Ben Selier | Vice President | Secure Power | Anglophone Africa | Schneider Electric | mail me |
In a world where computational power drives countless systems, processes, and daily activities, prioritising data centre operations is essential. The data centre acts as the glue holding the inanimate world together.
A data centre is the unsung hero behind artificial intelligence (AI), cloud computing, and high-performance computing (HPC). Like most things in life, data centres must function in environments that optimise their operations. A cool environment is key.
Liquid cooling data centres is gaining popularity
Traditionally, data centres relied on air-cooled servers to deliver compute power. However, the rise of AI and increased thermal design power (TDP) is changing this.
Liquid cooling is gaining popularity as it removes more heat compared to traditional air cooling. In fact, 23 times more. Imagine keeping a 40W incandescent lightbulb lit for hours and then touching it. Now, picture a 500W bulb. That’s the heat a high-performance CPU generates. Now, place that hot bulb in a steel box and blow air over it. The air removes some heat but not all, and the process is slow. This is similar to air-cooling servers.
In a data centre filled with high-performance racks, air cooling creates a supersonic wind tunnel but remains insufficient. Liquid cooling increases heat rejection by 23 times due to water’s thermal conductivity, which far exceeds that of air.
Air’s thermal conductivity is 0.01580 Btu/h ft °F, while water’s is 0.3632 Btu/h ft °F. The difference is significant. Water conducts heat 23 times more efficiently than air. Additionally, liquid cooling extracts heat closer to the generation source.
More than just cooling
Liquid cooling supports sustainability efforts by reducing power consumption, aligning with environmental, social and governance (ESG) goals, and lowering overall carbon footprints.
As a closed-loop system, liquid cooling minimises water usage and offers a sustainable option without unnecessary wastage. When building new data centres, liquid cooling’s upfront cost is similar to that of traditional cooling systems. However, retrofitting existing data centres for liquid cooling can be more expensive. Significant infrastructure changes might be required.
Businesses don’t need to overhaul entire data centres to adopt liquid cooling. Instead, they can implement it selectively. This modular approach allows companies to scale cooling solutions based on the needs of their most compute-intensive applications.
In conclusion
Liquid cooling data centres requires a specialised skill set. Technicians must handle complex procedures like removing servers from cooling oil baths using cranes. Despite these challenges, the long-term savings and benefits of liquid cooling are undeniable. It can significantly reduce operational costs, extend equipment lifespan, and eliminate failing parts like fans.
Liquid cooling also improves reliability and reduces total energy usage. Cooling 20 kilowatts of equipment with liquid is far more efficient. This results in smaller data centre footprints and greater compute density. It frees up valuable floor space for additional operations.
