Patent 7327578 was granted and assigned to Sun Microsystems on February, 2008 by the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
A system for permitting orderly shutdown of electronic components. The system includes an enclosure populated with one or more electronic components. A fan positioned within the enclosure generates an airflow across the one or more electronic components, the airflow being cooled by a heat exchanger. A phase change material is positioned within the enclosure to absorb heat from the airflow in the event of a failure associated with the heat exchanger.