Thomas Grizzetti, CEO, HT Materials Science.
If you think the business world is focused on data centers now, just wait. These super-computing facilities have become an important component of modern life, powering everything from smart home appliances to social media to AI chatbots. I expect data centers will become even more relevant to our daily existence as technology continues to evolve and humans increasingly rely on digital search, connectivity and problem-solving tools.
The Rising Demand For Data Centers
Unsurprisingly, data centers are substantial consumers of electric energy. According to the Department of Energy, data centers consumed 176 terawatt hours of power (TWh) in 2023, or 4.4% of total U.S. electricity use. That figure represents a tripling of demand over the last ten years, and it could be as high as 12% by 2028.
The industry standard for measuring data centers’ energy efficiency is power usage effectiveness (PUE), which is a calculation of total power used by a data center compared to the power used by its IT equipment. Some of the biggest data center operators—companies like Amazon Web Services, Meta and Microsoft—claim PUE numbers between 1.06 and 1.18. Facilities with lower PUE are considered more efficient; as of today, the industry average PUE is 1.8. Expect to hear more about PUE as well as total usage effectiveness (TUE), as data centers fuel an ever-increasing portion of our business needs and personal lives.
Understanding The Cooling Challenge
As CEO of a company that helps industrial HVAC systems run more efficiently, I’m focused on the cooling aspect of data centers. For these facilities, cooling is much more than keeping a comfortable air temperature. High-powered chips, server racks and other equipment can easily overheat and cause service disruptions; damage; lost data; increased energy costs, emissions and operating costs; and a host of other problems.
Data center cooling can account for up to half of a data center’s total energy consumption. And we can reasonably expect that percentage to increase as ambient temperatures, chip power and demand for data centers continue to rise. In fact, many facilities have seen a decreased life expectancy of the chips that power data centers because they’re heating up faster than expected. This problem can lead to increased maintenance needs and, in worst-case scenarios, downtime for repairs or upgrades. Keeping cool is such a vital component of efficient and reliable data center operations that the market for data center cooling is expected to grow to $127 billion by 2029.
Current Cooling Solutions To Consider
Startups, established tech giants and everyone in between are racing to create solutions that will sufficiently cool data center equipment without requiring complete overhauls or prohibitive financial investments. Already, several new technologies stand out as especially promising:
• Direct-To-Chip Cooling (DTC)
DTC circulates cool liquid through a cold plate that’s in direct contact with high-heat computing elements. This option can be more efficient than traditional cooling methods since it directly targets the components that produce the most heat. But, as with almost everything in business (and life), there are tradeoffs. Installing direct-to-chip cooling is a significant project that requires a large financial investment and, potentially, significant system downtimes.
• Heat Transfer Fluids
Several companies, including my own, are working to develop and refine heat transfer fluids that can be added to existing cooling fluids (typically water or a combination of water and glycol) to increase efficiency and decrease the amount of energy needed to cool components. As industry leaders continue to develop heat transfer fluids, I believe next-generation solutions could reduce power consumption even further while also expanding the life and productivity of existing cooling systems. There are, of course, also additional upfront costs associated with the installation of heat-transfer fluids.
• Thermal Storage
Another innovation that’s starting to gain attention and interest is the use of thermal storage, which involves capturing and storing excess heat during off-peak hours or times of lower activity to be used at a later time when demand is high. This can reduce the data center’s need for more energy-intensive cooling systems. While thermal storage can lower operational costs, it also involves upfront costs and, sometimes, additional system maintenance—yet another part of data centers’ ongoing cost/benefit analyses.
Continuing To Innovate
These inventions are a great starting point, but I believe the entire industry needs to keep innovating and adopting new solutions. As our reliance on digital infrastructure escalates, the innovation and adoption of advanced cooling technologies could grow ever more important. Startups and established players alike are busy innovating their way to next-generation fixes that should help lessen data centers’ onerous energy and cooling demands.
As a final tip for data center leaders, I recommend staying up to date on potential solutions so you can make informed choices that work best for your facilities. A good starting place for weeding through all the options on the market is through professional memberships. Organizations like 7×24 Exchange and Uptime Institute can help you connect with each other, share ideas and learn about this fast-changing industry.
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