Seven solutions for energy-saving transformation o

Seven solutions for energy-saving transformation of data center

with the rapid growth of computer network business and the increase of the number of servers, the area and scale of the computer room are also expanding, and the energy consumption cost of the data center is also increasing rapidly, and there is a trend to catch up with and surpass the hardware cost. According to the survey of authoritative institutions, the total annual expenditure on server power and cooling in China exceeds 2billion US dollars. For the data center that has been completed and put into operation, how to achieve effective energy-saving transformation needs to be considered from many aspects. This article introduces several main solutions for energy-saving transformation of data center infrastructure

I. design a set of overall monitoring system for the machine room

it equipment load change curve

from the perspective of machine room load and air conditioning cooling capacity configuration, the machine room is generally designed for the safe operation mode of n+x, but from the perspective of the layout of the IT equipment in the whole machine room, due to the large area of the machine room, considering its circulating air volume and reducing the local temperature dead corner of the machine room, as well as the dynamic change of load equipment power consumption, This is also the purpose of our visit to Zibo. The precision air conditioning group cannot be manually controlled to operate according to the demand, and the variation of the calorific value of the machine room can be followed irregularly. All indoor fans operate at full speed, and the compressor is controlled by each air conditioner independently according to its own needs. This operation mode is uneconomical and energy-saving from the perspective of operation cost. If the redundant equipment in the air-conditioning group is forced to shut down for operation, it is difficult to master the air distribution and temperature change law of the machine room, and it is difficult to achieve the safety of the machine room by manually controlling the startup and shutdown of the air-conditioning, so the local temperature may be uncontrollable. Therefore, the precision air-conditioning group control in the machine room plays a vital role in the energy saving of the machine room

the idea of energy-saving of group control of special air conditioner in machine room is: on the premise of ensuring the normal operation of machine room equipment, reduce the energy consumption of the whole machine room by reducing the running time of redundant air conditioner equipment, and realize the backup/rotation function, cascade function, avoid competitive operation function and delayed self start function of air conditioning system

combined with the dawn adaptive cluster power and energy consumption monitoring system, the precision air conditioner cluster centralized management is carried out. The management software calculates the server power consumption of each row according to the CPU occupancy, and accurately controls the working state of the air conditioner at the corresponding position according to the load distribution and the distribution of the precision air conditioner, mainly including the start and stop of the compressor and the start and stop of the fan of the indoor unit of the air conditioner. The precision air conditioner communicates with the protocol converter through the RS485 network, and the protocol converter works together with the management node through the Ethernet, so that the precision air conditioners of different manufacturers (with monitoring function) can interact with the management node through the dawn standard protocol interface. Two wireless temperature and humidity probes are installed in each server cabinet, In recent August, our company will do some activities to give back to our customers' support for our company. The cabinet will form a network, form a temperature and humidity monitoring network through the group method of IOT, and upload the data to the management node through Ethernet. Canadian cm consulting company said in its report entitled "recycling and regeneration of plastic shopping bags and other PE films" that a double-layer monitoring network will be formed. When the server temperature is monitored, turn on the air conditioner in the machine room, Ensure equipment safety while saving energy

II. Establish the heat dissipation and air distribution model of the machine room

professional heat dissipation engineers use computational fluid dynamics (CFD) technology to analyze the numerical analysis and model experiment of the air distribution characteristics of the air conditioner in the central machine room, deeply analyze the air velocity field and temperature field distribution in the central machine room, and on this basis, draw a reasonable cooling capacity allocation design scheme, obtain the best supply and return air state, and meet the heat dissipation needs of the equipment, At the same time, the air conditioning load is reduced, and the effect of optimal cooling capacity allocation is obtained. At present, it is mainly realized by Airpak or fluent simulation software

CFD air distribution simulation diagram of the machine room

III. add blind plates for the cabinet

in part of the cabinet of the machine room, due to the small number of equipment, a large part of the cold air enters the machine room directly without passing through the equipment, which leads to the air supply short circuit of the air conditioner and greatly reduces the refrigeration efficiency of the air conditioner

block the air duct to reduce the short circuit of the wind and improve the refrigeration efficiency of the air conditioner. The specific method is to install blind plates in the space where no equipment is installed in the cabinet, so that the cold air can only be sent to the machine room through the equipment

air distribution diagram of adding blind plates to the cabinet

IV. install active air supply elements for the cabinet Adu

traditional underfloor air-conditioning has long air supply distance and low air supply efficiency, which will lead to insufficient cooling capacity and air volume at the air outlet and cannot meet the heat dissipation requirements of the equipment

in view of this situation, the active air outlet device Adu is installed at the air outlet. The Adu is equipped with two or four EC fans, which can adjust the speed according to the load of the cabinet. Through this active air supply device, the air supply efficiency of the air conditioner can be improved, so that the number of air conditioners can be reduced under the condition of meeting the requirements of refrigerating capacity and air volume, so as to achieve the effect of energy saving

the cabinet adds the air distribution diagram of floor ADU

adu module effect

v. the cold channel is closed for the cabinet

the special air conditioner for the machine room in the form of traditional underfloor air supply belongs to diffuse air supply. This form is easy to cause air flow short circuit and insufficient air supply, resulting in low refrigeration efficiency of the air conditioner

it is now possible to adopt the form of closed cold channels to isolate the cold and hot air flows from each other, so as to prevent the short circuit of the air flow and the mixing of cold and hot air, which can greatly improve the refrigeration efficiency of the air conditioner. Under the condition of meeting the normal heat dissipation of the equipment in the machine room, turn off some air conditioners, so as to achieve the effect of energy saving

VI. add fresh air system to the machine room

at present, many large data centers use fresh air system to achieve energy-saving solutions. Due to the closed space in the machine room, the heat output of the equipment is large. The precision air conditioner needs to operate 24 hours a year, and the power consumption during refrigeration and humidification is large. With the introduction of fresh air and enthalpy control technology, outdoor low-temperature air can be introduced in spring, autumn and winter, and the precision air conditioner can be turned off. At the same time, the purpose of energy saving can be achieved on the premise of ensuring the temperature, humidity and cleanliness of the machine room

VII. The precision air conditioner in the machine room is transformed to have natural cooling function. The fluorine pump energy-saving system is adopted. The traditional underfloor air conditioner in the machine room still needs refrigeration when the outdoor environment is low in winter. It cannot make full use of the outdoor natural cold source, and the energy-saving effect is poor. In view of this situation, the air conditioning system can be upgraded by adding a fluorine pump unit to the original air conditioning system. Through the control system, the compressor can be turned off and the fluorine pump system can be turned on for refrigeration when the external environment is low in winter. Because the fluorine pump consumes less energy than the air conditioning compressor, taking the central machine room as an example, after the transformation, Air conditioning can save about 20% of the electric energy consumption caused by the serious excess of production capacity that has occurred three times in China every year

schematic diagram of fluorine pump air conditioning system

combining the above several energy-saving transformation measures, analyze the most appropriate specific solutions for the old data center according to local conditions and problems, and maximize the energy-saving optimization of the data center machine room on the premise of ensuring high availability and high reliability through highly intelligent monitoring and refined management and maintenance