NUS, Keppel, SLNG to build cooling tech for data centres

The new system can improve the power usage effectiveness of data centres by 20%.

The National University of Singapore Faculty of Engineering partnered with Keppel Data Centres and Singapore LNG Corporation to develop an energy- and cost-efficient cooling technology for data centres, according to a press release.

A five-member team from NUS Engineering, Keppel and SLNG will develop a prototype of a new cooling mechanism that will store and carry cold energy from liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal into various data centres and then circulate that energy within the cooling loop in each data centre.

Researchers will replace chilled water with semiclathrate hydrates slurries in data centres’ cooling systems, reducing the amount of water and power required as well as the size of equipment and distribution lines.

This technology, called Semiclathrate Thermal Energy System (ScTECS), can potentially help data centres improve their power usage effectiveness by 20% and reduce their carbon footprint, the press release noted.

Data centres are amongst the major power consumers in the building sector. In 2015, Singapore accounted for around 50% of APAC’s data centre capacity. In 2018, data centres comprised 7% of total annual electricity consumption in the Lion City.

According to Praveen Linga, associate professor at NUS Engineering Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, researchers will have to identify a suitable semiclathrate promoter and develop a reactor and process design for this technology.

Researchers are also planning to harness and utilise LNG cold energy to balance energy demands in data centres. Cold energy generated from LNG regasification could be stored in phase change materials distributed to data centres, the press release added.

The prototype will be designed, built and operated for demonstration at NUS by 2020.