In 2011, IBM announced the Power 775 supercomputing node/system which, for the time, was a significant increase in computing performance and energy efficiency. The system was designed from the start with water cooling in mind. The result: a system with greater than 95% of its heat load conducted directly to water and a system that, together with a rear door heat exchanger (HX), removes 100% of its heat load to water with no requirement for room air conditioning. In addition to direct water cooling the processor, the memory, power conversion, and input–output electronics also conduct their heat directly to water. Also included within the framework of the system is a disk storage unit (i.e., disk enclosure) containing an interboard air-to-water HX. The heart of the water cooling system is the water conditioning unit (WCU). The WCU circulates system water at a controlled temperature and flow rate while also transferring the electronics heat load to the data center facility building chilled water (BCW) system. The brain for this system is the motor drive and control assembly (MDA-WCU). In addition to the pump motor drive function, the MDA-WCU contains the control circuitry and associated firmware that maintains system water at a prescribed temperature above the room dew point irrespective of system and or facilities thermal/flow transients. It is also capable of error detection and fault isolation that, together with higher level system firmware, facilitates serviceability, and availability. The paper will present the WCU and MDA-WCU design with an emphasis on the control methodologies and algorithms.
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December 2014
Research-Article
Design and Control of the IBM Power 775 Supercomputer Water Conditioning Unit
Michael J. Ellsworth, Jr.,
Michael J. Ellsworth, Jr.
High End Power Systems Development,
IBM Corporation
,Poughkeepsie, NY 12601
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Randy J. Zoodsma,
Randy J. Zoodsma
Thermal Engineering and Technologies,
IBM Corporation
,Poughkeepsie, NY 12601
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Frank Cascio,
Frank Cascio
High End Power Systems Development,
IBM Corporation
,Poughkeepsie, NY 12601
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Eileen Behrendt
Eileen Behrendt
High End Power Systems Development,
IBM Corporation
,Poughkeepsie, NY 12601
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Michael J. Ellsworth, Jr.
High End Power Systems Development,
IBM Corporation
,Poughkeepsie, NY 12601
Randy J. Zoodsma
Thermal Engineering and Technologies,
IBM Corporation
,Poughkeepsie, NY 12601
Frank Cascio
High End Power Systems Development,
IBM Corporation
,Poughkeepsie, NY 12601
Eileen Behrendt
High End Power Systems Development,
IBM Corporation
,Poughkeepsie, NY 12601
Contributed by the Electronic and Photonic Packaging Division of ASME for publication in the JOURNAL OF ELECTRONIC PACKAGING. Manuscript received October 30, 2013; final manuscript received July 25, 2014; published online September 19, 2014. Assoc. Editor: Ashish Gupta.
J. Electron. Packag. Dec 2014, 136(4): 041009 (9 pages)
Published Online: September 19, 2014
Article history
Received:
October 30, 2013
Revision Received:
July 25, 2014
Citation
Ellsworth, M. J., Jr., Zoodsma, R. J., Cascio, F., and Behrendt, E. (September 19, 2014). "Design and Control of the IBM Power 775 Supercomputer Water Conditioning Unit." ASME. J. Electron. Packag. December 2014; 136(4): 041009. https://doi.org/10.1115/1.4028119
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