Energy and environmental assessment of on-site power and cooling for data centers

Abstract

High density data centers consume mega watts of electricity for both computing and cooling. Because of the fast paced growth of data center energy demand, effective energy conservation measures must be implemented. The use of on-site combined power generation and cooling systems for data centers that are located on campuses is discussed and compared to grid-powered data centers. The placement of the power plant on site not only reduces transmission losses, but also allows the utilization of the power plant waste heat to generate cooling for the data center and both heating and cooling for adjacent campus buildings. This is why on-site power generation for data centers is an appealing option. Further, with on-site power generation, it is possible to supply the data center with direct current (DC)power, thus, avoiding the cascade of waste in the multiple AC/DC conversions typical of conventional data centers. This article presents a detailed modeling effort to assess the efficiency and environmental and energy cost benefits of such on-site co-generation systems for campus-embedded data centers by utilizing a primary energy analysis.