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Thermal Management and Energy Consumption in Air, Liquid, and Free Cooling Systems for Data Centers: A Review

Author

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  • Sijun Xu

    (Institute of Refrigeration and Cryogenic Engineering, School of Energy and Power Engineering, University of Shanghai for Science and Technology, Shanghai 200093, China)

  • Hua Zhang

    (Institute of Refrigeration and Cryogenic Engineering, School of Energy and Power Engineering, University of Shanghai for Science and Technology, Shanghai 200093, China)

  • Zilong Wang

    (Institute of Refrigeration and Cryogenic Engineering, School of Energy and Power Engineering, University of Shanghai for Science and Technology, Shanghai 200093, China)

Abstract

The thermal management and reduction of energy consumption in cooling systems have become major trends with the continued growth of high heat dissipation data centers and the challenging energy situation. However, the existing studies have been limited to studying the influences of individual factors on energy saving and thermal management and have not been systematically summarized. Thus, this paper reviews the key factors in achieving thermal management and reducing energy consumption in each cooling system, the corresponding research, and optimization methods. To achieve these goals, in this paper, literature surveys on data center cooling systems are investigated. For data center air cooling, thermal management is mainly related to the uniform distribution of hot and cold air. Adjusting the porosity of perforated tiles can reduce energy consumption. For liquid cooling and free cooling systems, climate conditions, cooling system structural design, coolant type, and flow rate are key factors in achieving thermal management and reducing energy consumption. This paper provides the power usage effectiveness (PUE) values of the cooling systems in some cases. A summary of the key factors can provide directions for research on thermal management and energy reduction, and a summary of previous research can provide a basis for future optimization.

Suggested Citation

  • Sijun Xu & Hua Zhang & Zilong Wang, 2023. "Thermal Management and Energy Consumption in Air, Liquid, and Free Cooling Systems for Data Centers: A Review," Energies, MDPI, vol. 16(3), pages 1-25, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jeners:v:16:y:2023:i:3:p:1279-:d:1046112
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

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    2. Tiezhu Sun & Xiaojun Huang & Caihang Liang & Riming Liu & Yongcheng Yan, 2023. "Energy Consumption and Energy Saving Analysis of Air-Conditioning Systems of Data Centers in Typical Cities in China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(10), pages 1-15, May.

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