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COMPUTER INDUSTRY
Five Application Scenarios & Selection Parameters
Scenario 1: GPU Graphics Cards, Vapor Chamber (VC) Capillary Wicks — Foamed Copper (Core Heat Dissipation)
Scenario 2: Server Cabinet Ventilation, Noise Reduction — Open-cell Foamed Copper, Foamed Nickel Alloy
Scenario 3: Switches, GPU Shielding Compartments EMC — Foamed Nickel Alloy
Scenario 4: AI Cabinet Energy Storage Modules, Rack Buffer Power Supplies — Foamed Nickel Temperature Equalization Layer
Scenario 5: Liquid Cooling System Defoaming, Buffering Energy Absorption — Composite Foamed Copper / Foamed Nickel
In four major hardware systems: consumer-grade graphics cards, AI supercomputing servers, full-liquid-cooled computing platforms, switches, and data center cabinets, metallic foam is mass-produced as a functional auxiliary material for five major functions: heat dissipation, heat equalization, ventilation and noise reduction, electromagnetic shielding, and liquid-cooled vapor chamber capillary wicks.
● Foamed copper (heat dissipation / liquid cooling capillary wick)
● Open-cell foamed nickel alloy (cabinet ventilation and sound absorption) (EMI shielding / energy storage buffering)
Applicable hardware: Computing cards, 3DVC vacuum vapor chambers
1. Internal capillary wick of vapor chamber (largest usage)
● PPI: 80/150 PPI, thickness 1/3mm, porosity 97%~98%
● Base material: 99.99% high-purity oxygen-free copper, strong capillary force, accelerating gas-liquid phase circulation
● Function: Quickly flatten local hot spots of GPU core and video memory, reducing chip thermal resistance by 15%~25%
2. Air-cooled radiator air duct filling (high-end non-public game cards)
● PPI: 60 PPI, thickness 5~8mm, porosity 96%
● Adaptation: High-power game cards, increasing air duct heat exchange area, cooling down by 6~10℃ at the same fan speed
3. Liquid cooling cold plate internal filling (ultra-high power GPU)
● PPI: 100 PPI, thickness 5~12mm, gradient pore size (water inlet 30 PPI, water outlet 100 PPI)
● Advantage: Micro-channel composite foamed copper, coolant heat exchange area increased by 4 times, adapting to single-card 1200~2300W heat flux density
Applicable models: Full-liquid-cooled racks, standard computing cabinets
1. Cabinet inlet and outlet ventilation panels (mass production standard)
● Pore size 1.6mm, thickness 5~20mm, porosity 70%~95%
● Characteristics: High ventilation permeability, Class A non-combustible, metal dustproof, taking into account the industrial texture of appearance, replacing traditional plastic mesh covers
2. Cabinet inner wall sound absorption and noise reduction (fanless full-liquid-cooled platform)
● Pore size 1.6mm, thickness 20/25mm, porosity 65%~95%
● Effect: Absorb high-frequency noise from water pumps and liquid cooling pipelines, overall machine noise control ≤35dB library level
3. Power supply, reactor vibration damping buffer
● Pore size 2.5mm large hole, thickness 10~15mm, porosity 60%~95%
● Function: Offset the resonance of the liquid cooling pump to prevent resonance abnormal noise of cabinet sheet metal
Applicable: Multi-card interconnection backplanes, server covers, high-speed optical module shielding cavities
● PPI: 80~100 PPI, thickness 1.5/2/3mm, porosity ≥95%
● Shielding effectiveness: 70~90dB, temperature resistance -40~200℃
● Usage: Fill door panel gaps and cable openings to block high-speed high-frequency electromagnetic leakage, solving signal interference in computing data centers
● Derivative: Conductive cloth wrapped foamed nickel sealing strip, waterproof, dustproof and shielding integrated
Rack-mounted cabinet-level energy storage capacitor modules in the computer field
● PPI: 40/60 PPI, thickness 1.0/2.5mm, areal density 350~450g/㎡
● Function: Equalize the temperature of energy storage capacitors, suppress heat accumulation during charging and discharging, prevent thermal diffusion, and improve the instantaneous power smoothing capability of the rack
