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Data Centre Special Report
Data Centre Managers need up to date knowledge of effective cooling techniques. Data integrity and energy conservation depend on it.
Aisle containment is widely regarded as a key tool in air flow management for efficient cooling. But what approaches are the most effective in achieving effective cold aisle containment?
Dataracks teamed up with GEA Denco to run a trial to find out.
Our report is now available free of charge. Simply click here to download a copy of the report.
Please check back later
What is aisle containment?
eCool aisle containment is a highly effective form of airflow management that results in the optimisation of cold air usage.
It improves the flow of cooled air through the data racking and aisles. It can be retrofitted in a live environment and maintains consistent optimum cool working temperatures.
Effective airflow management results in reduced equipment failure, elimination of humidity and static problems, and most importantly reduces energy usage, sometimes dramatically.
What can air containment achieve?
♦ The most efficient use of cold air
♦ Reduced power usage (cooling system and hardware)
♦ Reduced carbon footprint
♦ Increased uptime
♦ Increased resilience
♦ Potential increase in redundancy
♦ The elimination of bypass air re-circulation
♦ Hotspot elimination
♦ Helps achieve hot/cold aisle compliance to TIA 942 and ASHRAE
♦ Reduced capital cost on new builds
♦ Reduced hardware replacement and labour
♦ In the event of a CCU/CRAC failure, uptime is dramatically increased
♦ Potential for increased rack space usage
♦ Increasing cold air temperature output from CCU/CRAC
♦ improved hot air return temperatures and flow, (increasing the
efficiency of the CRAC/chillers).
The eCool Service
Dataracks eCool service will develop the optimum approach for each individual situation, but solutions often involve tactics such as:
- Stopping bypass air through unused U-space with quick fit blanking panels
- Stopping By-pass air through vertical gaps between frame and side panels (air dams)
- Stopping By-pass air through tile cut outs (floor tile replacements are the most cost effective option as they contain By-pass control)
- Closing the ends of Cold Aisles to prevent cold/hot air re-circulation and re direct cold airflow through the servers
- Closing in the space above the aisle with panels to prevent air re-circulation
- Even out the cold air distribution through equipment
- Balancing airflow though vented floor tiles
Of course, there’s more to it than that. Our engineers will also consider issues such as balancing of CRAC units, effects on fire suppression systems, work area evacuation, compliance with standards, noise levels, access to overhead space and the ability to expand for future storage requirements.
what is Cold aisle containment?
Cold aisle containment (CAC) works by creating a cold air plenum chamber within a cold aisle and preventing the mixing of hot and cold air flows.
what is Hot aisle containment?
Hot aisle containment (HAC) ensures the controlled flow of ‘used’ (warm) air back to the CRAC units.
The optimum choice of CAC / HAC for any particular installation will depend on factors such as:
- floor construction / air flow under voids
- ceiling construction and accessibility
- shape of data centre
- ducting
"When eCool Solutions installed the eCool Cold Aisle Containment we noticed the difference within an hour. The temperature reduced and has kept consistent within 2–3ºC, enabling us to balance the cooling system, remove two of the eleven chillers and cut energy consumption by 15 per cent."
European Datacentre Operations Manager, Yahoo!