JP2012027802A - Air conditioning system and air conditioning method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an air conditioning system that can air-condition by circulating a certain gas in sealed spaces sectioned in a capsule.SOLUTION: An air conditioning system according to the present invention includes an air conditioner for supplying certain cooled gas, a rack array including racks for storing heaters, and an air conditioning capsule including a sealed space sectioned into a first space and a second space by the rack array. The air conditioner is configured to be in communication with the first space and the second space, to circulate gas between the first space and the second space via the rack array.

Description

  The present invention relates to an air conditioning system and an air conditioning method.

  In a data center or the like that accommodates a large number of servers and communication devices, heat generated by these devices contributes to malfunctions and failures of the servers. For this reason, in the data center, an air conditioning system for keeping the indoor temperature at a predetermined temperature is an indispensable equipment.

  FIG. 8 shows an example of an air conditioning system of the data center 10. The data center 10 has a double floor structure and is divided into an indoor space 20 and an underfloor space 30. The air conditioner 40 is installed in the indoor space 20, and generally has a structure in which air heated by a server or the like is taken from the indoor space 20, cooled by a heat exchanger, and blown out into the underfloor space 30.

  Electronic devices such as servers are housed in a rack to form a rack row 50, which takes in cool air from the front of the rack and discharges warm air from the back and top. The rack rows 50 are aligned so that the front surfaces are the same surface, and the rack rows are arranged so that the front surfaces and the back surfaces face each other. The floor formed by the front surfaces of the rack rows facing each other forms a cold aisle and has a grill structure communicating with the underfloor space 30. The rack row 50 takes in cold air through the floor of the grill structure.

  The flow of cool air and warm air in the data center 10 shown in FIG. 8 is shown in FIG. 9A is a view of the data center 10 as viewed from above, and FIG. 9B is a view of the data center 10 taken along the A-A ′ section in FIG. 9A. As shown in both figures, the cold air is blown out from the air conditioner 40 to the underfloor space 30, and blows out through the grill 31 to the cold aisle 21 where the front of the rack row 50 faces. The cold air blown to the cold aisle 21 is sucked from the front surface of the rack row 50 by the fan inside the rack, and comes out to the upper surface or the rear surface. When the cool air passes through the rack, it is warmed by the electronic equipment housed in the rack (the electronic equipment will be cooled), and becomes warm air and escapes to the top surface or the back surface. The back side of the rack row 50 constitutes the hot aisle 22 filled with warm air. The warm air of the hot aisle 22 hits the ceiling and returns to the air conditioner 40 as a return. In addition, the white arrow shown to Fig.9 (a) and FIG.9 (b) has shown cool air, and the black arrow has shown warm air.

  As shown in FIG. 9, the cold aisle 21 and the hot aisle 22 are partitioned by the rack row 50 in the indoor space 20, but the ceiling space above the rack row 50, the end of the rack row 50, and the wall of the indoor space 20. The space is not partitioned by partitions, so cold and warm air are mixed in this space. For this reason, it is known that the indoor space is partitioned by a rack row and a partition plate to form a cool air passage so that cool air and warm air are not mixed, and cool air is introduced from the upper and lower surfaces of the rack and exhausted from the side surface. .

  The power consumed by the air conditioning system in the data center is said to account for about 30% of the power consumption of the entire data center, and power saving is required.

JP 2010-71482 A

  As described above, in the conventional air conditioning system, cold aisle and hot aisle are formed as a double floor to create a flow of cold air and warm air to control the temperature of the indoor space. However, heat generated from the rack is unevenly distributed, and the flow of cool air or warm air is not necessarily uniform in the space on the indoor ceiling or indoor side wall, and a local high-temperature area is generated in the indoor space, causing heat exchange there and air conditioning. It was reducing efficiency.

