Cooling system for data center

• US 9,690,337 B1
• Filed: 12/09/2013
• Issued: 06/27/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 12/09/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc. (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc. (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Inventors: Gillooly, Alan Donald, Eichelberg, John William, Gardner, Brock Robert
• Primary Examiner(s): Martin, Elizabeth
• Application Number:
  US14/100,371
• Time in Patent Office: 1,296 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/20 Cooling means
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 7/20709 for server racks or cabinets; for data centers, e.g. 19-inch computer racks
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 7/20745 within rooms for removing heat from cabinets, e.g. by air conditioning device

Abstract

A data center can include at least one computing room, and at least one rack system disposed in the computing room. The rack system includes a rack housing and a plurality of computing devices mounted to the rack housing. The data center can further include a cooling system that includes at least one surface that is wetted with a liquid, and delivers source air across the at least one surface such that heat is transferred from the source air to the liquid so as to produce cold air. The cold air then flows into a cold air aisle and is received in the computing devices so as to cool the computing devices.

Claims

1. A data center comprising:

a computing room;

a plurality of rows of rack systems each disposed in the computing room, at least some of the rack systems of the plurality of rows of rack systems including a respective rack housing and computing devices supported by the rack housing, the plurality of rows of rack systems spaced from each other such that each of the plurality of rows of rack systems is disposed between a respective one of a plurality of hot air aisles and a respective one of a plurality of cold air aisles;

a cooling system including a plurality of conduits in fluid communication with a corresponding one of the plurality of cold air aisles, and at least one liquid delivery system configured to cause a liquid to be delivered on at least one surface of at least one of the plurality of conduits along a length of the at least one of the plurality of conduits, the cooling system further including an air mover configured to direct ambient air over the liquid in the at least one of the plurality of conduits along a direction substantially parallel to the at least one surface of the at least one of the plurality of conduits so as to produce cold air that flows into the corresponding one of the plurality of cold air aisles,

wherein cold air passes through the computing devices from the respective one of the plurality of cold air aisles, such that the computing devices transfer heat to the cold air to produce hot air, and the hot air is exhausted into the respective one of the hot air aisles.

2. The data center as recited in claim 1, further comprising a porous floor disposed between the plurality of cold air aisles and the plurality of conduits, wherein the cold air flows from the plurality of conduits, through the porous floor, and into the plurality of cold air aisles.

3. The data center as recited in claim 1, wherein the plurality of rows of rack systems includes at least one pair of rows of rack systems whose computing devices exhaust the produced hot air into a common one of the plurality of hot air aisles.

4. The data center as recited in claim 1, wherein the plurality of rows of rack systems includes at least one pair of rows of rack systems whose computing devices receive the cold air from a common one of the plurality of cold air aisles.

5. The data center as recited in claim 1, wherein the cooling system further comprises at least one liquid delivery member that carries the liquid and delivers the liquid to the plurality of conduits.

6. A data center comprising:

a computing room;

a row of rack systems disposed in the computing room between a hot air aisle and a cold air aisle, the row of rack systems including at least one rack housing and computing devices supported by the rack housing; and

a cooling system including at least one surface that is wetted with a liquid and in fluid communication with the cold air aisle, and an air mover configured to direct source air over the liquid substantially parallel to the at least one surface so as to produce cold air that flows from the at least one surface to the cold air aisle,

wherein the cold air passes through computing devices from the cold air aisle, such that the computing devices transfer heat to the cold air so as to produce hot air, and the hot air is exhausted into the hot air aisle.

7. The data center as recited in claim 6, wherein the row of rack systems is a first row of rack systems supported at a first level of the data center, the hot air aisle is a first hot air aisle, the cold air aisle is a first cold air aisle, and the computing devices are a first plurality of computing devices, the data center further comprising:

a second row of rack systems disposed in the computing room at a second level that is disposed above the first level, the second row of rack systems disposed between a second hot air aisle and a second cold air aisle, the second row of rack systems including at least one rack housing and a second plurality of computing devices mounted to the rack housing of the second row of rack systems; and

wherein the cold air travels from the at least one surface to the second cold air aisle, such that the computing devices of the second plurality of computing devices receive the cold air from the second cold air aisle, transfer heat to the received cold air so as to produce hot air that is exhausted into the second hot air aisle.

