Fluids Handling

Cutting Data Centre Cooling Energy Use by Up to 80% with Advanced Solenoid Valve Technology

Burkert 13 minutes ago

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Greg Wainhouse, Regional Business Development Manager – Industrial Water, North Europe

In modern data centres, direct-to-chip liquid cooling has become essential for managing the increasing heat loads generated by high-performance processors, AI workloads and cloud computing infrastructure. At the heart of these cooling systems are fast-acting solenoid valves that regulate coolant flow and help prevent servers from overheating.

However, whilst these valves play a critical role in maintaining uptime and performance, the cumulative energy demand of continuously energised solenoid valves can create significant operational costs and sustainability challenges. Across thousands of servers operating around the clock, even relatively small improvements in valve efficiency can deliver substantial energy savings.

Kick & Drop coil technology offers an innovative solution to this challenge. By using a high-power ‘kick’ to actuate the valve followed by a low-energy ‘drop’ phase to maintain its position, the technology can reduce valve energy consumption by up to 80%, helping data centre operators improve efficiency whilst supporting carbon reduction targets.

Greg Wainhouse, Bürkert’s Regional Business Development Manager for Industrial Water, North Europe, explains.

The growing importance of efficient data centre cooling

Effective cooling technology is fundamental to data centre operation. Without precise thermal management, servers can overheat, reducing performance, shortening equipment lifespan and increasing the risk of costly downtime.

To address these challenges, direct-to-chip cooling has emerged as the preferred cooling method for many modern facilities. In this approach, heat generated by server microchips is transferred directly into cold plates positioned on the surface of each processor. Coolant, typically a water-glycol mixture, circulates through these cold plates and removes heat through forced convection.

The heated coolant then passes through a manifold and travels to a chiller or heat exchanger where the heat is removed. Once cooled, the fluid returns to the cold plate to repeat the cycle.

Maintaining adequate coolant flow throughout this process is essential. Solenoid valves are commonly used because they provide the rapid response required to match constantly changing processor demands. As central processing unit (CPU) loads can accelerate from idle to maximum demand within milliseconds, flow control systems must react equally quickly to prevent temperature spikes.

The electrical control integration of a solenoid valve allows automatic responses to signals from temperature sensors, while their compact design enables installation within the confined space available in cold plate manifolds.

burkert solenoid valves — A wide range of Burkert's solenoid valves can be specified with Kick & Drop technology.

Understanding the energy challenge

Within a typical enterprise server, there may be one or two CPUs per motherboard alongside as many as eight graphics processing units (GPUs), each requiring dedicated cooling. More advanced systems can contain dozens of processors, each supported by its own cold plate and valve arrangement.

When multiplied across hundreds of servers within a rack and thousands across a facility, the number of valves required becomes substantial. As a result, valve energy consumption becomes an important consideration for both operational expenditure and sustainability performance.

Traditional solenoid valves typically use a single coil that generates a continuous magnetic field. This field not only moves the valve into position but also keeps it there. To maintain position, the valve must continuously counteract the force of the return spring as well as fluid pressure that may attempt to move the plunger back to its default state.

Consequently, the valve remains continuously energised, drawing power around the clock and contributing to overall energy consumption.

How Kick & Drop technology works

Bürkert's Kick & Drop technology addresses this inefficiency through a more intelligent coil design that can reduce energy demand per valve by as much as 80%.

The system incorporates two coil windings encapsulated within a single epoxy coil, with both windings powered in series. Rather than applying constant power, the technology uses a high initial voltage to rapidly move the valve into position. This initial actuation phase is known as the ‘kick’.

After approximately 500 milliseconds, which is fast enough to respond to rapidly changing server chip temperatures, the valve reaches its required position.

The second winding then initiates the ‘drop’ phase, maintaining the plunger position using a significantly lower voltage and far less energy.

The overexcited inrush winding generates a very high starting power and creates a strong magnetic field using approximately 85% power to move the plunger quickly. Once positioned, only around 15% power is required to hold the valve open.

This overexcitation capability can also deliver higher operating pressures than conventional solenoid valve designs, providing up to 200% more activation power.

For data centres operating around the clock, the cumulative savings can be considerable. Across large installations containing hundreds or thousands of valves, reducing energy consumption by up to 80% can have a meaningful impact on operating costs and carbon emissions.

