How to Design a Liquid Cooled System

Dr. Pablo Hidalgo

2016
Since 1970 Aavid
AS Thermacore,
9100 ISO 9001Inc. All
ISO Rights
14001Reserved.
Certified ITAR Registered
Aavid Thermacore Proprietary & Confidential
QF 402 Rev E
Outline

Introduction to liquid cooled systems

Air vs liquid.
Hydrodynamical requirements.
Thermal requirements.
Basic principles and equations
Hydrodynamical
Thermal
Essential elements needed in the circuit.
Liquid cooled system for computing applications
Liquid cooled system for military applications
Summary

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Air vs. Liquid Cooling

Heat transfer processes:

Heat transport, which strongly depends on the mass flow rate and specific
heat of the fluid.
=
Heat convection, which is primarily governed by the heat transfer
coefficient h.
" =
Air cooling is limited by specific heat. To dissipate large amounts of
power, a large mass flow rate is needed.
Higher flow speed, larger noise.
Liquid cooling is able to achieve better heat transfer at much lower
mass flow rates.
Lower flow speed, lower noise.
Heat transfer coefficients for air an liquid flows are orders of magnitude
apart.
25 < hair < 250 W/m2 K
100 < hliquid < 20,000 W/m2 K

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Hydrodynamical Requirements

It is critical to calculate the total pressure drop

(Ptotal) in the liquid line in order to size a pump.
Ptotal influenced by flow regime, sudden expansions,
contractions, bends, valves, etc
To size a pump, two important parameters are
needed:
Liquid flow rate
Total head that the pump must generate to deliver the
required flow rate.
Total head = static head difference + frictional head losses

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Thermal Requirements

A liquid cooled system is generally used in cases

were large heat loads or high power densities need to
be dissipated and air would require a very large flow
rate.
Water is one of the best heat transfer fluids due to its
specific heat at typical temperatures for electronics
cooling.
Temperature range requirements defines the type of
liquid that can be used in each application.
Operating Temperature < 0oC, water cannot be used.
Glycol/water mixtures are commonly used in military
applications, but the heat transfer capabilities are
significantly lower than water.

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Essential Elements in a Liquid Cooled System
Pump Cold Plate Heat Exchanger

Fan Reservoir Tubing

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 Hydrodynamic Equations

Energy equation for steady pipe flow of an incompressible fluid.

1 13 2 23
- + + 1 + 1 1 1 + 1 = 1
+ 2 + 2 2 2 + 2
1 2 2 2 2

1 12 2 22
+
+ 1 + 1 + 1 = + 2 + 2 + 1
2 2
3 Laminar Flow, = 2
1
=

Turbulent Flow 1.05

Simplified energy equation

1 12 2 22
+ 1 + 1 + = + 2 + 2 + +
2 2

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Hydrodynamic Equations

Laminar flow
1 12 2 22 32
+ 1 + 1 + = + 2 + 2 + + = =
2 2 2
Moody Diagram
Turbulent flow
1 2
+ 1 = + 2 +

2
= =
2

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Hydrodynamic Equations

The head loss produced by the flow through bends, inlets, valves, etc
is expressed by the equation:
2
=
2
Some of those K values are shown on the
adjacent table.
Energy equation is rewritten as:

1 12 2 22
+ + 1 = + + 2 +
2 2
Where the sum of hL includes frictional
losses, and losses due to fittings, contra-
tions, valves, etc that are present in the
flow loop.

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Thermal Equations (Heat Source)

Heat source follows the Newtons law of cooling " = ( )

where Tm depends on constant heat flux or constant temperature
boundary conditions and h is the LOCAL heat transfer coefficient (HTC).
Energy balance equation:
= , ,
If constant surface temperature boundary condition, heat rate equation:
= where is the average HTC and is the log mean
temperature difference.
Heat transfer coefficient can be estimated using the Nusselt number.

=

Multiple correlations exists for laminar flow, turbulent flow, fully
developed flow, developing flow, heat source boundary conditions, etc
that can be summarized in the following table:

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Thermal Equations (Heat Source)

Source Fundamentals of Heat an

Mass Transfer, Incropera and DeWitt

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Thermal Equations (Heat Exchanger)

Counterflow heat exchangers are the most efficient ones to be used.

