Various Types of Renewable Energy for Data Center Sustainability

neuCentrIX - 21/11/2022 10:00

Data centers are a significant source of electricity consumption, and with the rapid growth in data usage, this problem will only worsen. The amount of energy required to power these facilities is vast. Data centers consume as much energy as Denmark and Ireland combined. The average data center consumes about 20 megawatts per hour (MW/h) of power, which translates to about $4 million per year for a single 1 MW facility. They account for 2% of global energy consumption, more than all electric cars combined.

The need for renewable energy sources in data centers is a growing concern due to the increased demand for data storage. Data centers should be powered by renewable energy sources like solar and wind power to reduce carbon emissions. This article tells you about some renewable energy options for data centers and the benefits they bring. 

What are some viable renewable energy options for data centers? 
Renewable energy is a viable option for data centers. With the increasing demand for renewable energy, more and more companies are looking into this option. Data centers use a lot of energy, making them one of the world's biggest electricity consumers. Most data centers use fossil fuel-generated power to run their servers and cooling systems. This is a significant contributor to greenhouse gas emissions and global warming.

Many data center operators are looking into renewable energy options to reduce their carbon footprint and be environmentally friendly. There are many ways that these operators can make this happen. One way is to install solar panels on top of their buildings or on nearby structures such as parking lots or fields where they can get maximum sun exposure during daylight hours. These solar panels can then power their data centers during the day.

Other renewable energy options include the following :
● Utilization of wind power.
● Geothermal energy.
● Waste heat reclamation.

Benefits of renewable energy sources for data center operations and management 
Renewable energy sources are the future of data centers. Soon, we will see more and more data centers switching to renewable energy sources. The benefits of some viable renewable energy sources for the data center are as follows:

● Solar energy: The use of solar energy is one way to reduce energy consumption in data centers. Solar panels allow a data center to generate its electricity from the sun's rays, reducing its reliance on external power sources and increasing its self-sufficiency.

● Wind power: Wind power is a renewable energy source with many advantages over traditional power sources. For one thing, it is cheaper than coal and natural gas. It also doesn't produce any harmful emissions like coal and natural gas. Wind turbines also produce more energy per year than any other renewable energy source, making them a very reliable source for powering data centers with high energy demands.

● Geothermal energy: Indonesia has an estimated geothermal capacity of more than 20,000 megawatts. It's been proven that geothermal power can provide reliable and clean energy sources for data centers in the future.

● Waste heat reclamation: Waste heat is a waste by-product of electricity generation. It is often wasted and not used. This renewable energy can generate electricity and produce power for data centers. 

The fight against climate change is on, and using renewable energy sources in data centers is one way to achieve this. NeuCentrIX offers high-quality data center services using renewable energy sources. Check our page for more!