  The formation of the cold air passage by the partition plate is considered to be an effective means for making the flow of the cold air uniform and improving the air conditioning efficiency. However, the airtightness of the partition plate is low, so it is unavoidable to mix cold air and warm air, and there is a demand for more efficient air conditioning.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and an object thereof is to provide an air conditioning system that can efficiently perform air conditioning.

  According to one aspect of the invention, an air conditioner that takes in a predetermined gas, cools and blows out the gas, a rack row that includes racks that contain heating devices, and forms a sealed space, and a sealed section is first formed by the rack row. An air conditioning capsule partitioned into a second space and a second space, and the air conditioner connects a gas intake port and a cooled gas discharge port to the first space and the second space, respectively. An air conditioning system is provided that circulates gas through the rack row and circulates in the air conditioning capsule.

  Further, according to another aspect of the invention, the air-conditioning capsule is partitioned into the first space and the second space by the rack row in which the sealed space is formed, and the sealed space accommodates the heat generating device, and is cooled by the air conditioner. An air conditioning method is provided in which the predetermined gas is circulated through the inside of the rack row.

  Since the predetermined gas is circulated in the sealed space of the capsules partitioned by the rack row, the cold air and the warm air are not mixed, and the air conditioning efficiency can be improved. Moreover, it can cool more efficiently by using the gas whose specific heat is larger than air as the predetermined gas. For this reason, power saving of an air conditioning system in a data center or the like having a large heat source can be achieved.

It is a figure which shows the structural example (the 1) of the air conditioning system of Example 1. FIG. It is a figure which shows the structural example (the 2) of the air conditioning system of Example 1. FIG. It is a figure which shows the flow (the 1) of the cool air and warm air in an air-conditioning capsule. It is a figure which shows the flow (the 2) of the cool air and warm air in an air-conditioning capsule. It is a figure which shows the example of an operation control flow at the time of a maintenance. It is a figure which shows the example of arrangement | positioning of an air conditioning system. It is a figure which shows the structural example of the air conditioning system of Example 2. FIG. It is a figure which shows the example of the air conditioning of the conventional data center. It is a figure which shows the flow of the cool air and the warm air in the conventional data center.

Example 1
Embodiment 1 of the air conditioning system of the present invention will be described. First, the configuration of the air conditioning system 100 will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2.

  1A shows the appearance of the air conditioning system 100, and FIG. 1B is a perspective view of the inside of FIG. 1A. As shown in both drawings, the air conditioning system 100 includes an air conditioning capsule 200, a rack row 300, an air conditioner 400, and a duct 500 as main components.

  The indoor space 210 of the air-conditioning capsule 200 is partitioned into a cold aisle 211 and a hot aisle 212 by two rack rows 300. The front surfaces of the two rack rows 300 face each other, and the space between them is a cold aisle 211. Two spaces formed by the back surface of the rack row 300 and the side walls of the air-conditioning capsules 200 are hot aisles 212.

  The upper surface of the rack row 300 hits the ceiling of the air-conditioning capsule 200 and separates the spaces of the cold aisle 211 and the hot aisle 212 (that is, there is no ceiling space above the rack row 300). Further, one side surface in the longitudinal direction of the rack row 300 (the left side surface in FIG. 1) hits the side wall of the air conditioning capsule 200, and a part of the side surface in the other rack row 300 (the right side surface in FIG. 1) is an air conditioner. The cold aisle 211 and the hot aisle 212 are completely separated from each other by hitting a part of the front surface of 400. The abutting portion between the side surface of the rack row 300 and the side wall of the air conditioning capsule 200 and the abutting portion between the side surface of the rack row 300 and the air conditioner 400 are sealed with packing so as not to generate a gap.

