Why Liquid Cooling and Metal Hoses Are the Future of Data Centers

AI, machine learning and cloud computing have seen explosive growth in the last few years, and only greater heights are expected for years to come. All of these new and emerging technologies require high energy inputs to be effective, with power consumption promising to scale up in the near future. Tomorrow’s data centers and hyperscale operations will be accelerating their energy needs and they’ll need a cooling system that can withstand the rapid uptick.

That’s where liquid cooling via metal hoses comes in as a safer and more efficient replacement for air cooling. Hose Master is here to meet this new and increasing demand. Let’s get into the details and see how we’re charting a course for the future.

What Is Liquid Cooling?

Data centers have traditionally used air-cooling systems, but an increased awareness of power use and a collective aim to lower this input is better served by liquid cooling systems. In fact, liquid cooling can lower power usage by as much as 15%–on the scale that modern data centers and hyperscale operators are using electricity, that means huge savings. Eventually, as the scale of data center operations increases, traditional air cooling systems simply won’t be able to keep up with demand. Setting up your data center with a liquid cooling system now will put you ahead of the curve and help to prepare your business for the future.

So just what is liquid cooling? While traditional air cooling works by directing chilled air over heat-generating IT equipment to remove heat, liquid cooling takes a different approach. In liquid cooling, heat is absorbed and transferred directly from hot equipment components to the coolant, typically via cold plates or full immersion. Warmed coolant then flows to a heat exchanger or cooling tower, where heat is released to the outside atmosphere. The cooled liquid is then returned to the facility and equipment to repeat the cycle.

• Direct-to-Chip Cooling: Liquid coolant is circulated through cold plates that are in direct contact with the hottest server components (CPUs and GPUs).

• Immersion Cooling: Servers are fully submerged in a non-conductive fluid that absorbs heat directly from the components. Cooling fluid either remains in a liquid state (single-phase) or boils, evaporates, and then condenses back into a liquid (two-phase).

By its very nature, liquid cooling is more efficient because liquids have significantly higher thermal conductivity than air. They can be up to 25x more efficient than air when it comes to transferring heat. Because liquid can easily infiltrate the higher rack densities of modern high-performance equipment in large data centers, it can more completely and uniformly transfer excessive levels of heat while still requiring less power than traditional air cooling systems.

Why Use Metal Hoses in Data Centers?

Liquid needs a flow path to reach its destination. For some data centers, that often means rubber, thermoplastic, or silicone hoses. But for the most robust, clean, and fire-safe fluid conveyance, stainless steel metal hoses are the gold standard. The risk of permeation in thermoplastic systems and corrosion from hybrid materials can pose serious issues for large-scale and hyperscale data centers–both of which are the way of the future. Stainless steel solutions offer superior lifecycle performance and compliance with evolving safety standards.

Metal hoses used for cooling in data centers offer long-term reliability, even when under pressure and exposed to vibration and potentially corrosive chemicals. Our stainless steel hoses are also resistant to permeation, minimizing the risk of a leak and data center downtime. They can also mitigate the effects of seismic disturbances, which could be a serious threat depending on location. Heat is a major concern in data centers, which is why all-stainless cooling systems offer superior protection in environments where non-metallic hoses could introduce unnecessary risk. Opting for metal cooling hoses crosses fire risk off of your worry list, making data center management just that little bit less troublesome.

Metal hoses also tend to be easier to install and offer more live length, since they lack the typical long barbed fittings used in non-metallic hoses. And because fittings are permanently welded to each end of a metal hose, the potential for fitting separation is eliminated, making them a more secure option for large scale data centers. Metal hoses offer a high level of reliability and quality in a domestically-available product, and with ongoing R&D we may discover even more practical benefits to utilizing metal hoses for cooling.

Why Use Hose Master?

Liquid cooling is the future of data centers, especially for hyperscalers. Large-scale cloud computing providers with massive, globally distributed data centers that provide services like Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) and Platform as a Service (PaaS) are already starting to utilize liquid cooling, and adoption rates of this superior cooling technology will only increase. Incorporating metal hoses takes already effective cooling systems to a higher level of safety and efficiency, two essentials that hyperscalers rely on to meet performance expectations and industry regulations.

But to ensure that your move to metal hoses for cooling is a success, you need to know that you are choosing the right product. Hose Master brings a key range of skills to the table, like stainless steel corrugated hose fabrication, design and engineering capabilities, and expansive domestic manufacturing. In fact, thanks to our vertically integrated operations, we control the entire manufacturing process, from acquisition of materials to assembly, enabling a tight control of quality, lead times, and compliance. We design hose assemblies not just to fit, but to last in the face of thermal movements, vibration, and other stressors. When uptime is everything and unplanned downtime is unacceptable, managers, engineers and purchasing agents need a trustworthy solution.

On top of offering a high-quality product, Hose Master also has the design know-how and application-specific expertise needed to assist clients with system solutions, consulting and technical advice. We get rid of traditional pain points, like ease of installation, flexibility, lead time, material compatibility and cleanability while offering an easy-to-use product offered at production scale along with our invaluable technical support.

Our US-based manufacturing facilities and industry-leading team of ASME-certified welders are ready to provide for your data center’s future cooling needs, with fast turnaround and stringent quality control. We work directly with a select set of distributors who are capable of supporting large-scale projects while maintaining pricing discipline and service excellence, so you can trust that you will always be in good hands. Regardless of fluid type, hose length, or fitting type, Hose Master has what it takes to keep modern data centers functioning safely and efficiently.

Choose Hose Master For Your Data Center Liquid Cooling Needs

As North America's largest manufacturer of flexible metal hose and metal expansion joints for efficient and safe data center liquid cooling, Hose Master stands at the forefront of innovation and quality, ensuring optimal cooling efficiency and facility uptime. Ease of installation, reliability, energy efficiency and safety in your facilities are top priorities–maximize your data center uptime with cooling you can count on.

Hose Master’s intelligent, customer-driven designs are being implemented in data centers and a wide range of other industries and applications. Our nationwide sales team is experienced in data center cooling applications and is ready to help you find the ultimate solution to your cooling needs. Contact us today and enjoy outstanding customer service from the highest quality manufacturer of domestic stainless steel cooling hoses.