October 30, 2006—Active Power’s recently introduced CoolAir puts a different spin on UPS power, says the company.
CoolAir DC, based on Active Power’s revolutionary Thermal & Compressed Air Energy Storage (TACAS) technology, provides an extended runtime battery-free energy storage solution for three- phase Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) applications. It represents the only minute-for-minute alternative to lead-acid batteries for all critical operations with none of the inherent problems typically associated with batteries.
The unit consists of 4,500-psi compressed air cylinders attached to a 1,300-degree thermal storage unit that heats the air before passing it through an expansion turbine. The 100kVA system can provide a maximum of 80 kilowatts of power for up to 15 minutes. Because the turbine takes a few seconds to come online, the unit includes a small flywheel to provide bridge power. Both the air tanks and turbine can be stored outside the data center to save space. Cooling is an added benefit.
“Backup power doesn’t do any good if you can’t keep the servers cool,” says CoolAir President and CEO Jim Clishem.
For more information, see the Web site.
