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Toward zero-emission data centers through direct reuse of thermal energy
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by T. Brunschwiler
B. Smith
E. Ruetsche
and B. Michel
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We have tested hot water data center cooling by directly reusing
the generated thermal energy in neighborhood heating systems.
First, we introduce high-performance liquid cooling devices with
minimal thermal resistance in order to cool a computer system
board. This cooling is performed with water at a temperature as
high as 60°C, thereby eliminating the chillers and their electrical
power consumption, and enabling direct reuse of the heat. We
collect 85% of the board heat using microscale liquid coolers for
CPUs (central processing units), interfaces, and dc (direct current)
converters. With our concept, data centers can be cooled in all
climate zones throughout the year without a pre-cooled heat
carrier. Second, we analyze how the supply of heat and financial
payback from customers reduce the total cost of ownership. With
5,000 district heating systems satisfying 9.7% of the thermal
demand of Europe, ample opportunities exist for data centers to
become heat providers, thereby reducing the associated carbon
dioxide emission. Finally, we show how our concept can be
developed within 5 years into a zero-emission data center and that
such investments are economically viable and ecologically
beneficial given increasing energy prices. With such data centers,
the IT (information technology) industry can assume a key role in
greatly reducing carbon dioxide emissions and global warming by
replacing energy-intensive processes with more efficient, digitally
assisted processes.
 Full paper
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