Course Description

Let us begin with the fundamental challenge: heat. Data centers produce 20 to 50 times more heat per square foot than a typical office building. To put this in perspective, an office might generate 10 watts per square foot, while a high-density data center can exceed 400 watts per square foot. This heat comes primarily from servers, storage devices, network switches, and even the uninterruptible power supplies that keep everything running. Without proper cooling, inlet air temperatures at the server front can exceed 35 degrees Celsius, and at that point, IT equipment begins to throttle down its performance to protect itself. Prolonged overheating leads to component failure and dramatically reduced lifespan. Here is a critical point that many newcomers miss: cooling typically accounts for 30 to 40 percent of total data center energy consumption, making it the second largest expense after the IT equipment itself. The primary goal of data center cooling is to remove sensible heat, meaning the dry heat from electronics, not latent heat from humidity, which is a secondary concern in most IT spaces. This distinction shapes every design decision we will discuss.

What you'll learn in this course?

• Identify the key thermal challenges in modern data centers, including high-density racks and hot spot formation.

• Differentiate between various cooling architectures such as room-based, row-based, and rack-based cooling.

• Explain the working principles of CRAH (Computer Room Air Handler) and CRAC (Computer Room Air Conditioner) units.

• Analyze the benefits of chilled water systems, direct expansion (DX), and free cooling economizers.

• Evaluate liquid cooling technologies including direct-to-chip and immersion cooling.

• Apply ASHRAE Thermal Guidelines for data center environments (A1 to A4 classes).

• Interpret key metrics like PUE (Power Usage Effectiveness) and cooling system efficiency.

Prerequisites

• Basic knowledge of HVAC refrigeration, chilled-water systems, airflow, and heat transfer

• Familiarity with electrical loads, controls, and critical-facility operations is helpful