A simplified thermodynamic model for waste heat utilization from a containerized data center experimental platform

Environmentally Opportunistic Computing is an approach to use the waste heat from containerized data center nodes to offset the heating needs of adjacent buildings or facilities. The computational load is then distributed across a number of data center nodes based on where the waste heat is required. In this work, a prototype data center node that houses three racks of servers and is ducted to a local greenhouse is examined. Using a free cooling approach, ambient air is pulled into the container (cold aisle) to cool the servers and the warm air on the backside of the servers (hot aisle) is directly expelled into the greenhouse as space heat to offset heating costs during the fall, winter, and spring months, while during hotter summer months, the heat is directly expelled to ambient. Experimental measurements demonstrate the functionality of the prototype, and a first order thermodynamic model of the containerized data center is developed to predict the temperature conditions in both the hot aisle and cold aisle under various operating conditions. The solution to the model has been calibrated and validated against temperature measurements taken in the containerized data center, and evaluation of the model reveals key parameters that impact performance and design.