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Data Center Cooling Solutions

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Protect AI data center cooling performance, uptime, and liquid cooling reliability

As artificial intelligence (AI) rack densities accelerate beyond the limits of traditional air cooling, liquid cooling architectures are becoming foundational to next-generation data centers. With direct-to-chip and GPU cooling in high-density computing environments, cooling water quality is increasingly important to long-term system performance and reliability. The consequences of getting it wrong compound quickly. 

 

Cold plate microchannels are highly sensitive to particulate carryover, so the cleanliness baseline set at commissioning shapes the loop's operating life. Inadequate flushing leaves debris that propagates once the system goes online. Meanwhile, hydronic loops and heat exchangers degrade silently under poor water management as scaling and buildup erode heat transfer efficiency over time. Thermal transfer efficiency is critical for controlling energy consumption and supporting optimized Power Usage Effectiveness (PUE). And because these architectures increasingly rely on deionized (DI) water, dissolved gases can lead to corrosion, scaling, and conductivity issues. 

 

Getting these factors right is far easier when filtration is integrated at the design stage, and that's where we work alongside your team. 

A data center cooling solution for each application

Find the right solution for your stage of operation. Solutions are organized by application stage, from facility water systems to secondary cooling loops serving rack liquid cooling infrastructure. This way, you can navigate directly to what matters for your operation. Each solution is part of the broader industrial filtration and separation solutions portfolio.

System flushing and commissioning

Bring your data center to full thermal performance faster with the help of the right filter selection from day one. 

New-construction facility water systems can carry pipe scale, weld slag, construction particulate, and biofilm precursors that propagate into Coolant Distribution Units (CDUs), cold plates, and heat exchangers the moment flow begins. 

High Flow Filter Cartridges have a high surface area and large flow rate capabilities to handle the heavy particulate loads characteristic of new-construction water without driving differential pressure into shutdown ranges. Additionally, the absolute rated nature of these filters ensures that you have 99.9% of the particulates of concern removed. 

NB Filter Bags and DF Filter Bags are more cost-effective filtration solutions but still have a relatively high flow rate and dirt holding capacity. 

Getting the right combination specified early is something we partner with you on. 

Cooling distribution unit and cold plate filtration

Get filter selection right at the CDU design stage, and cold plate performance will remain strong throughout the unit's operating life. 

At 100-500 µm, a single oversized particle reaching the plate can block flow paths, drive pressure drops, and reduce heat dissipation in the affected channel. A 25 µm nominal filter can pass particles larger than its rating, while absolute-rated filtration enables defined particle retention verified at the rated micron size. Centralized CDUs capable of supporting greater than 10 MW of cooling capacity are increasingly being deployed to support high-density AI infrastructure. 

Expensive, nominally rated metal screens that need manual cleaning are often used today. Another option is to consider a less expensive, disposable filtration solution which avoids the labor of cleaning metal screens, while providing a faster, more efficient change out. 

Consider an absolute rated cartridge filter, such as a 10” High Flow Filter, or a less expensive, smaller-footprint option, such as a Micro-Klean RT Filter. 

Facility water loop and heat exchanger protection

Keep heat exchangers performing at design capacity for years to come. 

While expensive anti-scalant and biocides are often used to reduce scale and biological issues in facility water, adding a layer of filtration is a necessary additional step to ensure you maximize your system's thermal transfer performance. NB Filter Bags or DF Filter Bags are cost-effective solutions, and a High Flow Filter Cartridge with its large surface area, high flow rates, and absolute rated level of performance can help support your system for years to come. 

The right bag filtration on the facility water side reduces particulate carryover and preserves the heat exchanger surfaces that drive cooling performance. Because filtration depends on your specific flow rates and contaminant load, we work alongside your team to help you design the right protection into your facility's water and heat exchanger systems from the start. 

Filtration capabilities for data center cooling systems

Get consistent performance across four interrelated capabilities that elevate data center cooling.

Deliver predictable cold plate protection in every loop and cycle. Cold plate microchannels rely on tight clearance geometries, typically 100–500 µm, to achieve efficient heat transfer. At those dimensions, a single oversized particle that reaches the plate blocks a flow path, causes a pressure drop increase in the affected channel, and reduces downstream heat dissipation. 

 

That’s where absolute-rated filtration makes the difference.

 

Nominal-rated filtration permits a percentage of particles larger than the stated rating to pass; absolute-rated retention is verified by standardized testing protocols and offers defined particle retention at the rated micron size. 

 

Absolute-rated high flow filtration solutions engineered for cooling water are your technical baseline. 

Move big volumes with confidence. Data center facility water systems operate at flow rates and volumes that exceed the practical service envelope of conventional cartridge filtration formats.  

 

High-flow cartridge formats and bag filtration are engineered to handle these conditions while maintaining acceptable differential pressure and filter service life. The right balance of particle retention at the rated micron size, flow rate per element, and contaminant-holding capacity determines how often filters must be changed and how reliably the loop maintains design flow.  