1. Coolant circuit defoaming and filtration: 40 PPI foamed copper, filtering impurities, eliminating pipeline bubbles
2. Cabinet liquid cooling pipeline buffer layer: 20mm open-cell foamed alloy, preventing vibration and wear of pipelines
| Material | Core Advantages | Matching Hardware | Standard Procurement Specifications |
|---|---|---|---|
| Foamed Copper | Top thermal conductivity, strong capillary performance | GPU vapor chambers, liquid cooling cold plates, graphics card air ducts | 60/80/100 PPI, thickness 1~20mm, porosity 95%~98%, 99.99% oxygen-free copper |
| Open-cell Foamed Copper-Nickel | Lightweight, sound-absorbing, flame-retardant, integrated appearance | Cabinet ventilation panels, rack noise reduction & vibration damping | 1.6mm small pores (ventilation & sound absorption) / 2.5mm large pores (vibration damping), thickness 10~30mm, open porosity 60%~75% |
| Foamed Nickel Alloy | High temperature resistance, conductive shielding, energy storage temperature equalization | Switches, shielding compartments, cabinet energy storage modules | 40~100 PPI, thickness 1~3mm, porosity ≥95% |
① Project Background: Single card power consumption 1200W, stacked heat flux density of video memory and GPU core exceeds 200W/cm². Ordinary heat pipe cold plate local hot spots exceed 85℃, long-term full load frequency reduction, computing power loss 12%.
② Renovation Supporting Scheme: Fill 100 PPI, 2mm high-purity foamed copper capillary wick inside the vapor chamber; GPU cold plate interlayer composite 10mm gradient pore size foamed copper.
③ Implementation Effect: The maximum junction temperature of the chip dropped by 16℃, the hot spot temperature difference controlled ≤3℃, no frequency reduction at full load, and the AI training computing power of the whole machine steadily increased by 14%.
① Project Background: The first-generation plastic ventilation net has poor dustproof performance and substandard flame retardancy. The noise of stacked multi-cabinets in the data center is 68dB, and the O&M environment is harsh.
② Scheme Parameters: Front ventilation panel: 1.6mm pore size, 18mm thick open-cell foamed alloy; cabinet inner wall 20mm foamed alloy sound-absorbing layer.
③ Effect: Ventilation resistance increased by only 8%, heat dissipation unaffected; overall noise reduced to 34dB, metal material is flame-retardant and does not shed debris, meeting data center fire protection regulations.
① Problem: Excessive high-speed signal radiation, data jumps in surrounding monitoring and storage sensors, unable to pass data center electromagnetic acceptance.
② Scheme: All cabinet joints and optical module openings are paved with 2mm, 90 PPI foamed nickel conductive gaskets, compressed by 35% for installation.
③ Result: Shielding effectiveness 85dB, fully meets Class A industrial standards, interference problems completely eliminated.
① Foamed copper: no blocked pores, no oxidative blackening, no copper powder shedding, thermal conductive adhesive temperature resistance ≥180℃;
② Foamed alloy: limited to full open-cell materials, closed-cell / semi-open-cell directly rejected, surface anodized without powder shedding;
③ Foamed nickel: continuous conduction without faults, no pulverization under long-term high temperature;
④ All materials meet RoHS, UL94-V0 flame retardant, can provide third-party material testing reports;
⑤ Support die-cutting customization, adhesive lamination, full sheet 500×(500-1000mm) standard sheet supply.
① Consumer-grade graphics cards: Foamed copper VC vapor chambers have become the standard for high-end public versions;
② New-generation computing platforms: Liquid-cooled micro-channel foamed copper is a mandatory heat dissipation filler;
③ Whole cabinet: Open-cell foamed alloy uniformly replaces plastic ventilation nets, taking into account appearance, heat dissipation, and noise reduction;
④ High-density multi-card systems: Foamed nickel shielding is the optimal low-cost solution to solve high-speed electromagnetic interference.
