With the heat on for the data centre sector to deliver more powerful and sustainable facilities, Michael Tsielepi, Associate – Cost Management, Linesight, says liquid to chip presents an opportunity for a cooler future.
Europe’s soaring information needs are reflected in the phenomenal growth of data centre delivery seen in recent years.
According to McKinsey, the region is expected to see demand for data centre capacity triple by 2030, forecasting growth of up to 35 gigawatts, from today’s figure of 10 gigawatts.
To accommodate this, data centres are seeing shifts in structural design due to increasing rack densities and heights. With racks now reaching up to three meters, this has significant knock-on effects throughout the building. Door heights and lift capacities must be adjusted to accommodate taller and heavier equipment. Additionally, building services, such as ventilation and cable management, need to be redesigned to allow proper clearance. Structural engineers must also account for greater rack weights to ensure the integrity of the building’s load-bearing capacity, adding another layer of complexity.
There is also the mounting problem of managing the heat generated by these expanding data centres.
Keeping data centres cool is an energy-intensive business. A cooling system can account for up to 40% of a typical data centre’s total energy consumption. Traditionally, operators have employed computer room air conditioning systems (CRACs) which, as the name suggests, rely on using air to dissipate heat from servers and other equipment. Another method is the use of Fan Walls, where multiple fans are strategically arranged in a grid pattern to circulate air throughout the space.
While CRACs and Fan Walls are reliable, they use a lot of energy, since they not only cool the air in a data hall but circulate it as well. They also require a substantial amount of physical space in which to be housed, meaning that enlarging a CRACs system to cope with a more complex and a bigger facility can be expensive. What’s more, higher density racks in data centres, can result in CRACs and Fan Walls becoming less effective in response to resultant changes in data centre design.
With these factors in mind, the future of efficient and cost-effective cooling potentially lies in what are known as liquid-to-chip systems. This approach sees a liquid coolant circulated directly to processors via cooling distribution units, which then absorb the heat before ejecting it. Liquid-to-chip cooling systems require a significantly lower amount of energy, since water has a higher thermal capacity than air, allowing for faster and more effective heat dissipation.
They are also more compact because they cool components directly. There is no need for the large ducts and raised access floors required by CRACs. As liquid-to-chip cooling systems can also handle higher thermal loads, data centres can then install more processing equipment into their facility. As data centre hardware becomes more powerful and energy-intense, liquid-to-chip systems could provide a scalable solution to manage an increased heat load.
However, there are certain caveats. While liquid-to-chip cooling offers a path towards a more sustainable future, careful consideration is required when planning an installation programme. Navigating and mitigating the costs of upgrades demands considerable skill and know-how.
As this is an emerging technology, there are currently fewer vendors, which can make for potentially higher upfront costs. However, the payback in terms of lower energy bills ought to be worth the effort. While CAPEX spend can be high, eventual annual operating costs could be as much as 10% lower.
Both traditional CRACs and liquid-to-chip cooling have their place in the data centre market. The former is a dependable, easy to maintain solution for low to medium density data centres. In contrast, liquid-to-chip provides better energy efficiency and higher density cooling for more advanced and hyperscale data centres.
While liquid-to-chip is still a nascent technology, the sector must be more proactive in highlighting the advantages to clients and investors via proof of points on operational improvements that can be expected for the increased implementation costs.
The UK government’s recent designation of Critical National Infrastructure status for data centres highlights just how essential the smooth running of data centres is. Meanwhile, the need to meet stringent sustainability planning codes when building these facilities highlights the importance of building effective cooling solutions from the offset.
With the heat on for the data centre sector to deliver more powerful and sustainable facilities, liquid to chip presents an opportunity for a cooler future.