8. The data center as recited in claim 7, wherein the first and second cold air aisles are arranged such that a portion of the cold air travels from the at least one surface to the first cold air aisle and into the computing devices of the first plurality of the computing devices, and another portion of the cold air travels through the first cold air aisle to the second cold air aisle, and into the computing devices of the second plurality of computing devices.

9. The data center as recited in claim 8, wherein the first and second cold air aisles are inline with each other so as to define a cold air column that is open to the at least one surface and extends through the first level to the second level of the data center.

10. The data center as recited in claim 7, wherein the first and second hot air aisles are inline with each other so as to define a hot air column that extends out the data center into an ambient environment, such that the hot air that is exhausted by the first plurality of computing devices travels from the first hot air aisle to the second hot air aisle and is expelled out the data center.

11. The data center as recited in claim 6, further comprising a porous floor disposed between the at least one surface and the cold air aisle, wherein the porous floor has a porosity that increases along a direction of travel of the source air along the at least one surface.

12. The data center as recited in claim 6, further comprising a plurality of conduits that are at least partially defined by respective surfaces that are wetted with a liquid, wherein one of the conduits is at least partially defined by at least one surface, and the plurality of conduits are aligned with at least respective ones of a plurality of cold air aisles that are configured to deliver cold air to respective pluralities of computing devices.

13. The data center as recited in claim 12, wherein at least a portion of the conduits are disposed underground and are open to the computing room.

14. The data center as recited in claim 12, further comprising a frame that at least partially defines the plurality of conduits.

15. The data center as recited in claim 6, further comprising a liquid delivery member configured to cause a liquid to be delivered to the at least one surface.

16. The data center as recited in claim 15, wherein the liquid delivery member is configured to spray the liquid onto the at least one surface.

17. The data center as recited in claim 15, wherein the at least one surface is defined by a porous material, and at least a portion of the liquid delivery member is embedded in the porous material, and configured to deliver liquid that travels through the porous material to the at least one surface.

18. A method of removing heat from computing devices of a data center, the computing devices supported in respective rack housings of rack systems that are arranged in a plurality of rows in a computing room, such that the computing devices are disposed between a respective hot air aisle and a respective cold air aisle among a plurality of hot air aisles and cold air aisles in the computing room, the method comprising the steps of:

introducing a liquid onto at least one surface;

directing source air to flow over the at least one surface parallel to the at least one surface so as to produce cold air that flows toward the computing devices;

causing the cold air to flow into the computing devices;

after the causing step, transferring heat from the computing devices to the cold air so as to produce hot air; and

causing the hot air to be exhausted out the computing devices.

19. The method as recited in claim 18, wherein the introducing step further comprises delivering the liquid directly to the at least one surface.

20. The method as recited in claim 19, wherein the introducing step further comprises spraying the liquid onto the at least one surface.

21. The method as recited in claim 18, wherein the at least one surface is defined by a porous material, and the introducing step comprises wetting the porous material from a liquid delivery member that is at least partially embedded in the porous material, such that the liquid travels to the at least one surface.

22. The method as recited in claim 18, wherein the introducing step comprises the step of inducing the liquid to be delivered to the at least one surface.

23. The method as recited in claim 22, wherein the inducing step comprises the step of generating the step of generating condensation, such that the liquid comprises a condensate.

24. The method as recited in claim 18, wherein the directing step further comprising directing ambient air from an ambient environment outside the data center to flow over the at least one surface.

25. The method as recited in claim 18, further comprising the step of expelling the hot air out the data center.

26. The method as recited in claim 18, wherein at least a portion of the at least one surface is buried under a ground, the method further comprising the step of transferring heat from the ground to the liquid that is on the at least one surface.