the above technical solutions, both the container return pipe and the container supply pipe have a filter component, such that the liquid flowing to the first runner and the liquid flowing to the container can flow through the filter component.
As a further improvement of the above technical solutions, the container supply pipe is a right-angle structure, such that the container supply pipe is disposed on a left or right side of the box body.
As a further improvement of the above technical solutions, a conductivity meter is arranged on the container supply pipe to detect electrical conductivity of the liquid flowing into the container.
As a further improvement of the above technical solutions, the second pipeline includes an external circulation return pipe and an external circulation supply pipe, and the external circulation return pipe and the external circulation supply pipe are respectively connected to two ends of the second runner. The external circulation return pipe and the external circulation supply pipe penetrate through the box body and connect an external circulation system at one end away from the second runner, such that a liquid flowing out of the external circulation system flows into the second loop and exchanges heat with the first loop.
As a further improvement of the above technical solutions, the cooling component at least includes a blade and a motor, where the motor is arranged on the box body and is connected to the blade to drive the blade to generate an airflow, thereby changing the temperature of the box body.
To achieve the above objectives, in another aspect the present disclosure also provides a method for using a liquid-cooling heat exchange device, which at least includes a box body. The box body is internally provided with a temperature control component, a first pipeline, a second pipeline, and a cooling component. The temperature control component has a first runner and a second runner, and the first runner and the second runner are respectively interconnected to the first pipeline and the second pipeline to form a first loop and a second loop, where the first loop and the second loop exchange heat through contact. Both the first pipeline and the second pipeline are provided with a temperature sensor. The method includes: determining whether temperature of the first runner is higher than a threshold value, and turning on the cooling component when the temperature of the first runner is higher than the threshold value, to adjust the temperature of the first loop by changing the temperature of the box body by means of the cooling component.
As a further improvement of the above technical solutions, the first pipeline includes a container return pipe and a container supply pipe, and the temperature sensor is arranged on the container supply pipe. When a liquid flows through the first loop, a differential between the temperature of the liquid in the container supply pipe and the threshold value is determined, and a flow rate of a pump body is adjusted according to the differential.
As can be seen from the technical solutions provided in one or more embodiments of the present disclosure, the temperature control component is provided to exchange heat with the liquid inside a liquid-cooling server container, to ensure that a coolant liquid can stay within a predetermined temperature interval for a long time, thereby cooling devices.
Furthermore, air temperature of the liquid-cooling heat exchange device is changed by means of the cooling component, thereby affecting the temperature of the heat exchange components, such that the temperature is adjusted to the room temperature or the preset temperature, to solve the technical problem in the prior art that the heat exchange effects are adversely affected because the internal temperature of the liquid-cooling heat exchange device cannot be properly adjusted.
To describe the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present disclosure more clearly, the accompanying drawings required for describing the embodiments will be briefly introduced below. Apparently, the accompanying drawings in the following description are merely some embodiments of the present disclosure. To those of ordinary skills in the art, other accompanying drawings may also be derived from these accompanying drawings without creative efforts.
Reference numerals in the accompanying drawings:
Detailed description of the embodiments of the present disclosure will further be made below with reference to drawings to make the above objectives, technical solutions and advantages of the present disclosure more apparent. Terms such as “upper”, “above”, “lower”, “below”, “first end”, “second end”, “one end”, “other end” and the like as used herein, which denote spatial relative positions, describe the relationship of one unit or feature relative to another unit or feature in the accompanying drawings for the purpose of illustration. The terms of the spatial relative positions may be intended to include different orientations of the device in use or operation other than the orientations shown in the accompanying drawings. For example, the units that are described as “below” or “under” other units or features will be “above” other units or features if the device in the accompanying drawings is turned upside down. Thus, the exemplary term “below” can encompass both the orientations of above and below. The device may be otherwise oriented (rotated by 90 degrees or facing other directions) and the space-related descriptors used herein are interpreted accordingly.
