- White paper 133 provides comprehensive guidance on selecting
the optimal liquid cooling architecture for AI servers, addressing
common challenges and solutions.
- Highlights the benefits of liquid cooling, including improved
energy efficiency, enhanced server performance, and reduced
environmental impact.
- Offers detailed insights into six common heat rejection
architectures and their suitability for different data centre
environments.
LONDON, June 19, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Schneider Electric,
the leader in digital transformation of energy management and
automation, has released white paper 133 titled "Navigating Liquid
Cooling Architectures for Data Centres with AI Workloads." The
paper provides a thorough examination of liquid cooling
technologies and their applications in modern data centres,
particularly those handling high-density AI workloads.
The demand for AI is growing at an exponential rate. As a
result, the data centres required to enable AI technology are
generating substantial heat, particularly those containing AI
servers with accelerators used for training large language models
and inference workloads. This heat output is increasing the
necessity for the use of liquid cooling to maintain optimal
performance, sustainability, and reliability.
Schneider Electric's latest white paper guides data centre
operators and IT managers through the complexities of liquid
cooling, offering clear answers to critical questions about system
design, implementation, and operation.
Understanding Liquid Cooling Architectures
Over the 12-pages authors Paul
Lin, Robert Bunger, and
Victor Avelar identify two main
categories of liquid cooling for AI servers: direct-to-chip and
immersion cooling. They describe the components and functions of a
coolant distribution unit (CDU), which are essential for managing
temperature, flow, pressure, and heat exchange within the cooling
system.
"AI workloads present unique cooling challenges that air cooling
alone cannot address," said Robert
Bunger, Innovation Product Owner, CTO Office, Data Centre
Segment, Schneider Electric. "Our white paper aims to demystify
liquid cooling architectures, providing data centre operators with
the knowledge to make informed decisions when planning liquid
cooling deployments. Our goal is to equip data centre professionals
with practical insights to optimise their cooling systems. By
understanding the trade-offs and benefits of each architecture,
operators can enhance their data centres' performance and
efficiency."
The white paper outlines three key elements of liquid cooling
architectures:
- Heat Capture Within the Server: Utilising a liquid
medium (e.g. dielectric oil, water) to absorb heat from IT
components.
- CDU Type: Selecting the appropriate CDU based on heat
exchange methods (liquid-to-air, liquid-to-liquid) and form factors
(rack-mounted, floor-mounted).
- Heat Rejection Method: Determining how to effectively
transfer heat to the outdoors, either through existing facility
systems or dedicated setups.
Choosing the Right Architecture
The paper details six common liquid cooling architectures,
combining different CDU types and heat rejection methods, and
provides guidance on selecting the best option based on factors
such as existing infrastructure, deployment size, speed, and energy
efficiency.
With the increasing demand for AI processing power and the
corresponding rise in thermal loads, liquid cooling is becoming a
critical component of data centre design. The white paper also
addresses industry trends such as the need for greater energy
efficiency, compliance with environmental regulations, and the
shift towards sustainable operations.
"As AI continues to drive the need for advanced cooling
solutions, our white paper provides a valuable resource for
navigating these changes," added Bunger. "We are committed to
helping our customers achieve their high-performance goals while
improving sustainability and reliability."
Providing the Industry with AI Data Centre Reference
Designs
This white paper is particularly timely and relevant in light of
Schneider Electric's recent collaboration with NVIDIA to optimise
data centre infrastructure for AI applications.
This partnership introduced the first publicly available AI data
centre reference designs, leveraging NVIDIA's advanced AI
technologies and Schneider Electric's expertise in data centre
infrastructure.
The reference designs set new standards for AI deployment and
operation, providing data centre operators with innovative
solutions to manage high-density AI workloads efficiently.
For more information and to download the white paper, visit the
Schneider Electric website.
About Schneider Electric
Schneider's purpose is to create Impact by empowering all
to make the most of our energy and resources, bridging
progress and sustainability for all. At Schneider, we call this
Life Is On. Our mission is to be the trusted partner in
Sustainability and Efficiency.
We are a global industrial technology leader
bringing world-leading expertise in electrification, automation and
digitization to smart industries, resilient
infrastructure, future-proof data centers,
intelligent buildings, and intuitive homes.
Anchored by our deep domain expertise, we provide integrated
end-to-end lifecycle AI enabled Industrial IoT solutions with
connected products, automation, software and services, delivering
digital twins to enable profitable growth for our
customers.
We are a people company with an ecosystem of 150,000
colleagues and more than a million partners operating in over 100
countries to ensure proximity to our customers and stakeholders. We
embrace diversity and inclusion in everything we do, guided
by our meaningful purpose of a sustainable future for
all.
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