Data centers generate a lot of heat, so engineers are tasked with finding the methods to cool them. Microsoft has not only found a way to do that, but also to make the data centers faster and greener.
The company is experimenting with submerging the data centers into the sea.
The New York Times reports that Microsoft has tested out its plan, named Project Natick. Last August, a prototype submersible, called Leona Philpot, was placed 30 feet underwater in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California.
According to Engadget, the eight-foot steel capsule held a single data center rack and was enveloped in nitrogen to keep it cool. The prototype, which controlled from the Microsoft campus over a 105-day trial, was successful. The data center was equipped with 100 sensors that tracked humidity, motion, and pressure, and didn’t experience and hardware failures or leaks. The data center even ran data-processing projects from Microsoft’s Azure, a cloud computing platform.
While environmental concerns are being taken into account, the data centers are planned to be fully recyclable, and the prototype only emitted a small amount of heat into the nearby waters.
The research group is planning a new trial with a system that will be three times larger.
Related Stories
Giants 400 | Aug 21, 2022
Top 110 Architecture/Engineering Firms for 2022
Stantec, HDR, HOK, and Skidmore, Owings & Merrill top the rankings of the nation's largest architecture engineering (AE) firms for nonresidential and multifamily buildings work, as reported in Building Design+Construction's 2022 Giants 400 Report.
Giants 400 | Aug 20, 2022
Top 180 Architecture Firms for 2022
Gensler, Perkins and Will, HKS, and Perkins Eastman top the rankings of the nation's largest architecture firms for nonresidential and multifamily buildings work, as reported in Building Design+Construction's 2022 Giants 400 Report.
Giants 400 | Aug 19, 2022
2022 Giants 400 Report: Tracking the nation's largest architecture, engineering, and construction firms
Now 46 years running, Building Design+Construction's 2022 Giants 400 Report rankings the largest architecture, engineering, and construction firms in the U.S. This year a record 519 AEC firms participated in BD+C's Giants 400 report. The final report includes more than 130 rankings across 25 building sectors and specialty categories.
Data Centers | Feb 15, 2022
Data center boom: How two AEC firms plan to meet unprecedented demand for data center facilities
Ramboll's Jim Fox and EYP Mission Critical Facilities' Rick Einhorn discuss the recent joining of their companies at a time of unprecedented data center demand. BD+C's John Caulfield leads the discussion with Fox, Ramboll's Managing Director for the Americas, and Einhorn, EYP Mission Critical Facilities' Managing Director.
Data Centers | Nov 1, 2021
Construction begins on Facebook’s Mesa Data Center
The project represents Facebook’s first major investment in Arizona.
Data Centers | Sep 22, 2021
Wasted energy from data centers could power nearby buildings
A Canadian architecture firm comes up with a concept for a community that’s part of a direct-current microgrid.
Giants 400 | Aug 30, 2021
2021 Giants 400 Report: Ranking the largest architecture, engineering, and construction firms in the U.S.
The 2021 Giants 400 Report includes more than 130 rankings across 25 building sectors and specialty categories.
Giants 400 | Aug 26, 2021
2021 Data Center Giants: Top architecture, engineering, and construction firms in the U.S. data center facilities sector
Corgan, Holder Construction, Jacobs, and Whiting-Turner top BD+C's rankings of the nation's largest data center facilities sector architecture, engineering, and construction firms, as reported in the 2021 Giants 400 Report.
Contractors | Jul 23, 2021
The aggressive growth of Salas O'Brien, with CEO Darin Anderson
Engineering firm Salas O'Brien has made multiple acquisitions over the past two years to achieve its Be Local Everywhere business model. In this exclusive interview for HorizonTV, BD+C's John Caulfield sits down with the firm's Chairman and CEO, Darin Anderson, to discuss its business model.
Data Centers | Mar 20, 2021
Japan’s NTT pushes U.S. data center expansion
Two new facilities opened last month, with several others under construction.