Posted by Courtney Pardal on | Comments Off on Design Challenges and Solutions for Liquid-Cooled Rack Enclosures in Military Deployments
Implementing liquid cooling systems in military deployments presents unique design challenges due to the harsh and demanding environments in which these systems operate. Here are some common design challenges and practical solutions to address them:
1. Harsh Environmental Conditions
Challenge: Military environments can be extreme, with varying temperatures, humidity levels, and exposure to dust, sand, or water. These conditions can impact the performance and reliability of liquid cooling systems.
Solutions:
Robust Sealing: Use high-quality seals and gaskets to protect cooling components from dust, moisture, and contaminants.
Temperature Range Design: Choose components rated for wide temperature ranges and incorporate thermal insulation to protect sensitive parts.
Environmental Testing: Conduct environmental testing (e.g., MIL-STD-810) to ensure that the cooling system can withstand specific environmental conditions.
2. Integration with Existing Systems
Challenge: Integrating liquid cooling solutions into existing military rack systems can be complex, especially if the current infrastructure is not designed for liquid cooling.
Solutions:
Modular Components: Use modular cooling components that can be easily integrated or retrofitted into existing racks.
Custom Design: Work with manufacturers to design custom cooling solutions that fit within the existing rack layout and meet performance requirements.
Detailed Planning: Develop a detailed integration plan, including layout adjustments and cooling component placement, to minimize disruptions.
3. Space Constraints
Challenge: Military rack systems often have limited space, making it difficult to install additional cooling components without interfering with existing equipment.
Solutions:
Compact Cooling Solutions: Utilize compact and efficient cooling components, such as slimline pumps and small-footprint reservoirs.
Space Optimization: Optimize the use of available space by integrating cooling components into unused areas or combining them with other rack components.
Flexible Configurations: Design flexible cooling configurations that can adapt to varying space constraints.
4. Reliability and Maintenance
Challenge: Ensuring the reliability and ease of maintenance of liquid cooling systems is critical, as any failure could impact mission-critical operations.
Solutions:
Redundancy: Implement redundant cooling components, such as backup pumps and multiple coolant paths, to ensure continued operation in case of component failure.
Leak Detection: Install leak detection systems and use high-quality, leak-proof fittings and hoses to minimize the risk of leaks.
Maintenance Access: Design the system for easy maintenance access, including removable panels and accessible coolant reservoirs.
5. Thermal Management
Challenge: Efficiently managing heat dissipation in high-power military electronics can be challenging, especially in confined spaces.
Solutions:
Effective Heat Transfer: Use high-performance cold plates or heat exchangers to ensure efficient heat transfer from equipment to the coolant.
Flow Optimization: Optimize coolant flow paths and cooling distribution to ensure uniform temperature management.
6. Power and Energy Efficiency
Challenge: Liquid cooling systems can consume additional power, which is a critical consideration in energy-constrained military environments.
Solutions:
Energy-Efficient Components: Select energy-efficient pumps and cooling fans that minimize power consumption while maintaining performance.
Power Management: Implement power management strategies to optimize the use of available energy and reduce overall consumption.
Alternative Power Sources: Explore alternative power sources, such as battery backups or renewable energy, to support cooling systems in remote or off-grid locations.
7. Cost and Budget Constraints
Challenge: Budget constraints can limit the ability to invest in advanced liquid cooling technologies and components.
Solutions:
Cost-Benefit Analysis: Conduct a thorough cost-benefit analysis to justify the investment in liquid cooling based on performance improvements and long-term savings.
Modular Upgrades: Implement modular upgrades to spread the cost over time and allow incremental improvements to the cooling system.
Leverage Existing Technologies: Use existing technologies and components where possible to reduce costs while achieving the required cooling performance.
8. Regulatory and Compliance Requirements
Challenge: Compliance with military and industry standards is essential for ensuring safety, performance, and interoperability.
Solutions:
Adhere to Standards: Ensure that the liquid cooling system complies with relevant military specifications (e.g., MIL-STD-810, MIL-STD-461) and industry standards.
Documentation and Certification: Obtain necessary certifications and maintain documentation to demonstrate compliance with regulatory requirements.
Regular Audits: Conduct regular audits and reviews to ensure ongoing compliance with standards and regulations.
9. System Complexity
Challenge: Liquid cooling systems can introduce additional complexity to the rack system, including plumbing, monitoring, and control systems.
Solutions:
Simplified Design: Simplify the design of the cooling system to reduce complexity and make installation and maintenance easier.
Integrated Controls: Use integrated control systems to manage cooling functions and monitor performance with minimal manual intervention.
Training and Support: Provide training for personnel on the operation and maintenance of the cooling system to ensure effective management.
