초록 ▼

A heat exchanger door and heat exchanger core optimization method are provided. The door resides at an air inlet or outlet side of an electronics rack, and includes an air-to-coolant heat exchanger with a heat exchanger core. The core includes a first coolant channel coupled to a coolant inlet manif

A heat exchanger door and heat exchanger core optimization method are provided. The door resides at an air inlet or outlet side of an electronics rack, and includes an air-to-coolant heat exchanger with a heat exchanger core. The core includes a first coolant channel coupled to a coolant inlet manifold downstream from a second coolant channel, and the first channel has a shorter channel length than the second channel. Further, coolant channels of the core are coupled to provide counter-flow cooling of an airflow passing across the core. The core optimization method determines at least one combination of parameters that optimize for a particular application at least two performance metrics of the heat exchanger. This method includes obtaining performance metrics for boundary condition(s) of possible heat exchanger configurations with different variable parameters to determine a combination of parameters that optimize the performance metrics for the heat exchanger.

대표청구항 ▼

1. An apparatus comprising: a heat exchanger door that couples to an electronics rack and resides at one of an air inlet side or an air outlet side of the electronics rack, the heat exchanger door comprising an airflow opening, the airflow opening facilitating the ingress or egress of airflow throug

1. An apparatus comprising: a heat exchanger door that couples to an electronics rack and resides at one of an air inlet side or an air outlet side of the electronics rack, the heat exchanger door comprising an airflow opening, the airflow opening facilitating the ingress or egress of airflow through the electronics rack with the heat exchanger door mounted thereto, wherein the heat exchanger door comprises: an air-to-coolant heat exchanger disposed so that airflow through the airflow opening passes across the air-to-coolant heat exchanger from a first side to a second side thereof, the air-to-coolant heat exchanger to extract heat from the airflow passing thereacross, and comprising a plurality of coolant channels which extend substantially across the airflow opening at least once, wherein the plurality of coolant channels include a last coolant channel coupled to receive coolant from a coolant supply manifold downstream from a first coolant channel receiving coolant from the coolant supply manifold, and wherein a number of channel portions that extend substantially across the airflow opening for the last coolant channel coupled to the coolant supply manifold is less than a number of channel portions that extend substantially across the airflow opening for the first coolant channel coupled to the coolant supply manifold independent of the last coolant channel. 2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the plurality of coolant channels include at least one intermediate coolant channel that receives coolant from the coolant supply manifold before the last coolant channel and after the first coolant channel, and wherein a number of channel portions that extend substantially across the airflow opening for the at least one intermediate coolant channel is less than the number of channel portions that extend substantially across the airflow opening for the first coolant channel and greater than the number of channel portions that extend substantially across the airflow opening for the last coolant channel. 3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the plurality of coolant channels comprises multiple intermediate coolant channels that extend substantially across the airflow opening an equal number of times, and wherein each of the multiple intermediate coolant channels partially overlap with another of the multiple intermediate coolant channels with respect to the airflow passing thereacross and wherein the first coolant channel and the last coolant channel do not overlap with respect to the airflow passing thereacross. 4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the plurality of coolant channels extend substantially across the airflow opening multiple times, and wherein the first coolant channel and the last coolant channel do not overlap with respect to the airflow passing thereacross. 5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the plurality of coolant channels each include an inlet in fluid communication with the coolant supply manifold and an outlet in fluid communication with a coolant return manifold, and wherein channel lengths of the first coolant channel and the last coolant channel are chosen such that the first coolant channel and the last coolant channel intake coolant at a substantially similar coolant flow rate. 6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein channel lengths of at least three coolant channels of the plurality of coolant channels are different. 7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the plurality of coolant channels include channel portions that extend substantially across the airflow opening immediately following channel inlets thereof, and channel portions that extend substantially across the airflow opening immediately preceding channel outlets thereof, and wherein a majority of the channel portions that immediately follow the channel inlets are positioned within the heat exchanger core in a direction of the airflow before the channel portions that immediately precede the channel outlet. 8. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first coolant channel and the last coolant channel do not overlap with respect to the airflow passing thereacross. 9. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first coolant channel and the last coolant channel each receive coolant from the coolant supply manifold on the second side. 10. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first coolant channel and the last coolant channel each receive coolant from the coolant supply manifold on the second side and wherein coolant exits each of the first coolant channel and the last coolant channel into a coolant return manifold on the first side. 11. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein spacing between the channel portions of the first coolant channel differ from spacing between the channel portions of the last coolant channel in a direction of the airflow. 12. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein spacing between the channel portions of the first coolant channel differ from spacing between the channel portions of the last coolant channel in a direction orthogonal of a direction of the airflow. 13. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein spacing between the channel portions of the first coolant channel differ from spacing between the channel portions of the last coolant channel in a direction of the airflow and in a direction orthogonal of the direction of the airflow. 14. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first coolant channel and the last coolant channel comprise differing patterns of channel portions that extend substantially across the airflow opening. 15. An apparatus comprising: a heat exchanger door that couples to an electronics rack, the heat exchanger door comprising an airflow opening, the airflow opening facilitating the ingress or egress of airflow through the electronics rack with the heat exchanger door mounted thereto, wherein the heat exchanger door comprises: an air-to-coolant heat exchanger disposed so that airflow through the airflow opening passes across the air-to-coolant heat exchanger from a first side to a second side thereof, the air-to-coolant heat exchanger to extract heat from the airflow passing thereacross, the air-to-coolant heat exchanger comprising a plurality of coolant channels which extend substantially across the airflow opening at least once, wherein the plurality of coolant channels include a last coolant channel coupled to receive coolant from a coolant supply manifold downstream from a first coolant channel receiving coolant from the coolant supply manifold,wherein a number of channel portions that extend substantially across the airflow opening for the last coolant channel coupled to the coolant supply manifold is less than a number of channel portions that extend substantially across the airflow opening for the first coolant channel coupled to the coolant supply manifold independent of the last coolant channel, andwherein the first coolant channel and the last coolant channel do not overlap with respect to the airflow passing thereacross, andwherein spacing between the channel portions of the first coolant channel differ from spacing between the channel portions of the last coolant channel in a direction of the airflow and in a direction orthogonal of the direction of the airflow. 16. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the first coolant channel and the last coolant channel each receive coolant from the coolant supply manifold on the second side and each supply coolant to a coolant return manifold on the first side.