  The air conditioner 400 has a structure that sucks gas from the side and blows it out to the front. For this reason, the side surface of the air conditioner 400 sucks warm air from the space of the hot aisle 212 through the duct 500 and blows out cool air from the front surface of the air conditioner 400 to the cold aisle 211. The cold air in the cold aisle 211 is sucked in by a fan installed inside the rack, becomes warm air, passes through the hot aisle 212, and returns to the side surface of the air conditioner 400 through the duct 500. Since the passages through which the cool air and the warm air pass are sealed by the packing as described above, the cool air and the warm air are not mixed. In the air conditioning system 100, a gas having a specific heat larger than that of air such as nitrogen or helium (hereinafter referred to as cooling gas) is contained and circulated in the sealed space.

  Next, a more detailed configuration of the air conditioning system 100 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 2 is a view of the air-conditioning capsule as viewed from above. As shown in FIG. 2, the air-conditioning capsule 200 includes a door 220 that can enter and exit the respective spaces of the cold aisle 211 and the hot aisle 212. The door 220 is also sealed with packing so that the internal gas does not leak when it is closed. Further, in the indoor space of the cold aisle 211 and the hot aisle 212 of the air conditioning capsule 200, a human sensor (S) 700, an oxygen concentration meter (M) 710, a deoxygenation pump (OP) 720, and an oxygen cylinder (O2) 730 are provided. Prepare. In FIG. 2, these devices are arranged in one hot aisle 212, but the apparatus is not limited to this position, and may be arranged in another hot aisle 212 or cold aisle 211. However, the human sensor (S) 700 is disposed in each space.

  The human detection sensor (S) 700 is a sensor that detects the presence of a person in the space between the cold aisle 211 and the hot aisle 212. In the present embodiment, the human detection sensor (S) 700 is connected to a control device (not shown), and the space between the cold aisle 211 and the hot aisle 212 when the operation of the air conditioning system 100 at the end of maintenance of the server or the like is started. After checking that there is no person, the door 220 is locked, and the deoxygenation pump (OP) 720 and the air conditioner 400 are operated.

  The oxygen concentration meter (M) 710 measures, for example, the oxygen concentration in the air conditioning capsule 200 using a diaphragm galvanic cell type oxygen concentration meter. A person enters the air-conditioning capsule 200 during maintenance of the server or the like, but enters the room after checking the oxygen concentration in the air-conditioning capsule 200 so as not to run out of oxygen. The oxygen concentration meter (M) 710 is also connected to a control device (not shown), and the door 220 cannot be unlocked unless the oxygen concentration exceeds a predetermined concentration due to the injection of the oxygen cylinder (O2) 730. ing.

  The deoxygenation pump (OP) 720 is a gas circulation type pump equipped with a deoxidizer filter. The deoxygenation pump (OP) 720 sucks in air around the deoxygenation pump (OP) 720, adsorbs oxygen to the deoxygenation agent, and deoxygenates. The exhausted air is exhausted. By operating the deoxidation pump (OP) 720 while operating the air conditioner 400 to circulate the air in the air conditioning capsule 200, the air in the air conditioning capsule 200 is deoxygenated and becomes a nitrogen atmosphere.

  The oxygen cylinder (O2) 730 injects oxygen into the air conditioning capsule 200 when a person enters.

  Next, the flow of cool air and warm air in the air conditioning system 100 will be described. FIG. 3 is a view drawn so that the inside can be seen through as shown in FIG. 1B, and FIG. 3A shows the flow of cold air (open arrow). That is, the cold air that has come out from the front surface of the air conditioner 400 is blown out to the cold aisle 211. FIG. 3B shows a flow of warm air (black arrow), and shows a state in which the warm air in the hot aisle 212 is taken into the side surface of the air conditioner 400 through the duct 500. In the space of the hot aisle 212, the cold air from the cold aisle 211 is heated through the rack row 300 and blown out as warm air.

  FIG. 4 (a) shows the flow of cold air and warm air shown in FIG. 3 in a plan view, and FIG. 4 (b) shows the cross-sectional view taken along the line BB 'in FIG. 4 (a). is there. In FIG. 4A, the cold air in the cold aisle 211 passes through each rack of the rack row 300 and changes to warm air, and is sucked into the side surface of the air conditioner 400 (taken in as viewed from the air conditioner 400). Show. Further, FIG. 4B shows a state where the cold air blown to the cold aisle 211 passes through the rack row 300 and becomes warm air and exits to the hot aisle 212.

