It is no secret that IT server infrastructure is concentrating more heat in smaller areas. Beyond simply increasing cooling costs, many enterprises are facing a situation where they have – or soon will – outstrip their cooling capacity. Growing concerns regarding energy consumption mean that optimizing cooling is also a critical aspect of "green" data center strategies. Use the right metrics to gauge current heat densities, identify opportunities for more targeted cooling, and improve overall cooling efficiency.
Heat Density
According to both The Uptime Institute and HP Labs, the heat density of data centers is increasing at a rate of about 15% per year. Data centers three or more years old were usually designed based on an assumption of a gross computer room heat density in the range of 40 W/ft2 to 70 W/ft2. These data center environments are not equipped to handle heat loads being generated by many of the newer high density racks (e.g. blades) that can boost computer room power density to 300 W/ft2 foot or more. In some cases, equipment footprint heat densities are reaching 1,000 W/ft2 and above.
Since both heat density and computing requirements are growing, but server rooms are most likely not expanding, heat density will increase not only at the rack level...
