If you design data centres, you will have noticed that facilities are getting bigger – and hotter. As a result, data centre cooling is evolving towards new techniques that provide effective, sustainable, and cost-effective cooling that maintains the right temperature, even as server rack power continues to grow. But no matter which cooling technology is used at the facility, high-pressure water mist systems are evolving too in order to continue to provide efficient fire suppression and thus remains the key to optimal fire safety design in any data centre.

Growing industry, growing demands

The data centre industry is growing rapidly – as are the demands placed on it. The increasing adoption of artificial intelligence (AI), cloud services, edge computing, and the Internet of Things (IoT) means that the need for storage space and processing power is skyrocketing. Server racks are getting more powerful, but their increasing power density also means higher rack temperatures. At the same time, data centre owners and operators need to minimise operating costs and reduce power consumption as much as possible to minimise the climate impact of their systems to comply with client expectations and sustainability legislation.

Evolution driven by power density

Adopting new cooling techniques is a good solution to these challenges. Liquid cooling such as direct-to-chip cooling and immersion cooling offers high performance plus efficiency improvements that can increase power usage effectiveness (PUE) and reduce climate impact. This evolution is largely driven by increasing power density: With the more powerful, and hotter, server racks being deployed, traditional air cooling including CRAC (computer room air conditioning) and CRAH (computer room air handling) in many cases is no longer sufficient. Liquid cooling, by contrast, offers the required performance.

• In direct-to-chip cooling, small pipes deliver liquid coolant directly to the server motherboard. The liquid absorbs processor heat which is then transported out of the server and evaporated (using a chilled-water loop or similar).
• In immersion cooling, the server itself is submerged into liquid coolant, for example mineral oil or another dielectric liquid. The coolant is pumped through an evaporator system, efficiently removing the heat from the server hardware.

Varying risk profiles

But how exactly do cooling methods affect fire protection? Do they make any difference? It depends on how the data centre is designed. Data centre designers take many different approaches to cooling depending on their targets, and the risk profile depends very much on the actual design in each case. A couple of examples:

• If air cooling is used, how are the airflows designed? Does the cooling system use forced ventilation, and does it use hot and cold aisles? What role do the airflows play in a fire – and how do you design a fire suppression system that delivers the required performance in each case?
• If the data centre relies on immersion cooling, what liquid is being used? Some dielectric fluids have a flash point low enough for them to constitute a fire hazard. And what would happen if unforeseen events or mechanical failure were to result in liquid leakage or heating?

In any case, the increased temperatures in modern data centres constitutes an increased risk. If the cooling system fails, today’s high-powered data centre server racks will quickly rise to higher temperatures, increasing the risk of asset breakdowns – and of fire. [caption id="attachment_14372" align="alignnone" width="700"]FM Approvals data centre halls - below floor double tier cable trays fire test[/caption]

High-pressure water mist remains effective

Fortunately, the wide variety of cooling technologies and general design principles doesn’t have to give the fire safety designer sleepless nights: In a changing data centre industry, high-pressure water mist systems remain a reliable method for suppressing data centre fires. When activated, a high-pressure water mist system emits a fine mist of water droplets through a localised section of nozzles. The droplets attack two elements of the fire triangle, removing both oxygen and heat and combining the suppression effect of gas and traditional sprinkler systems. In data centre applications, high-pressure water mist has several benefits over gas or sprinklers. It uses less water, reducing damage to data centre assets. Only the nozzles in the affected area are activated, further reducing water consumption. And because the system uses only clean water, it is harmless to humans, and excess water can quickly be removed after a fire, shortening downtime. The physical properties of high-pressure water mist systems mean that they are capable of handling any type of data centre fire. This applies to all commercially available solutions that conform to the FM 5560 Approval Standard for Water Mist Systems (Appendix M and N), and some manufacturers go beyond that basic requirement. The nozzles of the SEM-SAFE® system from Danfoss Fire Safety, for example, have been tested and approved for higher nozzle release temperatures, allowing for an increase in the ambient temperature within the data halls. This reduces demand on the cooling system and minimises cooling system energy consumption significantly.  As new cooling methods introduce these challenges in fire protection, whether that be from increase air velocities, liquid cooling, or higher temperatures, Danfoss Fire Safety works with third parties to evaluate its solutions, such as tests from FM 5560 Data Centre tests (Appendix M and N) and additional fire tests with RISE Fire Research in Norway.

