Definition & Working Principle
Air Dry Coolers are the core heat exchange equipment in free cooling systems. They utilize ambient air to cool circulating fluids (typically water or glycol solutions) through indirect heat exchange. The cooling process follows this flow:
High-temperature fluid passes through finned coil tubes → Ambient air removes heat via forced convection → The cooled fluid returns to the data center for recirculation.
Technology Classification
Direct Type: The ambient air directly cools the circulating fluid. This design is simple but affected by air quality. (e.g., Boyi SG Series with glycol circulation)
Indirect Type: Uses a plate heat exchanger to isolate outdoor air from the internal circulation loop, avoiding contamination. (e.g., Boyi GF Series with pure water + plate exchanger)
Operation Modes: The system automatically switches modes based on climate conditions:Full Free Cooling (compressors off),Hybrid Mode (partial compressor operation),Full Mechanical Cooling
Annual Energy Saving Rate 25%-55%: Take Beijing Agricultural Bank Data Center as an example, the adoption of Boyi's dry-cooler solution (chilled water 12/18℃) improves COP by up to 37 times compared with the traditional unit, and the annual energy saving rate reaches 38%.
Extension of natural cooling time: Pneumatic heat pipe technology expands the applicable temperature zone to 5-30℃, with the annual natural cooling time exceeding 60% in the north and 80% in the south.
PUE optimization: actual case PUE is as low as 1.16 (Narra1 data center in the Philippines), and up to 1.15 for the western smart computing cluster in China.
Completely air-cooled heat dissipation: no need for cooling water, comparing with water-cooled unit (1000RT water cooler consumes 255 tons of water per day), annual water saving is over 90,000 tons.
Simplified maintenance: no water treatment, no scale cleaning, 30% lower operation and maintenance costs.
Rapid Response: Boyl units start the compressor 30 seconds after power failure and reach 100% load in 300 seconds.
Space Adaptability: Modularized design supports 150m long connecting pipe, 60m high drop installation (e.g. AIT NetEnergy solution), and can be deployed on the roof, on the ground, or in a container.
Zero Carbon Emission Operation: Compressor shutdown in natural cooling mode reduces carbon emission by more than 40%.
Compliance with green standards: meets ASHRAE 90.1-2010 and other international energy-efficiency standards, helping data centers meet carbon quota.
Structural Innovation: Boyi integrates the dry cooler with the chiller unit, eliminating the space and control complexity caused by externally mounted dry coolers. Plug-and-play with on-site power connection.
Cost Optimization: Reduces installation footprint by 30% and simplifies piping layout.
Capillary-Driven Circulation: Boyi’s XFreeCooling technology activates free cooling with a temperature difference as low as 5°C, bridging the energy gap during transitional seasons. Saves 26% more energy compared to refrigerant pump systems.
Variable Frequency Control: Compressors start sequentially with ultra-low starting current (below full load), minimizing grid impact.
Passive Evaporative Cooling Membrane: In the Narra1 Data Center (Philippines), a specialized membrane enables pump-free heat exchange with a temperature delta of 14°C, achieving a PUE as low as 1.16.
Liquid Cooling Coupling: Boyi’s plate-type liquid cooling system combined with dry coolers delivers PUE < 1.1 and WUE = 0 (zero water consumption).
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