Even though most electronic gadgets and equipment run on AC power today, DC power supply still plays a very important role in the industry, especially where electronic circuits are involved. When you consider server rooms and comms rooms, DC power supply becomes an essential part of the infrastructure.
Essentially, DC power supply may comprise various circuits that are used to supply different voltage levels to the different types of electronic equipment used in server rooms. This may include high voltage dc supply as well.
The power source may be required to supply standard, regulated or unregulated voltage to the devices that run on DC power. Let us look at a few salient features of DC power supply to help you understand what they are all about.
Converters
Converters prove to be extremely important for DC power supply systems. When you are considering powering up the required equipment in your server room, you will have different voltage requirements. Based on these requirements, you may need to step up or step down the supply voltage.
If you are directly planning to convert AC power to the required DC voltage, you will have to look for AC/DC converters. However, if you are after stepping up or stepping down DC voltage from a DC supply, you will require a DC/DC converter. Converters are nothing but DC circuits that are designed to offer the required DC output voltage.
DC power distribution schemes
There are various schemes of DC power distribution. However, the most popular are seen to be the 480Vac to 48Vdc Power Distribution scheme and the 480Vac-575Vdc-48Vdc Power Distribution scheme. Both require isolated double conversion UPSs, isolated PDUs and isolated PSUs to convert 480 volts DC to 12 volt DC to be used by the server.
While the first mentioned scheme has been found to achieve an efficiency range of 85 to 90%, the second scheme can show an efficiency range of 80 to 85%.
Cabling requirements
When you consider server rooms, you will need to consider cabling requirements. Whether it is for the server racks or for connecting other equipment, cabling is an important consideration and should be planned carefully.
Some of the required cables include Cat 5, Cat 6, Cat 7 variants, coaxial, voice and VGA cables, and other variants. A number of other accessories, like patch leads, switches and hubs, patch panels, floor and ceiling pods, etc. come into play when you are planning the cabling for DC power.
Cooling
Whether you are considering DC power supply or AC supply, cooling offers to be an important factor for server rooms. Proper cooling measures are required to ensure that DC systems run without any issues, showing you maximum efficiency and a longer life-time.
Good use of DC power
The internet and server rooms have given rise to an ever increasing requirement for DC power. When you consider efficiency, longevity, equipment cost and smooth operation, a number of factors need to be planned correctly to show you such results.
It is a very good idea to work with experienced and reliable service providers like Mercury Power to ensure you see the best use of DC power.
Daryl has bee working with DC power systems, server rooms and comms room design for a long time. Here he shares some salient features of DC power systems.