Filtration: How Much Do You Need For Fresh Air Cooling?

Award winning data centre at Aberdeen University
 uses EcoCooler's with EU4 filtration

As data centres get larger and loads get heavier, the need for effective cooling increases operating costs. The same can be said for general cooling needs. With larger spaces comes a greater need for cost-efficient cooling. For the longest time, air-cooling has been the preferred model for commercial and data centre space. The air-cooling of the modern era is based on using fresh air to draw heat away from interior spaces. The downside to fresh air-cooling is the need for additional filtration.

So how much filtration do you need for fresh air-cooling? Coming up with a concrete formula for determining filtration levels is difficult at best. It requires looking at a whole host of factors, including:

·         the space and equipment involved

·         heat output of equipment

·         ambient indoor temperature desired

·         average local temperatures

·         average local pollution amounts.

The main problems with commercial cooling systems and air quality are:

EU4 filtration fitted to the ceiling
of a datacentre cold aisle

·         Pollutants and Contaminants – Despite increased efforts toward reducing emissions and other sorts of pollution, the fact is there are still plenty of contaminants in the air we breathe. Our bodies are able to adapt to some degree, but a data centre cannot. Pollutants and contaminants entering through a fresh air cooling system can cause damage to equipment. The only way to eliminate such contaminants is through appropriate filtering.

Without filtration in place, any cooling system can cause significant problems in the data centre or large commercial space. Fresh air-cooling requires more filtration because there are more potential contaminants to deal with.

Evaporative Cooling More Efficient

Direct evaporative cooling can be bolted to a fresh air cooling system to reduce the supply air temperatures when the air outside is hot, this requires special attention to be paid to filtration. This also ensures free cooling is used to its maximum potential in comparison to indirect system which will include losses over the heat exchanger.

Figuring out what is best for your space requires the knowledge and expertise of a cooling specialist.