LG Electronics signed a three-party memorandum of understanding with GS Engineering & Construction and Green Revolution Cooling on 13 October to develop immersion cooling for AI data centres, extending its work beyond air and liquid cooling, Chosunbiz reported. The partners plan to test the technology and develop standard designs for cooling equipment and the buildings that house it.
Key points
- LG plans to contribute cooling technologies and operating data, then build solutions around jointly developed designs.
- GS E&C plans a testbed to check equipment placement, structural loads, piping and power connections.
- GRC will contribute tanks for immersion cooling and the associated control technology, and work to raise the system’s performance.
GS E&C plans building designs and a testbed
The agreement was signed at GS E&C’s headquarters in Jongno-gu, Seoul. Attendees included Oh Se-gi, a vice president at LG, and Choi Dong-hoon, director and head of GRC Korea. A vice president responsible for GS E&C’s Future Technology Institute also attended. The companies plan to examine whether immersion cooling can be used reliably in AI data centres.
GS E&C will develop standard architectural designs and operate a testbed. Its checks will cover the position of immersion equipment, the weight borne by the building, and connections to piping and power. The Asia Business Daily described the testbed as a proof-of-concept facility and reported that the partners intend to develop an integrated solution for data centres using immersion cooling.
Immersion cooling removes heat by placing electronic devices, including graphics processing units and central processing units, directly into non-conductive fluid. Installing the equipment in a data centre requires provision for building structure, floor loads, pipework, electricity and maintenance space as well as the cooling system, Chosunbiz reported.
The partners plan to assess the technology’s performance and practical applicability alongside its reliability. GS E&C’s proposed testbed will check how the equipment fits within the building designs it is developing. The work covered by the memorandum is development and testing of the proposed system.
GRC supplies tanks for LG’s cooling designs
GRC will contribute immersion tanks and their control technology. It also plans to use data gathered during installation, operation and maintenance to help improve the system’s performance. LG will provide air, liquid and immersion cooling technologies, together with existing operating data, and build cooling solutions based on the partners’ standard designs.
The planned designs bring together different parts of a data centre installation. GRC’s tanks hold the immersed equipment, while GS E&C will examine where those tanks can sit and how they connect to the building’s services. LG’s role includes developing the cooling solution that uses the jointly designed arrangement.
LG already has chillers that produce chilled water and fan wall units that supply cool air for AI data centres. The company is also developing coolant distribution units and cold plates for liquid cooling. Cold plates draw heat directly from semiconductor chips, while immersion cooling places electronic devices in fluid.
LG plans to use the collaboration to broaden its cooling range across air, liquid and immersion technologies, The Asia Business Daily reported. The partners’ proposed tests cover building loads and connections as well as the operation of the cooling equipment.
LG’s chiller agreement covers more than 5GW
The immersion memorandum follows an LG chiller supply agreement covering more than 5GW of AI data centres, AI Affairs previously reported. The chiller agreement concerns equipment supply. The memorandum with GS E&C and GRC concerns joint development, standard designs and testing of immersion cooling.
AI Affairs has also reported LG’s plans for a 150 billion won US chiller plant and Korean expansion. Separately, the company unveiled a modular cooling system for AI data centres.
