By the time this is published we will be in the middle of the dog days of summer. Data center cooling systems, as well as our energy budgets and patience, will be tested. Daily, weekly, and monthly energy use and PUEs will spike. Peak utility rates will be in effect and compressor runtime and electrical draw for chillers and CRACs will be at their highest, as exterior heat rejection systems face performance challenges from high ambient air temperatures and solar heating of rooftops.
Moreover, if your data center cooling system requires water, sooner or later it could be facing a variety of drought related problems; economic, tactical, and even political. And if it is located in California, and if you have not yet begun to feel any of them already, they could become issues in the very near future. The recent June 24 article in The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) titled “Data Centers and Hidden Water Use” proclaimed “In California, computer farms are under scrutiny for their large and growing use of water for cooling.”