FEATURE
THERE ARE
THREE COMMON
SPECIFICATION
CHOICES FOR DATA
CENTRE COOLING;
TRADITIONAL
COOLING TOWERS,
HYBRID COOLERS
AND ADIABATIC
SYSTEMS.
lectricity and water are the two
main resources required for data
centre operation, yet for the UK
data centre market, the use of
water remains of little concern compared
to its counterpart sectors around the world.
A recent US Geological Survey has
suggested that by 2020, data centres
across the pond will consume around 660
billion litres of water per year, making the
US data centre market one of the highest
consumers of a rapidly depleting natural
commodity. The statistics are on a similar
scale for the UK, with data centres relying
heavily on water in order to regulate and
maintain internal temperature, especially
in facilities using traditional cooling tower
methods compared to more efficient
hybrid or adiabatic systems.
In the US, water consumption (or lack
of it) is a critical component in the
specification of cooling equipment, even
more so since California’s drought in
the summer of 2015 shone a light on
the commercial use of water. While it is
arguable that weather variables make
water more abundant in the UK and
therefore make it less of an immediate
concern, many manufacturers of water-
conscious and highly efficient cooling
equipment believe that saving water
should be a moral decision in the same
way recycling and reuse of other precious
resources has become.
The conservation of water is a
humanitarian issue and one which should
www.intelligentdatacentres.com
rightfully cause political and social
concern at a global level, not just in the
countries which experience drought or
have geographies which are synonymous
with less abundant natural resources.
The latest statistics from the United
Nations states that in industrialised
nations, industry consumes 80% of water
available for human consumption, with
the World Health Organisation stating that
half the world’s population will be living in
‘water-stressed’ areas by 2025.
These statistics – and many more like
them – should make one of the world’s
most progressive and technologically
advanced industries sit up and take
note of its consumption rates and, more
importantly, what it can do to improve
the environmental impact of its mission
critical operational processes.
Cooling towers, hybrid and
adiabatic technology – the truth
about their water consumption
There are three common specification
choices for data centre cooling; traditional
cooling towers, hybrid coolers and
adiabatic systems.
Cooling towers are most frequently
specified for budget projects or those with
severe space restrictions, whilst hybrid
equipment has long been the habitual
specification choice for data centre
designers unsure of the true benefits of
switching to adiabatic alternatives.
All three options will save significant
amounts of energy when compared to
typical compressor based chilled water
systems and can achieve far higher Energy
Efficiency Ratios (EER). As modern data
centres are designed with higher supply
air temperatures they are also increasingly
used as the primary source of cooling
rather than rejecting heat from chilled
water plants.
Take the example of a typical compressor-
based chiller which will consume 1kW
of energy for every 3-4kW of cooling
delivered. Compare this to an equivalent
sized adiabatic solution, which for the
same 1kW of energy consumed, will
deliver up to 75kW of cooling.
Issue 01
41