First Look: Danamics Liquid Metal CPU Cooler
Posted on 18th Mar 2010 at 10:18 by Richard Swinburne with 41 comments
The Danamics Liquid Metal CPU cooler, officially titled the Danamics LMX Superleggera, is one of those crazy ideas we never actually thought we'd get our hands on. Kudos go to Danamics then, for actually producing a product that's both scary and awesome at the same time.
For those who don't know the significance of this cooler the clue is in the name: liquid metal. Those metal pipes are not your standard wick/gas heatpipes, they are full of a sodium-potassium metal alloy (mixture) that is liquid at room temperature and forced around the tubes with a hardcore electromagnetic pump. Metal has a much higher specific heat capacity than a vapour change liquid, and when forced around rather than letting convection take its course, it acts more like a water-cooled setup.
Despite having no moving parts, to generate sufficient magnetic force to move the liquid metal it requires a 48V input to power the Neodymium magnet, so Danamics has included a converter box that sits in a free 3.5" bay.
That's both awesomely cool but seriously scary. We can't help but be concerned about putting high power magnets in PCs. As a rule of thumb, it's never really been a good idea, however those concerns are overshadowed by the sheer weight and size of this cooler - which is akin to something like the Cooler Master V10. At the end of the day, it's still full of metal in those nickel plated copper tubes.
Perhaps the biggest eye-opener is the safety card we get with it. For the love of god don't break the bloody thing! It's not like spilling mercury everywhere, but it's highly flammable should you have an accident near water. On the up-side though, it's a completely enclosed piece of kit and copper tubing doesn't generally break unless you throw it down the stairs and technically it's safer than water cooling.
As for the heatsink itself, it's a pretty standard heatpipe-and-fin setup with two fans: one push, one pull. Danamics says it doesn't necessarily provide the fans, but it can do. We'd advice getting your own, since the plastic ones seen here feel cheap for what you're paying.
The base is nice and smooth, and the heatpipes are soldered in but not all the way as you can see. We've generally found that direct heatpipe contact works better, however shaving down the copper is not an option here considering what the pipes contain. We'll have to see whether the heat capacity of the metal is greater than the contact area trade-off.
Ultimately Danamics needs to sell the thing and make money, so will it be worth buying? Is liquid metal running through the veins of our PCs, the future? Drop us a comment with your thoughts.
For those who don't know the significance of this cooler the clue is in the name: liquid metal. Those metal pipes are not your standard wick/gas heatpipes, they are full of a sodium-potassium metal alloy (mixture) that is liquid at room temperature and forced around the tubes with a hardcore electromagnetic pump. Metal has a much higher specific heat capacity than a vapour change liquid, and when forced around rather than letting convection take its course, it acts more like a water-cooled setup.
Despite having no moving parts, to generate sufficient magnetic force to move the liquid metal it requires a 48V input to power the Neodymium magnet, so Danamics has included a converter box that sits in a free 3.5" bay.
That's both awesomely cool but seriously scary. We can't help but be concerned about putting high power magnets in PCs. As a rule of thumb, it's never really been a good idea, however those concerns are overshadowed by the sheer weight and size of this cooler - which is akin to something like the Cooler Master V10. At the end of the day, it's still full of metal in those nickel plated copper tubes.
Perhaps the biggest eye-opener is the safety card we get with it. For the love of god don't break the bloody thing! It's not like spilling mercury everywhere, but it's highly flammable should you have an accident near water. On the up-side though, it's a completely enclosed piece of kit and copper tubing doesn't generally break unless you throw it down the stairs and technically it's safer than water cooling.
As for the heatsink itself, it's a pretty standard heatpipe-and-fin setup with two fans: one push, one pull. Danamics says it doesn't necessarily provide the fans, but it can do. We'd advice getting your own, since the plastic ones seen here feel cheap for what you're paying.
The base is nice and smooth, and the heatpipes are soldered in but not all the way as you can see. We've generally found that direct heatpipe contact works better, however shaving down the copper is not an option here considering what the pipes contain. We'll have to see whether the heat capacity of the metal is greater than the contact area trade-off.
Ultimately Danamics needs to sell the thing and make money, so will it be worth buying? Is liquid metal running through the veins of our PCs, the future? Drop us a comment with your thoughts.
41 Comments
Discuss in the forums ReplyI can't see the cooler producing enough positives to counteract the potential negatives myself.
I take it you shun table salt and lo-salt alternatives, too?
elemental
The addition of Chlorine is crucial to your equation. ;)
Exactly, sodium chloride and elemental sodium have very different chemical and physical properties. Equally I wouldn't really want chlorine gas flowing through pipes in my PC either. I know a burst or leak is unlikely but the consequences could be tragic and all for a degree or two of extra cooling :(
I can't decide if it's more likely to be Tim, Joe, Harry or Rich that will break this thing and burn down Dennis towers but I know one of them will.
Joe will be the sole survivor and will go on to make a video game based on the events - "Bit-tech's Burning" exclusively on Facebook.
Who's this new player?
What I want to see now is basically a water-cooling setup (with rads, essentially) that's filled with this stuff. Presumably you'd need an old nuclear reactor to supply the necessary liquid-metal induction pumps but stranger things have been done in the name of modding on this site. Go go go!
What, are HSF being named after Lamborghinis now?
almost worth buying it just to open it up :-)
How many watts does it draw, if it draws too many the heat dissipitation of the power supply for it will surely raise the ambient temperature and negate the cooling effect?
And surely it is if anything more dangerous than water cooling, at least if the water cooling loop goes when the PC's off there's a chance of something surviving.
i want one now. . . .
also, the magnets themselves will not be a serious issue, it is the changing magnetic field that may cause problems. i would assume it is running at a very low frequency though, so i doubt it will cause any issues. static magnetic fields only really cause problems for unshielded magnetic storage media and crt monitors. moving magnetic fields can cause issue with any electronics, but only if they induce enough current to interfere with the signal or burn out components. i doubt this thing does either.
Anyways I dont think ive been more terrified of a cpu cooler.
Well I personally thing this is an understatement. Sodium and Potassium react with everything and very fast. Therefore, the sweat of your hands should be enough, not to mention that you can't touch them with bare hands (they are corrosive). Should a leak occur, it'll damage everything it touches.
And on top of this, if a fire starts you can't put it out with water, as the water will make things even worse.
Now I wonder how this thing will get to be sold to the general public.
And to say my PC was cooled by liquid metal.
But still, considering that even small amounts are an explosion hazard, they'll need to sell this with a mandatory safety training included or something. Maybe they could sell it in a bundle with a fire extinguisher included.
I know how long it takes to write 'normal' experiment health and safety!
Delivery could be interesting too - something of a learning experience for the couriers and education that the "handle with care" label is occasionally for their own benefit!
It'd be funny to see the insurance claim.
I can see this becoming a tool for those of few scruples who don't mind losing a foot in exchange for a big insurance/lawsuit payout.
The difference between elements and solution alloys is an important one too.
Pure elemental Na/K are cheese-like solids, for a start.
Superlegerra just means 'ultra light' in Italian, Lamborghini uses it on special lightweight versions of the cars. Dunno why they would call this beat superleggera though, given the comparison to the CM V10..
I'm not quite sure I'd want this anywhere near my house, let alone my PC. Volatile liquid metals and an high-power neodynium magnets? Very cool, but you can keep it thanks - my AC Freezer 7 is good enough for now!
And yes, yes, I know RoHS doesn't cover these two particular metals, but it amused me nonetheless...