Refrigeration cooling.... I've been thinking about this.
I know there's two basic problems with using refrigeration: condensation and compressor strength.
Any time you drop a component temperature below ambient temperature, you increase the risk of condensation. Even if you apply the cooling directly to the chip, it can still cause condensation on the back of the chip, or the back of the board. But I think I have a solution.
An actual freezer. Most modern freezers are "self defrosting". The idea behind self defrosting freezers is that a heater element melts the frost from the cooling element. The water is then drained away. But each time frost forms on the element, then melted and drained, leaves less and less humidity in the air inside the freezer. This is also the same general principle which dehumidifiers use. In combination with an air tight design, you can remove virtually all humidity from the air inside a computer case and then run the computer at sub zero temperatures without condensation despite wild temperature differences.
An air tight design would have to be absolutely air tight. The motherboard would have to be completely isolated in a hermetically sealed ice box. I thought of running all cables through the insulated walls to the rest of the case, which would house a second board with all the connectors for peripherals. It would be a freezer inside the computer case housing only the motherboard and whatever is directly mounted to it. All cables would be run though the walls and sealed.
After the motherboard, gpu, memory, and all wiring is installed in the freezer, it would probably have to run several hours to remove the humidity before you could run the computer itself. In addition, it would have to be a pretty strong freezer compressor to handle the heat generated by a motherboard/CPU/GPU/memory. It would have to be more along the lines of an HVAC or automotive A/C compressor, than a common freezer. (a large, bulky device) All else would be outside the freezer, so once installed, you should never have to open the freezer again.
I envision an automotive A/C compressor with a strong electric motor attached. This would probably have to be mounted in a separate box outside the whole computer case with insulated, flexible hoses leading into the freezer box itself. It would also consume a lot of power. But if you're looking to O/C your computer to the levels requiring refrigerant, you're probably not concerned with the electric bill. That would be like buying a supercar while worrying about gas prices.
The noise would be another concern. I don't know how I could reduce noise effectively while maintaining the ventilation a compressor needs. And the heat generated by a strong compressor is enough to heat a small room in the dead of winter. It would need plenty of ventilation, which runs counter to noise reduction. There's a good reason why most HVAC units sit outside the house.
Naturally, the water runoff would be handled the same as a standard refrigerator handles it. Simple containment and evaporation.
The idea of mounting cooling lines directly to chips has the standard problem - you can't do it until you've removed the humidity from the air. There's several ways to deal with this, but I prefer to use a radiator design with a glycol pump that circulates super cooled glycol - with the pump working only after the humidity is removed. This would need humidity sensor that controls the pump and/or valve. A radiator design would have an extra advantage of cooling the chips directly as well as the air and board in general. And glycol can soak up a lot more heat than air - providing more thermal stability even if the system is overwhelmed for short periods of time.
TL;DR
So here's what I'm thinking so far: a hermetically and thermally sealed freezer with a dehumidifier. Kind of a hybrid between an HVAC and a standard refrigerator. All cables sealed through the walls with the PSU and all other components not directly mounted on the motherboard cabled outside the freezer. And a humidity sensor, radiator, and pump providing direct chip cooling as well as a fan to cool the air inside the freezer.
Right now, it's all very abstract. What are your thoughts and concerns? Any better ideas?
I know there's two basic problems with using refrigeration: condensation and compressor strength.
Any time you drop a component temperature below ambient temperature, you increase the risk of condensation. Even if you apply the cooling directly to the chip, it can still cause condensation on the back of the chip, or the back of the board. But I think I have a solution.
An actual freezer. Most modern freezers are "self defrosting". The idea behind self defrosting freezers is that a heater element melts the frost from the cooling element. The water is then drained away. But each time frost forms on the element, then melted and drained, leaves less and less humidity in the air inside the freezer. This is also the same general principle which dehumidifiers use. In combination with an air tight design, you can remove virtually all humidity from the air inside a computer case and then run the computer at sub zero temperatures without condensation despite wild temperature differences.
An air tight design would have to be absolutely air tight. The motherboard would have to be completely isolated in a hermetically sealed ice box. I thought of running all cables through the insulated walls to the rest of the case, which would house a second board with all the connectors for peripherals. It would be a freezer inside the computer case housing only the motherboard and whatever is directly mounted to it. All cables would be run though the walls and sealed.
After the motherboard, gpu, memory, and all wiring is installed in the freezer, it would probably have to run several hours to remove the humidity before you could run the computer itself. In addition, it would have to be a pretty strong freezer compressor to handle the heat generated by a motherboard/CPU/GPU/memory. It would have to be more along the lines of an HVAC or automotive A/C compressor, than a common freezer. (a large, bulky device) All else would be outside the freezer, so once installed, you should never have to open the freezer again.
I envision an automotive A/C compressor with a strong electric motor attached. This would probably have to be mounted in a separate box outside the whole computer case with insulated, flexible hoses leading into the freezer box itself. It would also consume a lot of power. But if you're looking to O/C your computer to the levels requiring refrigerant, you're probably not concerned with the electric bill. That would be like buying a supercar while worrying about gas prices.
The noise would be another concern. I don't know how I could reduce noise effectively while maintaining the ventilation a compressor needs. And the heat generated by a strong compressor is enough to heat a small room in the dead of winter. It would need plenty of ventilation, which runs counter to noise reduction. There's a good reason why most HVAC units sit outside the house.
Naturally, the water runoff would be handled the same as a standard refrigerator handles it. Simple containment and evaporation.
The idea of mounting cooling lines directly to chips has the standard problem - you can't do it until you've removed the humidity from the air. There's several ways to deal with this, but I prefer to use a radiator design with a glycol pump that circulates super cooled glycol - with the pump working only after the humidity is removed. This would need humidity sensor that controls the pump and/or valve. A radiator design would have an extra advantage of cooling the chips directly as well as the air and board in general. And glycol can soak up a lot more heat than air - providing more thermal stability even if the system is overwhelmed for short periods of time.
TL;DR
So here's what I'm thinking so far: a hermetically and thermally sealed freezer with a dehumidifier. Kind of a hybrid between an HVAC and a standard refrigerator. All cables sealed through the walls with the PSU and all other components not directly mounted on the motherboard cabled outside the freezer. And a humidity sensor, radiator, and pump providing direct chip cooling as well as a fan to cool the air inside the freezer.
Right now, it's all very abstract. What are your thoughts and concerns? Any better ideas?
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