Accredited Tier Designer Technical Paper Series:

Continuous Cooling

This Technical Paper supplements Data Center Site Infrastructure Tier Standard: Topology.
This technical paper clarifies the requirements for Continuous Cooling in the context
of the Uptime Institutes Tier Standard: Topology. Tier IV is the only Tier that requires
Continuous Cooling. Additionally, this paper serves to recommend Continuous Cooling
at densities beyond 4 kilowatts (kW)/rack, regardless of Tier.

As the power densities in the data center increase, the need for Continuous Cooling becomes more
profound. The risk of the loss of cooling during a UPS ride-though event can be catastrophic to a business. IT
equipment may fail or become wounded.

However, depending on the cooling or UPS technology deployed, the definition and requirement for
Continuous Cooling can widely differ. This paper clarifies the definition of Continuous Cooling and details its
deployment with varying types of technology choices.

Regardless of technology, Continuous Cooling is defined as the ability to provide stable cooling to the IT
and UPS environment without any interruption. Continuous Cooling provides this stable cooling capability for
the duration of the UPS ride-through time. For example, for a static UPS system with 15 minutes of battery,
the Continuous Cooling will need to provide stable cooling for 15 minutes. Note, however, that if there are
redundant modules and battery strings available, the 15 minute ride-through time could become 30 minutes
or more (depending on redundancies). Careful consideration should be taken by the owner to determine if
the stated ride-through time or the available ride-through time should be the requirement for the Continuous
Cooling solution.

The American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE), in concert with
major IT equipment manufacturers, established Thermal Guidelines for Data Processing Environments that
includes recommended computer equipment inlet air temperatures necessary to enable reliable operation
of servers, storage, and network devices. As of 2010, the ASHRAE guideline (accepted on a global basis)
recommends that the device inlet be between 66-81F (18-27C) and 20-80% relative humidity to meet the
manufacturers established criteria.

As a point of reference, Uptime Institute conducted a demonstration on a 6-kW/rack average computer room.
Intake air temperatures in computer rooms will exceed the top value in this range within 60 seconds after a
loss of cooling or even air movement.

Consider the scenario of a utility failure, during which the UPS continues to power the IT devices, but
mechanical plant operation is interrupted. Depending on the technology of the cooling deployed, this
interruption may continue for several minutes. During this time, elevated temperatures in the computer room
may damage IT equipment. Continuous Cooling provides the bridge to enable stable cooling to continue until
the mechanical or other cooling resumes.

Tier Requirements
Tier IV is the only Tier that requires Continuous Cooling.

Continuous Cooling for a chilled water system is generally accomplished with thermal energy storage (TES)
capability (also known as chilled water storage). Secondary pumps and computer room air handlers (CRAHs)
are required to be on UPS. This can be the IT UPS or a separate, Concurrently Maintainable and Fault
Tolerant, mechanical UPS system. If the cooling system is in a primary-direct configuration, then the primary
pumps are required to be on UPS.

Continuous Cooling for direct exchange (DX) systems requires both the computer room air conditioners
(CRACs) and the external condensers to be on a Concurrently Maintainable and Fault Tolerant UPS system.
The same requirement exists for split- system air conditioning units.

Continuous Cooling for 100% outside air systems that can provide cooling throughout the year require the
fans (or the system that delivers the air to the computer room) to be on UPS.

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When rotary UPS systems are deployed as the IT UPS, then the cooling system must be on the no-break
bus. This allows provision of cooling throughout a UPS ride-through event. If there is a chilled water system
deployed in tandem with a rotary UPS with no batteries, typically no TES is required. However, each specific
case should be reviewed to ensure stable cooling is provided during a loss of power event.

Regardless of any of the cooling or UPS technology deployed in a particular data center, consideration
must be given to the time required to restore mechanical cooling. For example, in a chilled water system,
although the engine generators may assume the electrical load within seconds after loss of utility, the result
of the momentary loss of power to the chillers may require a restart cycle lasting up to 15 minutes or even
more. Although manufacturers are reducing the restart times, the interval between the loss of power and a
resumption of the systems ability to produce stable cooling needs to be incorporated as a data point in the
ride-through time. For example, if a UPS ride-through time is set at 5 minutes, yet it takes 15 minutes to
resume stable mechanical cooling after a loss of power, then the TES must be able to provide 15 minutes
ofchilled water storage.

Providing thermal stability to the IT and UPS environment during the transition from utility outage to
engine-generator power, Continuous Cooling ensures that a utility event does not result in costly heat
damage to IT hardware or critical equipment. A requirement only for Tier IV, but justifiable for average
densities above 4 kW in light of potential damage to facilities and IT investment.

Related Publications
Tier Standard: Topology

Accredited Tier Designer Technical Paper Series: Engine-Generator Ratings

Accredited Tier Designer Technical Paper Series: Makeup Water

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