  As described above, since there is no space between the rack row 300 and the ceiling and side walls of the air-conditioning capsule 200, all the cold air passes through the rack, so that it is accommodated in the rack without wasteful heat exchange. Can efficiently cool the heat generating equipment. Further, in this embodiment, oxygen is removed from the air by a deoxygenation pump (OP) 720, and a gas having a specific heat larger than that of air is made as a nitrogen gas, and the sealed space is circulated, so that the heat generating device can be efficiently cooled. The specific heat of nitrogen (1.034 J / g · K) is 3% larger than the specific heat of air (1.006 J / g · K), and the cooling efficiency can be increased by that amount.

  Next, an operation control flow of the air conditioning system 100 during maintenance will be described. In the flow shown in FIG. 5, for example, maintenance personnel operate an air conditioner operation switch for turning on / off the air conditioning system 100 (not shown) near the outside of the door 220 shown in FIG. The flow of performing processing is shown.

  First, the operation of the air conditioner operation switch by the maintenance staff is detected, and the control device checks whether the operation is “ON” or “OFF” of the air conditioning system 100. When the maintenance of the server or the like is performed, the air conditioning system 100 is turned “OFF”, and when the maintenance is finished and the operation of the air conditioning system 100 is resumed, an “ON” operation is performed (S1, S2).

  When the switch operation is “OFF”, the operation of the deoxygenation pump (OP) 720 is stopped. Then, the oxygen cylinder (O 2) 730 is opened to inject oxygen, and the oxygen concentration in the air conditioning capsule 200 is measured by the oxygen concentration meter (M) 710. If the oxygen concentration is a predetermined value (for example, 20%) or less, the injection of the oxygen cylinder (O 2) 730 is continued, and the oxygen concentration is measured by the oxygen concentration meter (M) 710. The oxygen concentration is measured at intervals of 5 seconds, for example. During this time, the air conditioner 400 continues to operate and circulates the cooling gas in the air conditioning capsule (S3 to S6).

  When the oxygen concentration exceeds a predetermined value, the injection of oxygen is stopped and the operation of the air conditioner 400 is stopped. The door 220 is unlocked to allow maintenance personnel to enter the room (S7 to S9).

  When the switch operation is “ON”, the output of the human detection sensor (S) 700 is checked to confirm that there is no person in the air-conditioning capsule 200 (three human detection sensors (S) shown in FIG. 2). Confirm that none of the 700 sensors are present). If it is sensed that there is a person in the air-conditioning capsule, for example, an alarm based on a notification such as a buzzer is output and the notification is continued until the user exits. Subsequently, the opening / closing of the three doors 220 is checked, and if the door 220 appears to be open, an alarm is similarly output (S10 to S12).

  When it is confirmed that the door 220 is in a closed state, the door 220 is locked and the operation of the air conditioner 400 is started. Subsequently, the deoxygenation pump (OP) 720 is operated. When the deoxygenation pump (OP) 720 is started, the air in the air conditioning capsule 200 is gradually changed to nitrogen. Thereafter, the operation of the air conditioner 400 and the deoxygenation pump (OP) 720 is continued until the operation of the air conditioner operation switch is performed. Here, it is assumed that the “operation of the air conditioner” includes temperature control in the air conditioning capsule (S13 to S15).

  Next, an example in which the air conditioning system 100 is arranged in a data center will be described. FIG. 6 shows an example in which six air conditioning systems 100 are arranged in the data center. When adding servers or the like, it may be added in units of 100 air conditioning systems.

