Simulation and Experimentation of Air Flow in Electronic Racks

The air flow inside electronic cabinets is complex. In order to make a successful evaluation of these flows with a sufficient accuracy, it is necessary to carry out simulations on computers. That is what was done with the code THEBES which is presented here. But in order to develop such a computing tool, experimental measures are necessary in order : ¿ to determine the main phenomena ¿ to determine experimental coefficients (friction factor...) ¿ to validate the code. This software is designed to be easy to use but also sufficiently general so as to enable the user to study the main existing cabinet´s geometries. Experimental results given by a rack´s mock-up show a good agreement with values issued from the code.