Sustainable data centre: CO₂ high-temperature heat pumps make intelligent use of waste heat
To realise a future-oriented, high‑performance data centre, ENGIE Refrigeration – in collaboration with ENGIE Deutschland – is implementing an innovative waste‑heat utilisation concept featuring eight thermeco2 high‑temperature heat pumps. This customised solution enhances overall energy efficiency and ensures a reliable heat supply for the entire campus, making it a key element in the sustainable operation of the data centre.
- Intelligent waste heat utilisation maximises energy efficiency: eight thermeco2high-temperature heat pumps (six units HHR720 and two units HHR180) raise the waste heat from the supercomputers to a higher temperature level.
- Low-GWP refrigerant CO₂ (R-744, GWP = 1): The use of CO₂ as a refrigerant meets the highest safety standards under DIN EN 378 (non-flammable, Class A1) and avoids the use of fluorinated refrigerants with high global warming potential.
The high-performance data centre is equipped with two new supercomputers offering significantly increased computing power. These systems convert all electrical energy into heat – a resource that ENGIE Refrigeration, together with ENGIE Deutschland as the contractor, utilises optimally. Working closely with a specialist engineering firm, the team of experts developed a bespoke concept for the sustainable data centre: A new waste heat plant captures all the waste heat from the supercomputers and feeds it into the district heating network via industrial heat pumps. At the heart of the concept: six thermeco2 high-temperature heat pumps (HHR720) operate as both heat pumps and chillers for process cooling. Two reversible HHR180 heat pumps complete the system. All systems use CO₂ (R-744) as a non-fluorinated, low-GWP refrigerant and meet the requirements of DIN EN 378 as non-flammable (Class A1). They make a significant contribution to reducing the use of high-GWP fluorinated refrigerants in the operation of the high-performance data centre.
Intelligent waste heat utilisation for data centre operations
The project demonstrates how a sustainable data centre can be achieved through intelligent waste heat utilisation. ENGIE Refrigeration’s thermeco2 high-temperature heat pumps convert the waste heat from the supercomputers into usable process heat. The partnership between ENGIE Refrigeration and ENGIE Deutschland enables a holistic solution for the high-performance data centre – from planning and production to commissioning. The result is a cooling and heating concept for data centre operations that combines computing capacity with cooling and heating infrastructure for the specified application.
Further references
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