Verizon Develops Breakthrough Design to Boost Data Center Efficiency
Beyond land acquisition and construction costs, the largest cost that data center operators face is for electricity related to cooling the massive number of servers located in their facilities.
A new containment design developed by Verizon—one that meets Occupational Safety and Health Administration and National Fire Protection Association requirements—boosts data center efficiency for a less expensive system for cooling equipment located in newly constructed colocation data centers.
The Verizon Thermo-Regulated Reverse Airflow Management system is a chimney-type containment that features cabinets that sit on an open hole on the raised floor with solid rear and top panels rather than those that are perforated. By combining this type of cabinet with computer room air handler s (CRAHs) that are up flow rather than down flow, the CRAHs are able to draw air from under the raised floor. By directing hot-air server exhaust into a cabinet’s rear chimney under the floor via the opening beneath the cabinet and back to the CRAH, heat is removed from the room and warmer air is directed into the space due to the lack of mixing involved in the system design. The following Slideshare provides details on the results of Verizon’s tests of data center efficiency using the Thermo-Regulated Reverse Airflow Management system.
- Consistent temperatures across all server inlets, regardless of cabinet height.
- No more hot spots for equipment.
- No more hot aisles impacting data center workers.
- All heat contained within each cabinet with negligible impacts from hot-air leaks or convection forces.
By deploying this containment design in new colocation data center construction, providers can lower cooling and operational costs through improved power-usage effectiveness, and operate cleaner and more environmentally friendly facilities, improving overall data center efficiency.
