Syracuse University signed thermal management supplier Vette Corp for its green data center development project with partners IBM and NYSERDA (New York State Energy Research and Development Authority.)

The project was announced earlier this year and will see the University use Vette for cooling infrastructure.

The $12.4 million, 6,000-square-foot data center data center is expected to use 50 percent less energy than a typical data center by using smarter technologies focusing on the actual infrastructure of the data center itself, not just the computer hardware and software.

'A key element will be an on-site electrical co-generation system that will use natural gas-fueled microturbine engines to generate all electricity for the data center and provide cooling for the computer servers. The data center will be able to operate completely off-grid,' a statement said. 

IBM and Syracuse are creating a liquid cooling system that will use double-effect absorption chillers to convert the exhaust heat from the microturbines into chilled water that is used to cool the data center's servers, with sufficient excess cooling to handle the needs of an adjacent building.

The IT equipment will be cooled using Vette Corp’s water cooled LiquiCoolTM Rear Door Heat Exchangers rather than with traditional air cooling such as Computer Room Air Conditioners.

“A data center uses approximately 40 times more energy than an office building of equivalent size and the cooling infrastructure represents approximately half of the total energy use within the data center,” said Joe Capes, general manager, Vette Corp Datacom Division. “By deploying Vette’s LiquiCool Rear Door Heat Exchangers, Syracuse will consume dramatically less energy and realize significant efficiency gains and cost savings.”

The LiquiCool Rear Door Heat Exchanger is a water cooled door that mounts to the back of IT enclosures and cools computer equipment exhaust air before it re-enters the data center operating environment.