 

The High Flow Filter is designed for steady-state CDU loop service and large-volume facility water systems where conventional cartridge formats reach service-life limits too quickly. NB Filter Bag and DF Filter Bag are well-suited to the high solids loads characteristic of commissioning, post-construction operation, and ongoing hydronic loop maintenance. 

In liquid-cooled data centers, high purity water treatment helps maintain stable conductivity and reduce dissolved ionic contaminants that can accelerate corrosion, scaling, and fouling in sensitive cooling loops. 

 

Dissolved gases can lead to conductivity, corrosion, and scaling issues that degrade cold plates and CDU performance over time. Dissolved gases, particularly oxygen and carbon dioxide, accelerate corrosion of copper- and aluminum-wetted surfaces and shift loop conductivity as they interact with system materials. 

 

The Liqui-Cel EXF Membrane Contactor is the technology platform for this capability. The same dissolved-gas removal capability is deployed at scale in semiconductor ultrapure water (UPW) production and power-generation steam-cycle applications, giving you access to a separation technology with a track record in demanding continuous-duty water treatment.

Selecting filtration based on flow rate, retention rating, contaminant-holding capacity, and service-life fit is a process-engineering decision with a measurable effect on uptime, thermal performance, and refurbishment intervals. 

Filtration products for data center cooling applications

Explore a focused portfolio of filtration and separation products for every stage of data center cooling, so you can equip your operation for the long run. 

High Flow Filter

Built for high-flow CDU loop service and large-volume facility water systems, the High Flow Filter offers high flow rates per element with low initial pressure drop and extended service life, and 99.9% absolute rated performance to help keep continuous-duty cooling-water operation running smoothly. 

NB Filter Bag

The NB Filter Bag offers high contaminant-holding capacity for high-particulate-load conditions characteristic of system flushing, commissioning, and post-construction operation, absorbing contaminant load without driving differential pressure to shutdown ranges. 

DF Filter Bag

The DF Filter Bag combines defined particle retention with high contaminant-holding capacity, helping with ongoing maintenance and heat exchanger protection. It complements the NB Filter Bag for a flexible, application-tuned approach with 60% more surface area. 

Liqui-Cel Membrane Contactor

The Liqui-Cel Membrane Contactor can reduce dissolved oxygen and carbon dioxide without phase change or chemical addition. It is deployed at scale in semiconductor UPW and power-generation steam-cycle applications. 

Product links on this page currently direct to Solventum.com. Product information will soon be available on Thermofisher.com as part of our ongoing integration.

Frequently asked questions

Data center cooling filtration is the application of particulate removal, graded-density filtration, and dissolved gas and ion control across the thermal management water loop from initial system flushing and commissioning through ongoing CDU, cold plate, and facility water loops. Unlike general industrial water filtration, it addresses the contamination sensitivity of microchannel cold plates and the water-quality requirements of closed-loop cooling architectures that demand DI-grade fluid.

Cold plate microchannels, typically 100–500 µm, are sensitive to oversized particulate matter. Absolute-rated filtration offers defined particle retention verified at the rated micron size, whereas nominal-rated filtration permits a percentage of larger particles to pass. In practical terms, the difference is between predictable cold plate protection or intermittent microchannel blockage events that drive pressure drop, reduce heat dissipation, and compound to degrade thermal performance over the CDU's operating life.

New-construction facility water systems carry pipe scale, weld slag, construction particulate, and biofilm precursors that must be removed before the system goes online. During start-up and commissioning, the various hydronic loops, such as the facility water loop and the secondary CDU loops, are isolated from one another, so debris in one loop does not propagate into the others. Bag filtration and high flow format filtration designed for high particulate loads can accelerate clean-down to design water-quality targets, supporting faster start-up to full thermal performance. 

 

Connect with a specialist for application-specific guidance.

DI water is increasingly used as the cooling fluid in liquid-cooled data center architectures because dissolved ions drive corrosion, scaling, and conductivity issues that degrade cold plate and CDU performance. DI water production for cooling-loop service typically combines ion-removal technology with membrane contactor degassing to reduce dissolved oxygen and carbon dioxide, which can accelerate corrosion of copper- and aluminum-wetted surfaces. The Liqui-Cel Membrane Contactor is a separation technology designed for this application. 

Filter selection depends on the application stage and operating conditions. Bag filtration handles the high-particulate-load conditions characteristic of commissioning and ongoing hydronic loop maintenance. The High Flow Filter is designed for a variety of situations, including facility water and CDU water loop filtration, where flow rates exceed conventional cartridge formats. Final selection depends on flow rate, target particle retention, water chemistry, and service-life expectations.

 

Connect with a specialist for application-specific guidance.

Related resources

Discover filtration and separation resources

Process engineers, design engineers, and quality managers can access application-specific resources, including brochures, technical data sheets, and case studies. Browse resources by industry to support informed selection and process planning.

Optimize data center cooling and performance

Intended use of the products mentioned on this page vary. For specific intended use statements, please refer to the Instructions for Use for the product.