Podcast Blog Contact

Heat Reuse

https://146a55aca6f00848c565-a7635525d40ac1c70300198708936b4e.ssl.cf1.rackcdn.com/images/dbcc28a81575505d3419365c3ad4ef7ab764ee2b.png logo
Project Leads
Bharath Ramakrishnan, Jaime Comella

Welcome to the OCP Heat Reuse Subproject. Efficient energy usage and sustainability are key global concerns and tenets of the Open Compute Project (OCP). ITE and data center design efficiency is just one factor in minimizing the carbon footprint associated with energy usage of a data center - use of renewable resources and reuse of its excess heat can have a positive impact as well.

Almost 100% of the energy used in a processor turns into heat.

Up until very recently this has been a liability and a challenge: an immense quantity of heat needed to be removed, employing even more energy. With the proper design, data center cooling systems can be converted into a heat source and a heat management opportunity that in turn converts the heat from a liability to an asset.

Scope

The OCP Heat Reuse Subproject explores these challenges and opportunities. Its goal is to suggest solutions to allow easier implementations of technologies aimed at harnessing the heat and turn it into profit instead of a cost. During our journey we will study the field of the policies facilitating -or not- the usage of data centers’ excess heat around the globe; we will create guidance on designs leading to an easier implementation of heat reuse projects considering the needs of tomorrow and we will evaluate the profitability and the impacts of such an endeavor when applied to data centers.

Areas of work:

After a period of general discussions during our old biweekly calls, during June 2023 we decided to open workstreams to better organized our focused work along three main topics: reference designs, economics and policies. The first one is probably the field for which this subproject was mainly created: to create guidance around the technical needs of a data center willing to materialize a heat reuse project. The second topic is meant to answer the first question that comes next: how much will all this cost? and how much can I save or even earn with this? Finally, the third topic, even being the less technical of all, remains essential to understand the regulatory environment, crucial for an intersectoral coupling, which is needed to materialize this kind of projects.

More work is being conducted separate from the workstreams:

  • Heat reuse projects' database + map: living documents unveiling heat reuse projects and their details around the globe. Maps and database can be found under the Outcomes section in our wiki page.
  • Heat reuse readiness assessment: self-assessment built as a checklist using a spreadsheet to analyze the situation of a data center to realize a heat reuse project, showing optimum parameters to consider. Advanced beta version that you can find under the Outcomes section in our wiki page.
  • A comparative analysis of the impacts of heat reuse on data centers with different characteristics and in different locations: only in conceptual stage, a first draft will be shared during 2024.

Other workstreams will see the light, but as for the rest, we will need support from the community. Is there any topic you believe we need a workstream for? Are you ready to lead it? Please join us and let's discuss.

Leadership

Sub-project Leads (email address: heatreuseleads@ocproject.net):

Workstream Leads:

Call Calendar

Always 8-9 AM PT // 11-12 AM ET // 5-6 PM CET:

  • 1st Tuesday of the month: HR Policies call
  • 1st Thursday of the month: HR Reference Designs call
  • 2nd Thursday of the month: HR Economics call
  • 3rd Tuesday of the month: General HR call

All the calls are always in this Zoom room.

Check here what are the calls going to be about here.

These meetings are recorded via audio and video. By participating you consent that the recordings may be made publicly available. Any presentation materials, proposals and meeting minutes are published on the respective project's wiki page and are open to the public in accordance to OCP's Bylaws and IP Policy. This can be found at http://opencompute.org/about/ocp-policies/. If you have any questions please contact OCP.

OCP Cooling Environments - Heat Reuse Calendar

The calendar displayed here is updated nightly from the project's Groups.io Calendar

Details

Get Involved

subscribe to mailing list

Events