Additional benefits with future-proof technology

In addition to reliable fire suppression, high-pressure water mist systems provide other benefits to the fire system designer, installer, and data centre operator: The small pipe size and compact pump units typically used make the solutions easy to integrate and install. And their low water and reduction in raw materials makes them a good match for clients looking to reduce their climate footprint. You may find yourself faced with many different rack space and cooling system designs, and with the need to design and install fire protection systems that deliver satisfactory performance for all of them. High-pressure water mist has been an excellent choice for fire extinguishing systems in data centres for years. As the industry evolves to tackle new challenges and client demands, the technology remains the key to ensuring adequate fire safety. [caption id="attachment_14374" align="alignnone" width="700"]SEM-SAFE® high-pressure water mist Danfoss Fire Safety[/caption]

About the author

[caption id="attachment_14376" align="alignnone" width="230"] Lewis Oxley
Regional Manager, Europe and Global Manager Data Centres, Danfoss Fire Safety[/caption] lewis.oxley@danfoss.com Click here to connect with Lewis on LinkedIn. Having worked with water mist for the UK Government and in full turnkey installation, Lewis Oxley is now with Danfoss Fire Safety, working to accelerate the adoption of innovative solutions that protect lives and property in data centres and elsewhere. With nearly 20 years of industry experience, he has been involved in hundreds of fire safety projects. Click here to find more information about fire safety in data centres. Click here to read our case story.

Connect with Danfoss Fire Safety on LinkedIn

[caption id="attachment_14378" align="alignnone" width="237"] Connect with Danfoss Fire Safety on LinkedIn[/caption]

We recently welcomed our valued customers from India at our headquarters in Odense to talk about our SEM-SAFE® high-pressure water mist system and how this solution could benefit the transformation of the region’s infrastructure in India. The day left Poul Harder, our General Manager, with positive impressions: “It was a pleasure to welcome a team of key people from the Afcons Group at our HQ in Odense, Denmark. This meeting provided an opportunity for exciting and enriching discussions about the future technology of protecting road and railway tunnels with a joint approach, meeting fire and life safety as well as carbon footprint demands for infrastructure projects.” During their stay, they visited our facilities, including the Training and Development Centre, where we showcased the SEM-SAFE® portfolio. This included demonstrations of the pump unit, fire hose reel cabinet, pipes and fittings, and various nozzle applications. The focus was on the fact that when it comes to the fire protection of road, railway, and metro tunnels, high-pressure water mist is the technology of choice. Read more about the key benefits and why high-pressure water mist technology is the ideal solution for protecting tunnels against fire in our brochure: Fire protection for tunnels with SEM-SAFE (danfoss.com) The Danfoss Fire Safety A/S team, represented by Poul, Qusai Alasad, Lasse Bølling, Alexander Dahlgaard, and Bjørn Houlberg, would like to thank AFCONS Infrastructure Limited - A Shapoorji Pallonji Group Company and their representatives, including Mr. MALLIKHARJUNARAO K N, Executive Vice President – Projects, Mr. Vinay M M, Asst. General Manager – Planning, and Mr. Abhijit Parihar, Senior Manager – Business Development, for facilitating such a great collaboration and insightful discussions during their visit. If you have any questions regarding the fire protection of tunnels, please contact Qusai Alasad, our Global Category Manager for Tunnels, at qusai@danfoss.com.

Exciting last week at Danfoss Fire Safety headquarters in Odense, Denmark, hosting DEKRA!  By combining both companies extensive experience in the fire safety industry, the meeting offered a valuable opportunity to exchange insights on the SEM-SAFE® high-pressure water mist fire protection solution. Training and Development Centre was given by Thomas Helmle, Business Development Manager – Germany. The tour highlighted, among other things, the benefits of our key products, including the pump unit, section valves, nozzles, fire hose reel cabinet, and pipes and fittings. Danfoss would like to thank the DEKRA Team for their visit. Read more about the key benefits of the SEM-SAFE® high-pressure water mist here: Danfoss Fire Safety Connect with Thomas on LinkedIn or write to thomas.helmle@danfoss.com for any project inquiries or further information on our solutions.

