Trane Technologies Publishes Data Center Cooling White Paper on Water Use
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Trane Technologies has published “Rethinking Water Usage in Data Centers,” a white paper examining cooling-system choices that reduce or eliminate water consumption. The paper frames cooling design as a trade-off among water use, energy consumption, operating efficiency, equipment footprint and local conditions.
- Open cooling towers can be energy-efficient but require continuous make-up water because of evaporation.
- Air-cooled chillers can eliminate cooling-water consumption, with trade-offs in lift and unit capacity.
- Closed-loop chillers with dry fluid coolers are presented as a zero-water-use option, but may increase energy demand and equipment-area requirements.
- Adiabatic assist can reduce water use versus conventional open cooling towers in appropriate conditions.
- The white paper positions cooling selection as a multi-variable infrastructure decision rather than a water-only optimisation.
Trane Technologies has released “Rethinking Water Usage in Data Centers,” a white paper authored by Daryl Keys, the company’s Lead Integrated Solutions Engineer. The document assesses the water implications of several data center cooling configurations, including open cooling towers, air-cooled chillers, waterside economisers, closed-loop systems with dry fluid coolers, and adiabatic assist.
The paper describes open cooling towers as energy-efficient but dependent on continuous make-up water because of evaporation. It contrasts this with air-cooled chillers, which can eliminate water consumption but operate with higher lift and have lower unit capacity.
Trane also identifies closed-loop water-cooled chillers paired with dry fluid coolers as a zero-water-use option. The company notes, however, that such configurations can increase energy consumption and require substantial equipment area. This places site footprint alongside electricity and water availability in the cooling-design decision.
Adiabatic assist is presented as an intermediate option. Under suitable conditions, it can materially reduce water use relative to conventional open cooling towers while maintaining a more efficient operating point. The paper says the case for adiabatic operation depends on the balance among water efficiency, partial PUE, local climate and resource constraints.
For operators and equipment suppliers, the publication points to the growing relevance of water-aware cooling design. Rather than treating water minimisation as a standalone objective, cooling strategies may need to optimise across water consumption, power demand, PUE, available space and local operating conditions.
As data center capacity scales, cooling-water availability is becoming an infrastructure constraint alongside power supply and operating cost. The paper highlights that water-aware cooling design is not simply a matter of minimising water use: dry alternatives can raise energy demand and space requirements, while hybrid approaches may offer a site-specific balance of water, partial PUE and climate conditions.
- Data Centre Magazine / 19 октября 2026 г. · АнглийскийПервоисточник →
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