10. Compatibility with Military Standards
Challenge: Ensuring compatibility with military standards and ensuring that the liquid cooling system does not interfere with other equipment.
Solutions:
Standardized Components: Use components that meet military standards and are designed for compatibility with other military equipment.
System Testing: Perform comprehensive testing to verify that the cooling system does not affect the performance or operation of other equipment.
Collaboration with Military Engineers: Work closely with military engineers and stakeholders to address compatibility issues and ensure alignment with operational requirements.
Addressing these design challenges requires a strategic approach, including thorough planning, careful component selection, and ongoing testing and maintenance. By implementing these practical solutions, you can successfully retrofit military rack systems with liquid cooling solutions that enhance performance, reliability, and operational efficiency while meeting the demanding requirements of military environments.
Electronic enclosures in utilities have a wide range of applications and are essential for the safe operation of utility operations. However, they can be subject to various challenges, such as extreme temperatures, dust, dirt and water immersion, vibration, and shock. To ensure optimal performance and safety, the enclosure must be properly designed and protected against these elements.
Our electronic enclosures and accessories provide robust protection from external sources such as dust and dirt and can perform under harsh environments with temperature and humidity changes.
Electronic enclosures that serve the energy industry
Renewable energy includes solar, wind, and geothermal sources, which are growing in importance daily. With many years of experience, our engineers have built equipment racks designed for the different needs of these alternative energy sources.
Solar
The most abundant energy source on Earth is solar power. This form of renewable energy has become the fastest-growing sector in the world, with more and more countries investing heavily in solar technology.
Solar panels have allowed it to power both airplanes and charge electric vehicles. Still, the space industry was one of the earliest adopters of this type of renewable energy. The Vanguard 1 satellite, launched in 1958 and remains the oldest human-made object still orbiting Earth, used solar power to operate.
On a much larger scale, solar energy is being produced all over the world. California’s Mojave Desert is home to Ivanpah Solar Power Facility, one of the world’s largest operating solar thermal energy plants.
Energy from the sun is expected to produce 50% of the world’s total energy. With that in mind, we can build and design racks applicable to solar power.
Enclosure requirements
● Durable to withstand weather hazards, UV radiation, high temperatures
● Lightweight, corrosion-resistant, durable
● Easily modified to meet specific applications
Wind
Wind power has been around for centuries, with the first example of wind power technology being used in Ancient China in 2000 BC. Fast forward to the 1940s, and the first modern turbine was built in Vermont. Today, however, one of the world’s largest turbines can be found across the US – particularly going to Hawaii, where 20-story tall turbines with blades the length of a football field are located.
What’s more, wind power is unique in that it does not require any water to operate – no wonder that by 2030, it is expected to save around 30 trillion bottles of water in the US alone. As such, this renewable energy source is becoming increasingly popular and will remain an integral part of our energy portfolio for many years.
Wind energy is one of the most economical renewable sources today. It’s an essential part of the world’s energy mix, providing 6.5% of all electricity generated in 2020.
Enclosure requirements
● Lightweight, weather-resistant
● Ruggedized construction to withstand harsh environments
Geothermal
Geothermal energy is an incredibly versatile and environmentally friendly form of energy generation. It has one of the lowest carbon footprints of all energy sources because it typically only involves drilling two to three wells, meaning there is no need for transportation or further processing.
Furthermore, its use can extend far beyond typical power plant applications. Geothermal energy can be used to heat buildings, grow plants in greenhouses, heat water for fish farming, pasteurize milk, and even pipe it underneath roads and sidewalks to keep them clear of snow. Its reach is limited only by the imagination.
With its low carbon footprint and wide range of applications, geothermal energy is a great way to reduce our reliance on fossil fuels while still providing a reliable and sustainable form of energy.
Geothermal energy is already heating many homes in the US with continued strong support from Bill Gates as he also added a geothermal startup to his clean energy fund. This renewable power is designed to use the earth’s natural temperature to heat and cool homes and doesn’t burn fossil fuels.
Enclosure requirements
● Durable materials such as aluminum
● Withstand high temperatures due to the hot steam
● Offer protection against dust, dirt, and other harsh environments.
Electronic enclosures manufactured for water treatment facilities
Water treatment is any process that improves the quality of water to make it more acceptable for a specific end-use. It could be for drinking, industrial water supply, irrigation, river flow maintenance or recreation.
The control & management of water treatment facilities is a complex task requiring thousands of measurement devices to provide consistent data to various locations. That’s why these devices must be in proper cabinets, which is why our custom-designed racks & electronic enclosures have been specifically designed for the water treatment industry.