In addition, the terms “installed”, “arranged”, “provided”, “connected”, “slidably connected”, “fixed” and “sleeved” should be understood in a broad sense. For example, the “connection” may be a fixed connection, a detachable connection or integrated connection, a mechanical connection or an electrical connection, a direct connection or indirect connection by means of an intermediary, or an internal connection between two apparatuses, components or constituent parts. For those of ordinary skill in the art, concrete meanings of the above terms in the present disclosure may be understood based on concrete circumstances.
The present disclosure provides a liquid-cooling heat exchange device, which is described in detail below. It is to be noted that the description order of the following embodiments does not limit the preferred order of the embodiments in the present disclosure. In the following embodiments, description of various embodiments may be focused on differentially, and reference may be made to related descriptions of other embodiments for a part not expatiated in a certain embodiment.
With the growth of computing power of data centers, heat flux density of the data centers continues to increase. Traditional air-cooling systems used in the data centers gradually become unable to withstand high heat generated by high computing power servers. By contrast, liquid-cooling systems have gradually become a necessary choice for new-generation data centers due to their higher heat dissipation efficiency.
To ensure continuous cooling effects of coolant liquids inside liquid-cooling server containers, most of existing data center rooms use liquid-cooling heat exchange devices to connect the liquid-cooling server containers for heat exchange, to control temperature of the coolant liquids inside the liquid-cooling server containers within a reasonable range and to ensure normal operation of the liquid-cooling servers.
However, after a round of heat exchange with the coolant liquids inside the liquid-cooling server containers, temperature changes of heat exchange components of the existing liquid-cooling heat exchange devices will last for a certain time due to the heat exchange. In this case, the heat exchange effects may be adversely affected if a next round of heat exchange is carried out.
In view of this, the embodiments of the present disclosure provide a liquid-cooling heat exchange device. Air temperature of the liquid-cooling heat exchange device is changed by means of the cooling component, thereby affecting the temperature of the heat exchange components, such that the temperature is adjusted to the room temperature or the preset temperature, to solve the technical problem in the prior art that the heat exchange effects are adversely affected because the internal temperature of the liquid-cooling heat exchange device cannot be properly adjusted. A detailed description is made below.
The technical solutions in the embodiments of the present disclosure will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Apparently, the embodiments described in the present disclosure are some but not all of the embodiments of the present disclosure. All other embodiments obtained by a person of ordinary skill in the art based on the embodiments of the present disclosure without creative efforts shall fall within the protection scope of the present disclosure.
Referring to
Further, the first pipeline 40 includes a container inlet pipe 401 and a container return pipe 402. The container inlet pipe 401 and the container return pipe 402 are respectively connected to two ends of the first runner. The container inlet pipe 401 and the container return pipe 402 are connected to a container at one end away from the first runner, such that a liquid inside the container flows through the first loop and exchanges heat with the second loop. Still further, a pump body 4011 is arranged on the container return pipe 401, and the liquid inside the container circulates along the first loop by means of the pump body 4011, thereby changing the temperature of the liquid inside the liquid-cooling server container.
Still further, the second pipeline 50 includes an external circulation inlet pipe 501 and an external circulation return pipe 502. The external circulation inlet pipe 501 and the external circulation return pipe 502 are respectively connected to two ends of the second runner. The external circulation inlet pipe 501 and the external circulation return pipe 502 penetrate through the box body 10 and connect an external circulation system at one end away from the second runner, such that a liquid flowing out of the external circulation system flows into the second loop and exchanges heat with the first loop.
All the container inlet pipe 401, the container return pipe 402, the external circulation inlet pipe 501, and the external circulation return pipe 502 may be comprised of hard pipelines and soft pipelines, respectively. The soft pipelines can compensate for size and assembly errors, facilitating layout and installation of the entire pipeline. The hard pipelines may be employed to connect components such as sensors and valve bodies.
Moreover, a plurality of on/off valves are connected in series with the container inlet pipe 401, the container return pipe 402, the external circulation inlet pipe 501, and the external circulation return pipe 502, respectively. The plurality of on/off valves are successively arranged at intervals along the corresponding pipelines, such that in subsequent maintenance, it is not necessary to discharge all the liquids for maintenance. Instead it is only required to turn off the on/off valves at two ends of a corresponding maintenance point, making the maintenance more convenient.
