PEZY/ExaScaler take top three spots using 3M immersion coolant
ST. PAUL, Minn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
PEZY Computing, a Japan-based, microprocessor company, earned the top
three rankings on the Green500 list, using a 3M™ Fluorinert™ Electronic
Liquid in ExaScaler Inc.’s immersion cooling process. The Green500
is a biannual ranking of the most energy-efficient supercomputers in the
world. The triple win indicates growing progress and adoption in the
field of immersion cooling with engineered dielectric fluids and its
potential to transform the high performance computing (HPC) industry
with step-change improvements in energy efficiency and compute
performance.
This Smart News Release features multimedia. View the full release here:
http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20150922005240/en/
One of PEZY/ExaScaler's Green500 winning immersion cooling systems cooled with a 3M Fluorinert dielectric fluid. (Photo credit: PEZY)
Critical to an HPC’s Green500 ranking is its cooling system because
managing the massive amount of heat generated by supercomputers requires
a lot of energy. It’s a problem that’s followed HPC since its origins,
and over the years, several methods – utilizing air, water, mineral oil
and dielectric fluids – have been introduced and reimagined several
times over. Immersion cooling in engineered dielectric fluids is proving
beneficial with its cooling capacity and corresponding energy savings;
it also creates a reduction in physical space and mechanical
infrastructure – liberating companies from large server rooms and
expensive cooling hardware.
“Existing cooling technologies have significant limitations for HPC. Air
cooling is constrained by cooling efficiency and energy consumption. Oil
cooling, although energy efficient, raises concerns with handling and
maintenance. In contrast, this immersion cooling system has advantages
with both serviceability and cooling efficiency. I expect that immersion
cooling technology has high capability to lead and develop next
generation HPC,” said Motoaki Saito, CEO at PEZY Computing as well as
Co-CEO at ExaScaler. “3M Fluorinert is the best liquid to realize the
tremendous advantages of liquid immersion cooling. I have confidence in
its advantages, including high dielectric strength, low evaporation loss
with a high boiling point, and high cooling performance that allows for
high density in volume designs,” Saito continued.
To make the top rankings on Green500, HPC systems must also deliver
compute performance. All three of PEZY’s systems broke the previous 6
gigaflops-per-watt (GFLOPS/W) threshold, with the top-ranking “Shoubu”
from RIKEN coming in at an impressive 7.03 GFLOPS. Immersion cooling
helped them surpass previous benchmarks in processing speed and power
without thermal issues limiting performance.
A 3M Fluorinert electronic liquid, a dielectric heat transfer fluid, was
used in all three of the winning systems’ cooling processes. The fluid
is part of a family of fully-fluorinated compounds known as
perfluorocarbons that have been in use for over 50 years in demanding
military and aerospace applications. They offer a wide range of boiling
points, low toxicity, non-flammability and Zero Ozone Depletion
Potential (ODP). 3M Fluorinert does have a long atmospheric lifetime and
a high global warming potential (GWP). However, when it’s used in closed
systems – such as PEZY/ExaScaler’s – emissions can be managed and
controlled.
The age of the energy efficient HPC has arrived and PEZY/ExaScaler has
recognized that immersion cooling will clearly lead the way. As
organizations in and outside of the HPC industry consider their growing
need to aggregate computational capacity, energy efficiency becomes a
huge factor in improving performance and reducing environmental impact
and operational costs. 3M produces a whole family of dielectric heat
transfer fluids for this application, including the environmentally
sustainable 3M™ Novec™ fluids. These breakthrough dielectric fluids are
non-ozone depleting, have low GWPs, and are low in toxicity. Many of the
leaders in the HPC industry are using Novec fluids to solve their
thermal management issues in a variety of ways, including full immersion
with single-phase heat transfer and two-phase immersion cooling. With
the ability to significantly reduce energy consumption compared to
traditional air cooling, 3M dielectric heat transfer fluids can help
PEZY/ExaScaler and other leaders in the HPC industry achieve even bigger
breakthroughs in the near future. More at www.mmm.com/datacenter.
About 3M
At 3M, we apply science in collaborative ways to
improve lives daily. With $32 billion in sales, our 90,000 employees
connect with customers all around the world. Learn more about 3M’s
creative solutions to the world’s problems at www.3M.com
or on Twitter @3M
or @3MNewsroom.
3M, Fluorinert and Novec are trademarks of 3M Company.
All other
trademarks listed herein are owned by their respective companies.
View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20150922005240/en/
Source: 3M