Enclosure requirements
● Must perform under harsh conditions, often requiring use of a gasket for weatherproofing
● Shock & vibration resilience
● Corrosion-resistant material
● Impenetrable by rodents
Custom equipment racks & accessories by A&J Manufacturing
We are committed to ensuring our customers receive the right products for their intended applications. In the utilitiesindustry, specific enclosure requirements are needed to ensure electronic devices are safe from outside elements. We can achieve any specifications you have in mind with our custom services.Our engineers invest significant time in understanding the application’s end-use with extensive pre-planning so that the result is an enclosure with tight tolerances and all components functioning as required. We want to collaborate with you to ensure you’ll have a scalable renewable energy or water treatment facility enclosure. Contact us now for more information regarding our electronic enclosures or . request a quote today!
Test, measurement and simulation systems have undergone significant technological advancements in the past decade. Couple that with specific environmental or physical challenges and your electronic rack or enclosure likely includes a wide variety of requirements to ensure you purchase an effective solution. The increasing number of test and measurement tasks means that our customers require greater modularity of the enclosures that protect the sensitive electronics that make up high-end test systems.
Common Concerns for Simulation, Test and Measurement Enclosure Solutions
At A&J, we want to support and help accelerate innovations in testing, measurement and other common functions of a research lab or facility; specifically protecting the electronics that help provide network security and the Internet of Things (IoT).
Common challenges include:
Physical space or a reduced footprint
Protection against shock and vibration
Increased heat dissipation
Physical Space
It’s important to understand and make note of all the relevant specifications prior to designing and even eventually installing your rack solution. Rack height is the most important. But not only does it need to fit in the installation space, but in every space that needs to be transited through to get there: subterranean parking garages, hallways, elevators, utility corridors.
Additionally, consider the space required for maintenance, monitoring and servicing access.
Shock & Vibration
Vibration and shock issues pose significant challenges to many industries. The development of robust products that can be exposed to long term exposure or periodic shocks without degradation is critical to the overall performance of any system and can be a tremendous risk to millions of dollars of research effort.
Every facility will have its own unique structural and environmental considerations. We’ve designed, manufactured and qualified more than thirty (30) different configurations of racks and enclosures to meet stringent military requirements (MIL-S-901, STD-167-1) and our wide range of accumulated test data for our designs could allow additional configurations to qualify by extension. Please don’t hesitate to reach out if you’re interested in reviewing our testing data.
Heat Dissipation
Components like power suppliers and processor chips can generate significant amounts of heat and those increases in temperature can sharply reduce the life of your components, even just 10 degrees!
Some of the factors that influence the success of enclosure cooling includes: the ability of heat to dissipate, the ability of air to flow freely to and from the outside, contamination from dust and other substances and consistent air flow to all components. Frankly, anything that can aid natural convection should be considered since this is “free” and can dissipate a significant portion of the heat in an enclosure.
Factors To Consider When Buying Measurement & Testing Enclosures
A high-quality laboratory rack is invaluable to any research environment. Laboratory racks have a compact and space-saving footprint to maintain a neat appearance while facilitating laboratory organization. They offer a safe storage solution for protecting critical lab equipment and accessories from outside contaminants as well as falling and breaking.
Lab equipment racks can also facilitate laboratory compliance and storage safety standards. At A&J Manufacturing, we rely on innovative technology, integrity, and collaboration to deliver superior laboratory equipment racks for your needs. We inspect our products rigorously under an ISO 9001:2015 and AS9100 certified quality management system to ensure we meet our customers’ stringent requirements.
There are several factors to consider when choosing the best enclosure manufacturer:
Improved EMI shielding
Superior signal integrity
Improved cooling or thermal management
Modular or flexible configuration options
At the base level, our AJR 150 Series rack satisfies the test and measurement application requirements for modularity and EMI shielding. As the cornerstone of our enclosure rack offerings, it uses a modular design that allows for significant cabinet reconfigurations as your component requirements or testing equipment changes. Our AJR 150 Series is offered in a wide variety of sizes giving you additional flexibility based on any physical restrictions and the bolted-together construction makes applications both scalable and enables multi-stage installation or where access might be constricted due to small footprints.
Because temperature directly affects the reliability and service life of electronic equipment, thermal management accessories are paramount to the success of your test and measurement enclosure options. At A&J, we can offer both passive and active thermal management options. Wherever possible, use passive solutions first because they make the most of the natural properties. They also tend to be cheaper and more practical.
Laboratory Racks From A&J Manufacturing
Laboratory racks are crucial components in any research facility, offering a safe storage solution for protecting valuable lab equipment and accessories. At A&J Manufacturing, our racks come in light, medium, and heavy-duty configurations to meet various application and industry requirements. To learn more about our commercial off-the-shelf and custom equipment racks, or for help determining which lab equipment rack is right for your needs, contact us today.
Configure-to-Order Options
Download our PDF to review A&J Manufacturing standard rack configurations including panel options, doors and RETMA rails.