After long-term operation of the coolant liquid inside the first loop, shortage of the coolant liquid may be caused by volatilization of the coolant liquid. To facilitate replenishment of the coolant liquid, a container branch is arranged in the container inlet pipe 401 and/or container return pipe 402, and the container branch is connected to a liquid charging/discharging port.
Specifically, the liquid charging/discharging port includes a liquid charging/discharging cut-off valve and a quick connector. One end of the liquid charging/discharging cut-off valve is interconnected to the container branch, and other end of the liquid charging/discharging cut-off valve is interconnected to the quick connector. In this way, when liquid replenishment is needed, an external liquid replenishment device connector may be connected to the quick connector, and then the liquid charging/discharging cut-off valve may be opened for liquid replenishment. After the liquid replenishment is completed, the liquid charging/discharging cut-off valve may be closed first, and then the external liquid replenishment device connector is removed from the quick connector.
In practical applications, a plate heat exchanger is employed for heat exchange of the liquid in the above solutions. Specifically, the liquid inside the liquid-cooling server container enters the first runner of the plate heat exchanger through the container inlet pipe 401, and the liquid in the external circulation system enters the second runner of the plate heat exchanger through the external circulation inlet pipe 501. Heat is transferred based on a temperature differential between the two liquids. After the heat exchange, the two liquids enter the container return pipe 402 and the external circulation return pipe 502, respectively.
For example, after a server runs for a certain period of time, its temperature rises. To keep the temperature of the server within a preset range, the liquid inside the liquid-cooling server container is introduced into the first runner by means of the pump body 4011. At this moment, the temperature of the liquid inside the first runner is higher than the temperature of the liquid inside in the second runner. After the heat exchange, the temperature of the liquid entering the container return pipe 402 drops. In this way, it is ensured that the temperature of the liquid flowing back into the liquid-cooling server container is lower than the temperature of the liquid flowing out of the liquid-cooling server container.
In an implementable embodiment, a conductivity meter 60 is arranged on the container return pipe 402 to detect electrical conductivity of the liquid flowing into the container. When the conductivity meter 60 displays that the electrical conductivity of the liquid is too high at this moment, this means that there are more impurities in the current liquid, and an alarm may be triggered. In this case, operation and maintenance personnel may replace the liquid inside the liquid-cooling server container according to the above situations to prevent occurrence of blocking the pipelines by the impurities.
In an implementable embodiment, the container return pipe 402 adopts a right-angle structure, such that the container return pipe 402 may be disposed on a left or right side of the box body 10 according to internal structural layout requirements of the liquid-cooling heat exchange device. In this way, through reasonable structural design, compared to similar devices, daily maintenance and repair can be completed better and faster. Correspondingly, the container inlet pipe 401 may also adopt a right-angle structure to achieve interaction with the container return pipe 402.
In an implementable embodiment, a regulating valve is provided on the external circulation inlet pipe 501 to regulate a flow rate of the liquid flowing into the second runner through the external circulation system. In this way, the flow rate required for the heat exchange may be adjusted in conjunction. When the current cooling demand is higher, the flow rate of the liquid may be increased; otherwise, the flow rate of the liquid may be reduced.
Further, a pressure sensor is also arranged on the external circulation inlet pipe 501 to detect a pressure of the liquid flowing into the second runner through the external circulation system, thereby determining whether the current flow rate through the external circulation inlet pipe 501 is consistent with an opening degree of the regulating valve.
Still further, the pressure sensor is installed on a ball valve. When a liquid pressure is within a preset range, the ball valve is in a normally open state. When the pressure sensor requires maintenance or in other situations, the operation and maintenance personnel may manually close the ball valve.
In an implementable embodiment, a flow meter is arranged on the container inlet pipe 401 to monitor the flow rate of the coolant liquid flowing out of the liquid-cooling server container. The flow meter is electrically connected to a controller 70, which can receive a signal sent by the flow meter, obtain real-time flow rate data of the liquid inside the flow meter, and determine operation of the liquid-cooling heat exchange device based on the flow rate data.
