Week 12 - Final Project - Modelling and Analysis of a Datacenter

Introduction:

In this assignment you will learn

1. Use macros to create computer room air conditioning units (CRACs), server cabinets, power distribution units (PDUs), and perforated floor tiles in the datacenter.
2. Organize the model using groups.
3. Include effects of gravity and turbulence in the simulation.
4. Define object-specific meshing parameters.
5. Create contours, particle traces, iso-surfaces to better understand the airflow patterns and temperature stratification within the datacenter space.

Problem Description:

This tutorial considers a 1200 sq. ft. datacenter with a slab to slab height of 12 ft. The datacenter consists of a 1.5 ft underfloor plenum and a 2 ft ceiling plenum. The CRACs discharge cold air into the underfloor plenum. The cold air enters the main datacenter space mainly through the perforated floor tiles and returns back to the air conditioning units. The cooling load, as summarized as below. Size and Capacity of Heat Sources in Datacenter corresponds to the heat output from the server cabinets and the PDUs. A PCB board, library files and traces are imported to create the model. The model is first solved for conduction only, without the components and then solved using the actual components with forced convection.

Heat Source	Size	Power
Server Cabinet	2 ft x 3 ft x 7 ft	3000 W
High Density	2 ft x 3 ft x 7 ft	7000 W
PDU	4 ft x 2 ft x 5 ft	3600 W

Modelling

Mesh control

Per-object meshing

Basic Parameters

General setup

Defaults

Transient setup

Advanced

Basic Settings

Advanced Settings

Post-Processing

Temperature Points

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Mass flow rates

Heat flow objects with power specification

Maximum Temperature