Cross-flow heat exchangers are typical in these applications but the thermal
characteristics are very similar to that of counterflow but a correction factor
must be applied.
Overall energy balance is used to estimate maximum heat transfer rate
given certain input parameters (i.e. mass flow rate, fluid temperature, etc)
Heat exchanger calculations are based on the log mean temperature
difference.
=
2 1 , , , ,
= =
2 1 , , , ,
1
=
1 + 1
hi and ho can be calculated using the Nusselt number correlations shown
earlier.
Another way to size a heat exchanger would be to use the effectiveness-
NTU method.

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 Liquid Cooled System for Computing
Applications

2016
Since 1970 Aavid
AS Thermacore,
9100 ISO 9001Inc. All
ISO Rights
14001Reserved.
Certified ITAR Registered
Aavid Thermacore Proprietary & Confidential
QF 402 Rev E
Computer Desktop Liquid Cooling System
Heat Exchanger

Liquid Pump

Connective Tubing

Fluid Not Shown

Cold Plates

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Key Reliability Issues

Pump Reliability

All Electro-mechanical devices such as pumps have finite life which

leads to reliability issues.

Fluid Permeation Loss. Fluids tend to permeate through polymer

materials and joints. If too much fluid is lost due to permeation, the LCS
could eventually stop working.

Fluid Leakage

Environmental Impact: Environmental concerns with cooling fluid

leakage and disposal are issues.

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Sub 1U LCS for High End Server Compute Module

Heat Exchanger
Sub 1U
4 x 95W AMD CPUs
90 CFM per Module
4 PMCP Cold
0.20 C/W (c-a)
Plates
2 Pumps PCB
Powered Low
Sub 1U PCB Spacing Perm
Tubing

2 Liquid Pumps

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Cold Plate Technology

Examples of Cold Plate Technologies

Vertical Fin Cold Plate (VFCP) Powder Metal Cold Plate (PMCP)

Utilizes closely spaced vertical fins
to dissipate heat
Moderate heat transfer coefficients
possible
Uses high surface area density to
dissipate heat
High effective heat transfer
coefficients possible
Many flow geometries possible

Thermacore
Technology
Inlet Outlet Inlet

Metal Powder
Particles

Heat Enters
from Bottom

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Cold Plate Porous Metal

Advantages
Well-Bonded Porous
High Surface Area Cool Single Phase Metal Matrix Warm Single Phase
Coolant In Coolant Out
High Heat Transfer Coefficient
High Heat Flux (> 300 W/cm2)
Low Thermal Resistance
Low Profile Packaging
Heat Source
Low Mass (< 75 grams) e.g.: computer chip,
particle beam, EM radiation,
laser diode array

Liquid cooled heat sinks make

use of high surface area and
effective heat transfer
available in a well-bonded
porous metal matrix.

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Performance Comparison - VFCP vs. PMCP

0.12
Lower Thermal Resistance =
Resistance (deg-C/W/cm^2)

Better Performance
0.10

0.08
VFCP Heat Input: 12mm x 12mm

0.06
Benefit
PMCP Heat Input: 7mm x 7mm

0.04 >40%

0.02
Courtesy: Dr. Kevin Wert
0.00
0.0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6
Coolant Flow Rate (GPM)

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 Liquid-to-Air Heat Exchanger Flat Tube with Rolled Fins

All Aluminum Liquid-to-Air Heat Exchanger

Maximizes Heat Transfer Efficiency & Volume
Flat, low profile tubes that provide more
surface area.
Metallurgical bond between components.
Highly Reliable and Durable
One-piece integral structure. Desktop Heat Exchanger

Components are joined together by an

aluminum brazing process .
Leak-tight .
Custom designed for the specific application
Desktop Chassis
1U Server Chassis
Vertical position blade server
1U Server Heat Exchanger

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Example Heat Exchanger Specs

1U Server Heat Exchanger

Desktop Heat Exchanger

HEX Spec. Desktop Chassis HEX Spec. 1U Server Chassis

Material Aluminum Material Aluminum

Length Application Specific: 150mm shown Length Application Specific: 130mm shown
Typical: 100 -150mm Typical: 100 275 mm

Height Application Specific: 150mm shown Height Application Specific: 40 mm shown