To help operators quantify these benefits, Bürkert offers a Kick & Drop Energy and CO2 Calculator that estimates both energy savings and carbon reduction potential.

energy saving solenoid valves — The energy saving technology is used in solenoid valves for a wide range of applications.

Improved durability and thermal performance

Beyond energy savings, Kick & Drop technology also offers durability advantages that are particularly valuable in critical cooling applications.

The lower energy demand results in reduced heat generation, improving thermal management throughout the valve assembly. With Kick & Drop coils, media heating is reduced and the maximum reachable temperature is limited to 55°C.

This can be particularly beneficial where calcification prevention is important, although the purified water typically used within direct-to-chip cooling systems generally mitigates this issue.

More importantly, the lower operating temperature reduces thermal stress on key valve components. By lowering component temperatures, the technology can increase service life, reduce maintenance requirements and minimise the risk of overheating-related failures.

Comparing Kick & Drop with proportional control

An alternative approach to improving valve efficiency is proportional control using pulse width modulation (PWM).

This method rapidly switches the solenoid valve on and off to regulate average current and control the force applied to the plunger. While PWM systems can reduce energy consumption compared with continuously energised valves, they introduce additional hardware costs and greater system complexity.

Rapid switching can also generate vibration and audible noise. These effects not only create a less comfortable working environment for engineers and maintenance personnel but can also affect system smoothness and long-term reliability.

Vibration in particular can present challenges for component durability over extended operating periods, making simplicity and robustness important considerations when selecting cooling system components.

Integrated manifold solutions for direct-to-chip cooling

Alongside valve selection, manifold integration plays an important role in cooling system performance.

Bürkert's engineering team can design and manufacture bespoke manifolds tailored to specific cooling applications, including systems that integrate directly with cold plates and direct-to-chip cooling infrastructure.

By incorporating valves directly into a customised manifold, operators can achieve a more compact system footprint whilst ensuring precise fit and performance optimisation. Integrated solutions can also streamline product development and reduce project complexity.

Working with a single supplier for both valve and manifold design simplifies coordination, accelerates implementation and can help achieve a faster route to market compared with managing multiple vendors.

Supporting the future of high-performance data centres

The global data centre market continues to expand rapidly, driven by artificial intelligence, cloud computing, high-performance computing and increasing demand for digital services.

As processor densities rise and workloads become more demanding, efficient thermal management is becoming increasingly important. Direct-to-chip cooling is expected to play a central role in meeting these requirements, providing the precise heat removal needed to support next-generation computing infrastructure.

Solenoid valve technology remains a critical component within these systems, delivering the automated, fast and reliable flow control necessary to protect high-value processors operating under rapidly fluctuating loads.

However, as operators face growing pressure to reduce energy consumption and meet sustainability targets, improving the efficiency of every component within the cooling loop becomes increasingly important.

By combining rapid response times, reduced power consumption and enhanced durability, Kick & Drop technology provides a practical solution for data centre operators seeking to improve cooling system efficiency whilst supporting long-term reliability and environmental performance.

Find out more here.

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Burkert Fluid Control Systems

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About us

Bürkert is present in thirtyfive countries around the world. We also work with a large network of distributors and partners, which means we are as close as possible to our customers. This global presence ensures full service and support to all of our customers in every country around the world. Research is the lifeblood of our company.

At Bürkert, we are never satisfied with the status quo and are continually seeking new technologies and solutions for our customers. Every year, our people develop new and highly advanced products and solutions, ranging from integrated process measurement and control units to the most sophisticated systems used in pharmaceutical research. To be a market leader, we are also an R&D leader.

Therefore, our investment in research & development is one of the highest in our industry. In our research centres in Germany and France, 150 people are committed to working for a common future for our company and our customers. We are committed to offering our expertise wherever it is needed, anywhere in the world. This global presence ensures that our advances in fluid control technology are also global.

What we do in a nutshell

Manufacture of process equipment. One of the few manufacturers to provide solutions for the complete control loop.

Where we supply to

UK Ireland, Europe

Industries we supply to

Food and Beverage, Pharmaceutical Cosmetics Toiletries, Water and Wastewater

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