Cold aisle racks save cooling energy and improve server reliability by controlling airflow within the server room. Data centers consume enormous amounts of electricity, and to achieve energy conservation and environmental protection, data center standards recommend using a hot and cold aisle layout for heat dissipation. In practice, to ensure efficient use of cold air, the cold air aisle is enclosed to form a cold pool. Sliding doors are installed on both sides of the cold pool for easy access, and the top is transparent to allow light from inside the server room to enter. The top of the cold aisle rack system is usually movable and linked to the fire suppression system. In the event of a fire alarm, the top window automatically retracts to facilitate heat dissipation and smoke extraction from the cold aisle system, while also facilitating gas fire suppression within the server room.
The functionality of cold aisle cabinets can be expanded by installing sensors for temperature, humidity, smoke, and infrared detection within the cold aisle system to monitor the internal environment in real time. Furthermore, to ensure security, the sliding doors on both sides can be equipped with fingerprint locks, combination locks, or other security features upon request.
The cold aisle cabinets are made of high-quality cold-rolled steel plate with the following thicknesses: 2.0mm for guide rails and crossbeams, 1.5mm for the top support beams of the cold aisle, and 1.2mm for the sliding doors. They feature high-quality heavy-duty nylon silent casters. The cold aisle cabinets conform to ANSI/EIARS-310-D, DIN41491; PART1, IEC297-2, DIN41494; PART7, and GB/T3047.2-92 standards, and are compatible with 19-inch international standards, metric standards, and ETSI standards.
Hot aisle and cold aisle concepts
Hot aisle/cold aisle layouts are the design for server racks and other computing equipment in a data center. Hot aisle/cold aisle constructions aim to save energy and reduce cooling costs by managing airflow.
The simplest data center hot-aisle/cold-aisle design arranges server racks in a cross-row configuration, with cold air inlets facing one side and hot air outlets facing the other. The row at the front of the racks is called the cold aisle. Typically, the cold aisle faces the air conditioning output ducts. The row where hot air exits is called the hot aisle. Typically, the hot aisle faces the air conditioning return ducts.
Enclosed systems are used to isolate hot and cold aisles, preventing the mixing of hot and cold air. Like a physical barrier, an enclosed system separates the hot and cold aisles using vinyl panels or plexiglass. Currently, suppliers offer ventilation shafts and other commercial options that combine enclosed systems with variable frequency fan drives (VFDs) to further prevent the mixing of hot and cold air.
Best practices for closing hot and cold aisles include:
1. It should be 1.5 feet above the ground so that the air pushed out by the air conditioner can pass through.
2. Deploy rack ovens with a 600 cubic feet per minute (CFM) output.
3. Position the equipment with side and top exhaust pipes in its location within the data center.
4. Install automatic doors in the data center.