Typical: 100 -150mm Typical: 30 - 50mm

Depth 25mm Depth 25mm

Mass Application Specific: 350 grams Mass Application Specific: 85 grams

Typical: 250 -350mm Typical: 85 -150mm

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 Liquid Pump Specs

Compact Form Factor Pump

Pump Spec. Pump Spec. 1U Server Chassis

Flowrate ~ 0.25gpm @
3.6 psi head Flowrate ~ 0.125 gpm @ 3psi head

Acoustic Power Target 3.3 BA Acoustic Power Target 3.3 BA

Dimensions 62 mm W x 38mm H x
87mm L w/ barbs Dimensions 32 mm W x 32mm H x 89mm L

Mass 200 grams Mass 135 grams

Power 12W Power 10W

Voltage/Amps 12Vdc / 1A continuous Voltage/Amps 12Vdc / 0.6A continuous

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 Liquid Cooled System for Military
Applications

2016
Since 1970 Aavid
AS Thermacore,
9100 ISO 9001Inc. All
ISO Rights
14001Reserved.
Certified ITAR Registered
Aavid Thermacore Proprietary & Confidential
QF 402 Rev E
System Requirements

Military applications have much tighter and controlled requirements

compared to computing liquid cooled systems.
Subject to MIL specs.
Extreme temperature ranges (-55oC to +70oC).
Extreme environmental conditions.
Air-tight enclosures.
Low accessibility for servicing.
Shock and vibration requirements.
Feedback controllers for optimized heat removal in any conditions.
Multiple sensors to monitor faults in the system.
Redundant elements are generally required.
In airborne applications, low weight materials need to be used, (i.e.
aluminum), which have worse thermal conductivity than copper.
Thermal path from the electronics to the heat exchanger is critical to
reduce thermal resistance.

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LCS Flow Diagram

HX with chilled
Pumps Reservoir water

Heater

3-way temp.
controlled valve

Filter
Purge Line Strainer
Antenna

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Intelligent Thermal Management System (iTMS)

Application:
Airborne Mapping & Imaging
Laser Diode Cooling

Power: 1.1kW
Thermal Technologies
TECs
Heat Pipe Cold Plate
Al Vacuum Brazed Cold Plates
Pumped Liquid Cooling
Sub-ambient Cooling
Sophisticated Control System

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Intelligent Thermal Management System (iTMS)

Internal Heat External Heat

Exchanger Exchanger

Cold Plates

Heat Pipe
Assys

Rugged, Liquid Cooling

Application: System (rLCS)

Ruggedized Electronics Cooling

Thermal Load/Power: 1 kW
Designed / Tested to MIL Specs.
Cooling System includes:
Heat pipes
Redundant Pumps
Liquid-cooled cold plates
Internal brazed aluminum liquid-to-air heat exchanger
Dip brazed aluminum cold plates Sealed air-tight chassis
An external brazed aluminum liquid-to-air heat Upgradeable Electronics
exchanger

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 Intelligent Thermal Management System (iTMS)
Application
Airborne Computer Cooling
Dissipates thermal load into ambient air at 75k feet

Primary Components
Vacuum Brazed Aluminum HXs
Vibration Isolation (40G operational)
Brushless DC Pumps
PTFE Hoses
Custom Machined Chassis & Reservoir
Custom Motor Control

Key Features
Sub Ambient Cooling
PID temperature control
Conditioning heaters to facilitate rapid cold start
Liquid level sensors
Fault Tolerance/Safety flow switch provides visual
and electrical confirmation of coolant flow
PLC control of pumps, heaters, valves, etc.
LED status indicators
Data logging
Color touchscreen display/interface panel
Shock Mounted for Vibration Isolation

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Summary

Liquid cooling is a necessary technology applied in

cases where power densities are too high to be
managed by traditional air cooling.
Liquid heat transport capabilities are far much greater than
air.
Liquid cooled systems can be simple but in some
applications can have very complex architecture.
Basic elements: pump, cold plate, heat exchanger, liquid
line.
Total pressure head is necessary to be estimated to
properly size a pump.
Static head, difference in elevation.
Frictional head losses calculated using known documented
friction factors.

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Summary

Heat balance equation and heat rate equation are

used in sizing a heat exchanger.
Necessary to know fin area and flow rate to dissipate the
heat.
Selection of liquid will depend on application and
materials used in the system.
Computing liquid cooled applications dont require
strict requirements compared to military applications.
Redundant systems, extreme temperatures, shock and
vibrations, etc

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