PetaGen is a full production Total Liquid Cooling solution that improves IT performance, energy efficiency and density, whilst reducing Total Cost of Ownership and data centre complexity. PetaGen was developed in partnership with Intel to cool its latest processor chips, something which many other liquid cooling platforms have failed to do due to the considerable heat output of top-end IT components.
Short for ‘Peta-Generation’, PetaGen was named in reference to petascale computing, a term encompassing the current generation of the world’s fastest supercomputer systems. In PetaGen, Iceotope has developed a system that:
· Uses minimal energy resources – In a traditional data centre, cooling can account for as much as half of energy used but with Iceotope technology the overheads are merely two percent, cutting data centre energy use and carbon emissions considerably
· Has zero dependence on clean water – IT’s use of dwindling clean water supplies is a significant and growing problem but, unlike most IT server designs, PetaGen does not need to evaporate or waste clean water
· Streamlines needlessly bloated and expensive data centre facilities – To compliment the rows upon rows of servers, most data centres need raised floors, computer room air conditioning (CRAC) units, air filters, generators, backup batteries / UPS, external coolers etc. PetaGen equipped facilities on the other hand have a dramatically reduced infrastructure footprint, saving huge amounts on infrastructure costs
· Improves IT performance – PetaGen increases IT performance per watt through effectively cooling components and enabling the reliable and efficient use of turbo modes, further reducing energy usage and expenditure
PetaGen is a fully contained and fully sealed liquid cooling system that immerses electronics in a sophisticated, non-conductive, engineered fluid. Without any spinning fans, PetaGen units are virtually silent in operation and can also be deployed in populated labs and offices. It is within such spaces that the possibility of heat re-use becomes increasingly valuable. PetaGen creates waste heat in the form of hot water, and allowing input temperatures of up to 45C (113F) which enables coolants so hot that they can be used in a variety of applications close to the IT deployment, such as heating buildings.
Furthermore, PetaGen can, unlike many liquid-cooled systems can cool top-end processor chips. This enables Iceotope customers to take advantage of incredibly powerful computing resources - the kind needed to support the use of big data analytics and cloud computing.
“Some of these top-end chips are, for a lack of a better word, ‘un-coolable’ for other liquid cooling systems,” said Peter Hopton, Iceotope founder and Chief Visionary Officer (CVO). “Given the excessive heat involved at the high end of computing, most liquid cooled systems can only handle mid-low density IT, the kind which simply isn’t suitable or used by the most advanced HPC or data centre facilities – we’re looking to put a stop to that with PetaGen.”
The results are equally impressive when comparing PetaGen to traditional air cooled IT environments, especially in terms of IT density. Normal air cooled facilities operate at up to 2.6kW per sq metre and require large quantities of both internal and external supporting infrastructure. Iceotope’s patented technology increases density by fitting in more devices, reducing IT infrastructure and increasing IT performance. Iceotope’s PetaGen is available in various cabinet sizes, supports up to 72 blade servers per cabinet, up to 60kW of power and cooling and its modular design also decreases the amount floor space needed, typically offering 7.4kW-14kW of IT per sq metre.
“PetaGen was designed to eliminate waste from IT and our new system has the capacity to help solve some serious problems caused by and facing the digital economy today,” added Hopton. “I believe that IT is a massive force for good, don’t get me wrong. However, most people don’t realise that modern IT use along with today’s ‘always-on, always connected’ culture is hugely damaging in terms of its environmental impact. We need to revaluate how we use IT now and how we design, build and operate the data centre should be a top priority.”
