Computers generate heat, which can damage components. Cooling mechanisms absorb and move heat away, including vents, fans, heat sinks, and water/oil circulation. Laptops are challenging due to limited space and clogged vents. Cooling effectiveness depends on the environment.
Many different components in computers, such as the central processing unit (CPU), hard drive, and random access memory or RAM, produce heat, so a variety of computer cooling mechanisms are used to ensure that this heat does not harm these components. These mechanisms are intended to absorb heat and move it away from the components. Some forms of computer cooling, such as vents on a computer case to allow for airflow, are passive. Other forms are active, such as fans meant to blow hot air out of the computer case.
While many of a computer’s parts produce heat, a few in particular are of particular concern. The CPU, which handles most of the computer’s calculations and functions, often produces a lot of heat. The graphics or video card, responsible for rendering the images displayed on your computer screen, likewise produces a significant amount of heat. A variety of computer cooling mechanisms are used to keep these devices cool and to prevent the hot air produced by these devices from building up in the computer case.
CPUs and video cards usually come with heat sinks made of materials that easily absorb the heat produced by these computer components. The heat sink is typically attached to a fan that drives air away from the component. Multiple fans inside or on the sides of the computer case blow hot air that builds up inside the case to the outside and draw in cool air. More elaborate computer cooling systems may employ cold water or circulating oil to collect heat and carry it away from the components of interest.
Cooling computers in laptops or netbooks can be especially challenging. The components are, by necessity, quite close together, so heat spreads easily through the computer. Fans take up space and use a significant amount of power, so providing effective fan cooling can be challenging. The small vents easily become clogged with dust and dirt or become blocked when you use such devices on a bed or other surface that can block the vents. The computer user is often responsible for ensuring that the computer’s cooling systems are not blocked.
The effectiveness of computer cooling largely depends on the environment in which a computer is used. If a computer is used in a warm room, the computer’s cooling system will only be able to draw warm air into a computer. Cooling systems are unable to maintain the cool-air-in/warm-air-out dynamic when used in excessively hot ambient conditions.
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