In the present embodiment, the rack row 300 is two rows, but is not limited to this. Also,
In the present embodiment, the air-conditioning capsule 200 and the duct 500 are handled as separate items, but an integrated unit may be used as the air-conditioning capsule.

(Example 2)
In Example 1, nitrogen was used as the cooling gas, but in Example 2, an example using helium will be described. 7A and 7B are diagrams showing the structure of the air conditioning system 101 in the second embodiment. FIG. 7A shows an external view, and FIG. 7B shows a plan view.

  As can be seen from the comparison with the first embodiment, the air conditioning system 101 of the second embodiment replaces the deoxygenation pump (OP) 720 and the oxygen cylinder (O2) 730 of the first embodiment with an exhaust pump (P) 740. And an air introduction shutter (A) 750 and a helium cylinder (He) 760. Others are the same as in the first embodiment.

  In the operation of the air conditioning system 101, the air in the air conditioning capsule 200 is exhausted by the exhaust pump (P) 740 before starting the air conditioner 400. When a predetermined degree of vacuum is reached, helium gas is injected from a helium cylinder (He) 760 to fill the air-conditioning capsule 200 with helium. That is, the air in the air conditioning capsule 200 is replaced with helium. After filling with helium, the air conditioner 400 is started and cooled while circulating helium. Since the specific heat of helium is about five times that of air (5.193 J / g · K), further improvement in cooling efficiency is expected.

  At the time of maintenance, helium in the air conditioning capsule 200 is exhausted by the exhaust pump (P) 740, and when the predetermined vacuum degree is reached, the air introduction shutter (A) 750 is opened to introduce air into the air conditioning capsule 200. .

  The exhaust duct 741 shown in FIG. 7A is connected to the exhaust port of the exhaust pump (P) 740, and exhausts air and helium exhausted by the exhaust pump (P) 740 to the outside of the data center.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Data center 11 Door 20 Indoor space 21 Cold aisle 22 Hot aisle 30 Underfloor space 31 Grill 40 Air conditioner 50 Rack row 100 Air conditioning system 101 Air conditioning system 200 Air conditioning capsule 210 Indoor space 211 Cold door ale 212 Hot aisle 220 Door 300 Rack row 400 Air conditioning Machine 500 Duct 700 Human sensor (S)
710 Oxygen concentration meter (M)
720 Deoxygenation pump (OP)
730 Oxygen cylinder (O2)
740 Exhaust pump (P)
741 Exhaust duct 750 Air introduction shutter (A)
760 Helium cylinder

Claims (5)

An air conditioner that takes in a predetermined gas and cools and blows off the gas;
A rack row comprising racks for accommodating heat generating devices;
Forming a sealed space, the sealed space having an air conditioning capsule partitioned into a first space and a second space by the rack row;
The air conditioner connects a port for taking in the gas and a port for blowing out the cooled gas to the first space and the second space, respectively, and allows the gas to pass through the inside of the rack row. An air conditioning system that circulates in an air conditioning capsule. The air conditioning system according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined gas is a gas having a specific heat higher than that of air. The air conditioning system further includes a deoxygenation unit that is disposed in the air conditioning capsule and deoxygenates the gas in the sealed space,
The air conditioning system according to claim 1, wherein the air conditioner circulates the gas in the air conditioning capsule while deoxidizing the gas by the deoxygenating means. The air conditioning system further includes an oxygen supply means for supplying oxygen into the pre-air conditioning capsule, an oxygen concentration measuring means for measuring the oxygen concentration in the air conditioning capsule,
And control means for controlling the supply of oxygen from the oxygen supply means based on the measurement result of the oxygen concentration measurement means, and for locking and unlocking the door to and from the air-conditioning capsule. The air conditioning system according to claim 1. A sealed space is formed, and a predetermined gas cooled by the air conditioner is supplied to the air conditioning capsule partitioned into the first space and the second space by the rack row in which the sealed space accommodates the heat generating device. An air conditioning method characterized by circulating through the interior.