Evaluation and Development of an Efficient
Cooling System for High Performance
Computing Applications
Raaghul Senthilkumar1, Ronik Sheth1, Terence Randall2, Chris Chowder2, Dr. Syed Kumrul Islam2
Farragut High School1, University of Tennessee2
Introduction
Results
Efficient cooling schemes are necessary in the
construction of computers. Integrated circuits, such as
the CPUs and GPUs used in high-performance
computers, produce large amounts of thermal waste.
Insufficient disposal of thermal waste can lead to
numerous problems, which could destroy the circuits if
left unremedied. Early models of Microsoft’s Xbox 360
suffered from such problems stemming from an
improperly designed cooling scheme. The infamous
Red Ring of Death was caused by these flaws. The
research goal was to evaluate the cooling system of an
Xbox 360 console and to determine what caused the
console to fail.
Research Questions
How does the Xbox 360 console handle thermal
management? At what temperature range can the Xbox
360 safely operate? What features are found in
effective cooling systems? How would these feature
improve the performance of the Xbox 360?
Methodology
Since overheating weakens soldered connections
underneath components such as the CPU or GPU, a
heat gun was used to reflow the soldering on the
console’s motherboard which basically melted the
solder, permanently connecting weak joints. After the
reflowing process, new thermal paste was applied on
the integrated circuits. Different combinations of four
heat sinks (two CPU and two GPU) were then
implemented to see which combination keeps the Xbox
360 running without failure. Two different cooling fans
were also implemented to see which fan kept
temperatures at lower levels
Heat of the Components Over Time with Standard Fans
T
e
m
p
e
r
a
t
u
r
e
60
Ends with
Red Ring
from
Overheating
50
40
30
2nd Generation
GPU
20
10
1st Generation
CPU
0
0
(˚C)
0.5
1
3
3.5
Time (minutes)
Heat of the CPU over Time with Improved Fans
1st Generation
T
e
m
p
e
r
a
t
u
r
e
45
Ends with Red
Ring from
Overheating
40
35
30
Plateau
25
20
0
(˚C)
T
e
m
p
e
r
a
t
u
r
e
2nd Generation
0.5
1
5
8.5
10
Time (minutes)
Heat of the GPU over Time with Improved Fans
1st Generation
2nd Generation
70
60
50
2nd Generation
dissipates heat
better
40
Plateau
30
20
10
(˚C)
0
0
0.5
1
5
7
10
15
20
Time (minutes)
Conclusions
• The Xbox 360 manages thermal waste through a system of passive
Figure 1: Heat Sinks
Upper Left: 1st Gen CPU; Upper Right: 2nd Gen CPU;
Bottom Left: 1st Gen GPU; Bottom Right: 2nd Gen GPU
and active cooling. The Xbox 360 uses heat sinks to transfer heat
from the components to the air. The hot air is then pulled from the
heat sinks and moved out of the console through convection. Fans
are used to increase the rate of air convection.
• The console’s components can safely operate in a range up to 61.4
˚C. At this point, the thermal sensors on the GPU or CPU will shut
down the console to protect the integrated circuits from damage.
• When designing an effective cooling scheme, the implementation of
an efficient ventilation system is necessary. Ventilation enables the
heat to be transferred out from the device.
• A properly designed cooling scheme would extend the lifespan of
the Xbox 360. The increased performance enables the use of more
powerful chips with stability.
Acknowledgements:
This work was supported primarily by the Engineering Research Center Program of the
National Science Foundation and the Department of Energy under NSF Award Number
EEC-1041877 and the CURENT Industry Partnership Program.