In an implementable embodiment, the cooling component 30 at least includes a blade 301 and a motor 302, where the motor 302 is arranged on the box body 10 and is connected to the blade 301 to drive the blade 301 to generate an airflow, thereby changing the temperature of the box body 10. The motor 302 is electrically connected to the controller 70 to achieve control of the temperature of the blade 301 and the temperature of the box body 10 by means of the controller 70. Further, the first runner is provided with a second temperature sensor, which is electrically connected to the controller 70. The controller 70 can receive a signal sent by the second temperature sensor and obtain real-time temperature of the first runner. When the liquid inside the liquid-cooling server container undergoes cyclic heat exchange, the first runner undergoes temperature changes due to influences of the liquid. In this case, the second temperature sensor can send a detected temperature value to the controller 70 and determine a differential between this value and a preset temperature value. When the differential exceeds a set threshold range, the controller 70 controls the motor 302 to rotate to start the blade 301 to adjust the temperature of the box body 10 until the temperature value received by the controller 70 is within the above threshold range.
Unlike the aforementioned manner of generating the airflow for cooling by means of the blade 301, in another implementable embodiment, the cooling component 30 at least includes a ventilation duct arranged on the box body 10 and an air conditioner arranged in the data center room. The controller 70 is electrically connected to the air conditioner and an on/off valve on the ventilation duct. By controlling interior of the box body 10 to be interconnected to interior of the data center room, the box body 10 can change its internal temperature through refrigeration of the air conditioner, which in turn affects the temperature of the first runner.
Based on the same inventive concept, the present disclosure also provides a method for using a liquid-cooling heat exchange device, where the method is used in the liquid-cooling heat exchange device provided in any one of the above embodiments. The method includes:
Specifically, the temperature of the liquid inside the container return pipe 402 can represent heat dissipation situations of the coolant liquid inside the first loop on devices inside the liquid-cooling server container. When the controller 70 determines that there is a differential between the temperature detected by the first temperature sensor and the preset temperature in the system, the controller 70 may calculate a speed regulation amount of the pump body 4011 based on a PID algorithm, regulate the rotational speed of the pump body 4011, and regulate the flow rate of the pump body 4011, thereby regulating refrigerating effects on the liquid-cooling server container.
For example, assuming an optimal temperature interval for the liquid (i.e. the coolant liquid) after heat exchange is set to P1, if the first temperature sensor detects that a temperature value of the container return pipe 402 after the first loop starts cycling is P2, the value P2 is sent to the controller 70. After the value P2 is obtained, the controller 70 compares it with a set optimal hydraulic range P1. When P2>P1, the temperature of the coolant liquid inside the container return pipe 402 is too high to achieve the effects of cooling the server. In this case, the controller 70 adjusts the temperature of the liquid supplied by the external circulation system, thereby changing the temperature of the liquid inside the second runner, such that the coolant liquid inside the first runner exchanges heat with the liquid whose temperature is changed. Furthermore, the controller 70 can also adjust the opening degree of the pump body 4011 to increase or decrease the flow rate of the liquid flowing through the first runner based on the current value P2.
As can be seen from the technical solutions provided in one or more embodiments of the present disclosure, the temperature control component 20 is provided to exchange heat with the liquid inside the liquid-cooling server container, to ensure that the coolant liquid can stay within the predetermined temperature interval for a long time, thereby cooling the devices.
Furthermore, air temperature of the liquid-cooling heat exchange device is changed by means of the cooling component 30, thereby affecting the temperature of the heat exchange components, such that the temperature is adjusted to the room temperature or the preset temperature, to solve the technical problem in the prior art that the heat exchange effects are adversely affected because the internal temperature of the liquid-cooling heat exchange device cannot be properly adjusted.
The embodiments set forth above are only illustrated as preferred embodiments of the present disclosure, and are not intended to limit the present disclosure. All modifications, equivalent substitutions and improvements made within the spirit and principles of the present disclosure shall fall within the protection scope of the present disclosure.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 202310307651.4 | Mar 2023 | CN | national |
