Networked Enterprise Featured Article

The rise of cloud computing has meant a dramatic increase in the volume and computing density of data centers. This, naturally, has been good for the data center cooling market.

The data center cooling market in the U.S. is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of roughly 6.67 percent through 2019, according to a new report by the firm, Research and Markets.

One major trend in the cooling market is the widespread adoption of liquid-immersion cooling solutions, according to the report. Liquid submersion technology works by placing servers and IT equipment in tanks that contain non-conductive coolant.

Water-based economizers also are gaining in popularity, as they reduce the running time and pump use of air conditioners. With the emergence of free cooling techniques, systems that offer optimal operating temperatures and humidity by reducing mechanical cooling are gaining momentum.

Companies such and Panduit also are offering up innovative ways for data centers to reduce cooling costs.

For instance, Panduit’s Net-Contain Passive Thermal Containment Systems uses a vertical exhaust duct that channels hot exhaust air directly into the ceiling plenum to prevent mixing for improved cooling utilization.

Panduit also sells Cold Aisle and Hot Aisle containment options that provide physical separation between the cold air and the hot exhaust air, which improves energy efficiency.

Keeping servers, hard drives and other equipment cool in the data center is a prime consideration for data center architects, as keeping equipment cool is a big cost center. Reducing data center cost through better energy efficiency is a key competitive differentiator. Foremost among those energy costs is cooling.

So the market for cooling the data center is not one that will stop growing in the near future. This is good for data center architects, because the pressure on cost containment also isn’t going to let up any time soon.