Engineering Innovation Could Cool Data Centers Cheaper & More Efficiently

A single computer runs hot when used for extended periods. Now, think about hundreds of computers running in a single facility. That is how much heat data centers generate. When computer chips work overtime, certain sections can spike in temperature within seconds. As a result, sudden temperature shifts cause chips to slow down, wear out faster, and become less reliable.

It’s clear how many issues the heat causes. That’s why data centers need so much water to cool the hardware down. Additionally, these standard cooling fluids, such as water, don’t move past the hardware fast enough.

To address this, researchers at the University of Waterloo in Ontario, Canada, designed a clever hybrid system that targets hot areas with a single drop of boiling coolant.

A Two-Part Approach to Cooling Data Centers

Instead of filling an entire cooling tank with expensive chemicals, the team paired cheap deionized water with tiny drops of high-end coolant. The water handles the baseline temperature, while the drops focus strictly on the extreme spikes.

“It’s a division of labor,” said Dr. Sushanta Mitra, a professor of mechanical and mechatronics engineering at Waterloo. “Water is excellent at handling steady, everyday heat and the drops take care of sudden spikes.”

The team chose an electronics coolant that is heavier than water and boils at a much lower temperature. Because it is denser, it stays put on top of a hotspot instead of floating away. In lab tests with simulated chips submerged in water, a single drop boiled, lowering the hotspot temperature by up to 17 °C (62.6 °F) in just 15 seconds. That is several times faster than traditional liquid cooling.

“Boiling soaks up a lot of heat and the rising bubbles stir the surrounding water so it carries heat away faster,” said Mitra, who also serves as executive director of the Waterloo Institute for Nanotechnology. “We get the punch of boiling, but only where and when it’s needed.”

Wrapping Drops for Better Control

The team wrapped each droplet in a thin coating of silicone oil mixed with tiny heat-conducting ceramic particles to control when the liquid boils. Researchers envision two ways to put this to work in the real world. First, they could send coated drops circulating through the water until they hit a hotspot. Second, they could use sensors to spot hot zones and deliver drops directly to them.

Beyond data centers, the researchers say this hybrid cooling method could eventually help keep batteries, electric vehicles, high-powered lasers, and LED lighting cool, too.