Strategies for effective use of exergy-based modeling of data center thermal management systems

Data centers today contain more computing and networking equipment than ever before. As a result, a higher amount of cooling is required to maintain facilities within operable temperature ranges. Increasing amounts of resources are spent to achieve thermal control, and tremendous potential benefit lies in the optimization of the cooling process. This paper describes a study performed on data center thermal management systems using the thermodynamic concept of exergy. Specifically, an exergy analysis has been performed on sample data centers in an attempt to identify local and overall inefficiencies within thermal management systems. The development of a model using finite volume analysis has been described, and potential applications to real-world systems have been illustrated. Preliminary results suggest that such an exergy-based analysis can be a useful tool in the design and enhancement of thermal management systems.

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Exergy-Based Optimization Strategies for Multi-Component Data Center Thermal Management: Part I — Analysis

Advances in Electronic Packaging, Parts A, B, and C ◽

10.1115/ipack2005-73137 ◽

2005 ◽

Cited By ~ 15

Author(s):

Amip J. Shah ◽

Van P. Carey ◽

Cullen E. Bash ◽

Chandrakant D. Patel

Keyword(s):

Thermal Management ◽

Data Center ◽

Air Conditioning ◽

Data Centers ◽

Heat Dissipation ◽

Real Data ◽

Management Systems ◽

Prior Work ◽

Operating Strategy ◽

Air Space

As heat dissipation in data centers rises by orders of magnitude, inefficiencies such as recirculation will have an increasingly significant impact on the thermal manageability and energy efficiency of the cooling infrastructure. For example, prior work has shown that for simple data centers with a single Computer Room Air-Conditioning (CRAC) unit, an operating strategy that fails to account for inefficiencies in the air space can result in suboptimal performance. To enable system-wide optimality, an exergy-based approach to CRAC control has previously been proposed. However, application of such a strategy in a real data center environment is limited by the assumptions inherent to the single-CRAC derivation. This paper addresses these assumptions by modifying the exergy-based approach to account for the additional interactions encountered in a multi-component environment. It is shown that the modified formulation provides the framework necessary to evaluate performance of multi-component data center thermal management systems under widely different operating circumstances.

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VHTX: A code for simulation of steady state and dynamic response of single or multiple networked cross flow heat exchangers in data center thermal management systems

2017 33rd Thermal Measurement, Modeling & Management Symposium (SEMI-THERM) ◽

10.1109/semi-therm.2017.7896913 ◽

2017 ◽

Author(s):

Alfonso Ortega ◽

Marcelo del Valle ◽

Carol Caceres

Keyword(s):

Steady State ◽

Dynamic Response ◽

Thermal Management ◽

Data Center ◽

Heat Exchangers ◽

Cross Flow ◽

Management Systems ◽

Flow Heat

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Exergy Analysis of Data Center Thermal Management Systems

Energy Efficient Thermal Management of Data Centers ◽

10.1007/978-1-4419-7124-1_9 ◽

2012 ◽

pp. 383-446 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Amip J. Shah ◽

Van P. Carey ◽

Cullen E. Bash ◽

Chandrakant D. Patel ◽

Ratnesh K. Sharma

Keyword(s):

Thermal Management ◽

Data Center ◽

Exergy Analysis ◽

Management Systems

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TRANSIENT CHARACTERISTICS AND CONTROL OF ACTIVE THERMAL MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS

Annual Reviews of Heat Transfer ◽

10.1615/annualrevheattransfer.2015012305 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 18 ◽

pp. 245-328 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

TieJun Zhang

Keyword(s):

Thermal Management ◽

Management Systems ◽

Transient Characteristics ◽

And Control

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Design of Cylindrical Thermal Dummy Cell for Development of Lithium-Ion Battery Thermal Management System

Energies ◽

10.3390/en14051357 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 14 (5) ◽

pp. 1357

Author(s):

Wei Li ◽

Shusheng Xiong ◽

Xiaojun Zhou ◽

Wei Shi ◽

Chongming Wang ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Lithium Ion Battery ◽

Thermal Management ◽

Thermal Performance ◽

Lithium Ion ◽

Management Systems ◽

Voltage Source ◽

Three Dimensional Model ◽

The Real ◽

Battery Thermal Management ◽

Real Cell

This paper aims to design thermal dummy cells (TDCs) that can be used in the development of lithium-ion battery thermal management systems. Based on physical property and geometry of real 18,650 cylindrical cells, a three-dimensional model of TDCs was designed, and it is used to numerically simulate the thermal performance of TDCs. Simulations show that the TDC can mimic the temperature change on the surface of a real cell both at static and dynamic current load. Experimental results show that the rate of heating resistance of TDC is less than 0.43% for temperatures between 27.5 °C and 90.5 °C. Powered by a two-step voltage source of 12 V, the temperature difference of TDCs is 1 °C and 1.6 °C along the circumference and the axial directions, respectively. Powered by a constant voltage source of 6 V, the temperature rising rates on the surface and in the core are higher than 1.9 °C/min. Afterwards, the proposed TDC was used to simulate a real cell for investigating its thermal performance under the New European Driving Cycle (NEDC), and the same tests were conducted using real cells. The test indicates that the TDC surface temperature matches well with that of the real battery during the NEDC test, while the temperature rise of TDC exceeds that of the real battery during the suburban cycle. This paper demonstrates the feasibility of using TDCs to replace real cells, which can greatly improve safety and efficiency for the development of lithium-ion battery thermal management systems.

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