This week, we had the pleasure of visiting the hospital alongside representatives from Germany, including Asklepios, UKGM MARBURG, and Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin. The arrangement was facilitated by The Trade Council of Denmark in Germany, with the objective of sharing knowledge about innovative Danish technologies for healthcare facilities as well as exploring future collaboration with stakeholders in Germany Our own Peter Mühlendorph Knudsen and Oliver Bradley showcased the benefits of our SEM-SAFE® high-pressure water mist system, emphasizing its application in areas like the sterilization centre and the diabetes centre. We would like to thank The Trade Council of Denmark in Germany, Ingela Maria Aliwell and Olaf Meyer for facilitating the meetings between the relevant stakeholders and experts, such as SEMI STAAL, EFFIMAT, Gibotech A/S and Trifork. For support with fire protection of healthcare facilities, please contact: In Germany: Thomas Helmle at thomas.helmle@danfoss.com In Denmark: Oliver Bradley at oli@danfoss.com

Danfoss Fire Safety is a lead sponsor at the 2024 Society of Fire Protection Engineers (SFPE) Fire Safety Conference & Expo on Performance-Based Design in Copenhagen 17-19 April 2024. More than 300 global experts will exchange knowledge on current and future trends in fire regulatory systems for performance-based design. Danfoss Fire Safety will focus on the benefits of SEM-SAFE® high-pressure water mist solution for key applications such as mass- timber buildings, heritage, tunnels, and parking garages with electric vehicles, to name just a few. If you are at the conference, don't miss out on our insightful sessions: April 17: "A Performance Based Design Regulation: The Italian Fire Safety Code" by Piergiacomo Cancelliere, PhD, FPE, and ANTONIO TERIO, Regional Sales Manager, Danfoss Fire Safety. April 19: "Performance-based Fire Safety Design Using High-pressure Water Mist Systems in Tunnels" by Lei Jiang, PhD, from RISE Fire Research, Norway, and Henrik Bygbjerg, Director Fire Safety and Aftermarket, Danfoss Fire Safety.

Join us at the 12^th International Tunnel Safety and Ventilation Conference in Graz, Austria, from 16-18 April 2024.

The event will feature presentations on a wide range of hot topics, including sustainability, evacuation CFD simulation, risk analysis, ventilation, and fire safety. One of the highlights will be a technical visit to the Koralm Tunnel, providing a unique opportunity to observe parts of the technical equipment of the 32.9-km railway tunnel. Danfoss Fire Safety has successfully completed a full-scale fire test for tunnels with fire loads of up to 250 MW, witnessed by UL. Visit us at booth No. 27 in the exhibition area to learn more about our test results and tunnel projects from Marton Horvath, our Business Development Manager and stand representative. Click here to read more about the conference agenda. The event is endorsed by the International Tunnelling and Underground Space Association (ITA). For any questions or meeting inquiries, please contact Marton via email at mhr@danfoss.com. Read our brochure about fire safety in tunnels here. We look forward to meeting you at the exhibition.

We invite you to explore the latest publication “Transitioning to a sustainable healthcare sector” by Healthcare Denmark.Delve into best practices, interesting solutions, and strategies across the Danish health system towards a more sustainable healthcare sector, while keeping a high quality.

[caption id="attachment_14083" align="alignnone" width="600"] Healthcare Denmark “Transitioning to a sustainable healthcare sector”[/caption] This transition can be done only when companies become innovative in the technologies, products, and solutions they deliver. Danfoss Fire Safety is proud to be part of this transition offering innovative fire protection solution for hospitals. Learn in the publishing why our SEM-SAFE^® high-pressure water mist system has been chosen to protect the Aarhus University Hospital, one of the largest hospitals in Denmark. You can also learn about how the Aarhus University Hospital saves 11 million euros with the SEM-SAFE^® high-pressure water mist system here. We look forward to starting a dialogue on the topic of fire protection solutions for hospitals: contact Antonio Terio, our Global Category Manager Healthcare at ate@danfoss.com. Learn more about Healthcare Denmark here. Read more about our news and events here.