WHILE EVERY UPS MANUFACTURER STRIVES TO ACHIEVE 100 % EFFICIENCY , CURRENT TECHNOLOGY – NOT TO MENTION THE LAWS OF PHYSICS – MAKES THAT AN IMPOSSIBLE END GOAL . HOWEVER , ONGOING ADVANCES MEAN WE CAN NOW GET PRETTY CLOSE .
So what comes next ? How do we boost efficiency even higher ?
The biggest change will likely come in the shift from using traditional siliconbased IGBT components to silicon carbide ( SiC ) semiconductors . Of course , SiC is nothing new – it ’ s widely used in the electric car industry which has helped to make the technology more readily available in other sectors .
For UPS manufacturing , silicon carbide components offer several inherent advantages over standard IGBTs , namely :
• Higher efficiency : SiC components exhibit lower electrical resistance , resulting in reduced energy losses , which helps to maximise the overall efficiency of the UPS .
• Increased power density : The technology enables increased power density , making it possible to design more compact and lightweight UPS systems without compromising on power capacity .
• Increased thermal stability : SiC can operate at higher temperatures , translating to a broader operational range and reduced cooling demands .
• Enhanced frequency response : SiC ' s faster switching capabilities result in a more responsive UPS system , crucial for handling the rapidly changing load conditions typically found in modern data centres , particularly those dealing specifically with AI applications .
• Durability : The robustness of SiC reduces wear and tear , leading to extended component and UPS lifecycles along with reducing maintenance needs .
Putting theory into practice
Riello UPS ’ s latest modular offering , Multi Power2 , has embraced silicon carbide semiconductors throughout the manufacturing process , including its highdensity 67kW power modules .
The result is a modular UPS that delivers a high efficiency of 98.1 % in maximum protection online double conversion mode .
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WHILE EVERY UPS MANUFACTURER STRIVES TO ACHIEVE 100 % EFFICIENCY , CURRENT TECHNOLOGY – NOT TO MENTION THE LAWS OF PHYSICS – MAKES THAT AN IMPOSSIBLE END GOAL . HOWEVER , ONGOING ADVANCES MEAN WE CAN NOW GET PRETTY CLOSE .
Previously , you ’ d only see such high efficiency if your UPS was running in ‘ ECO ’ or ‘ economy ’ mode , where energy savings come at a cost through a subsequent trade-off in reduced protection to the critical load .
Before we move on , it ’ s important to make a point about UPS efficiency . When stating their efficiency ratings , many UPS manufacturers produce an ‘ average efficiency ’ figure , which in effect is a combination of the unit ’ s various operating modes over a period of time .
Chris Cutler , Business Development Manager at Riello UPS
For example , this period could cover 24 hours split between 12 hours running in online mode followed by 12 hours in ECO mode . For some applications , this is perfectly acceptable , but not for a data centre as at some point you ’ ll be exposing your infrastructure to higher levels of risk from a power disruption .
Average efficiency ratings don ’ t offer a true reflection of real-life operating conditions . You could even argue they ’ re manipulated figures simply to provide customers with artificially inflated values .
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