Nvidia Unveils Warm-Water Cooling System for Data Centers

Nvidia announced a warm-water cooling system that it says can eliminate nearly all water consumption inside data centers by running coolant in a closed loop. The system pumps fluid into server racks at 45 degrees Celsius and returns it at 55 degrees Celsius, allowing heat to dissipate through passive radiators in many climates without evaporative cooling or fans.

Josh Parker, chief sustainability officer at Nvidia, said the water consumption challenge for data centers is largely solved.

Nvidia measures water use only within the boundaries of the data center itself, counting anything inside the line and excluding external sources. The company stated that in favorable climates the approach can achieve a 100 percent reduction in on-site water use because the coolant is filled once and recirculated for the life of the facility.

External water consumption tied to electricity generation and chip manufacturing can still double or triple a facility’s total water footprint, meaning the new system addresses roughly one-quarter to one-third of overall water use.

Fossil fuel power plants remain major water consumers, with coal plants using 2.2 liters per kilowatt-hour and natural gas plants using 1.17 liters per kilowatt-hour. Fossil fuel plants collectively supply about half of data center power today. Hydropower contributes around 10 percent of data center electricity, with reservoir evaporation adding 6.8 liters lost per kilowatt-hour.

Wind and solar generation use far less water, at 0.01 liters and 0.03 liters per kilowatt-hour respectively.