Liquid cooling technology is critically important for the future of data centres, technology company Schneider Electric secure power division cooling innovation and strategy director Maurizio Frizziero has said.

Speaking at the company’s Spanish offices in Barcelona on July 11, he explained that the evolution of data centres, driven by increasing density and the proliferation of advanced servers, hinged on efficient cooling solutions to maintain optimal operating conditions.

Frizziero highlighted that advancements in technology, particularly the rise of AI, have led to higher energy and power requirements for servers. This increase in power density necessitates more effective cooling methods.

He noted that traditional air cooling methods were becoming insufficient as the heat generated by modern servers surpassed such cooling capabilities.

"AI is a game changer. Data centres have grown significantly in the last few decades, but AI changes the scale. AI uses much more graphics processing units (GPUs), much more energy and power into the same surface, so it needs to be cooled more,” Frizziero noted, emphasising the exponential rise of AI and its rapidly growing impact on data centre infrastructure over the past few years.

He elaborated that this development underscored the urgent need for enhanced cooling solutions, particularly liquid cooling, which was more effective at managing high-density heat loads.

Frizziero said that, while AI was driving the demand for better cooling, not all data centres would transition entirely to AI-based operations. Therefore, cooling strategies must address both AI and non-AI servers, ensuring a seamless transition and sustainable growth.

“When we think about architecture, about cooling, about the overall power distribution for data centres, we need to consider what is happening with AI, what will happen with non-AI, which remains in the equation, and what happens during the transition. Those are the three main questions that any architecture needs to address,” he said.

He noted that, if well-designed, liquid cooling technology would not necessarily require specialised skill sets.

“The implementation of liquid cooling does not require very different skills than what is required today for a well-designed data centre,” he said.

However, Frizziero noted that, if not well designed, the outcome could be disastrous.

“The main difference is that, currently, if an air cooled data centre is not built using the best practices and the expertise, the data centre will still survive. However, if these same guidelines are ignored in a liquid cooled data centre, it will be a disaster.

“That's why we need to have more evangelisation and more trust advising, because the lack of skills in parts of the world could be critical,” he told Engineering News, adding that there was a growing need for experienced and skilled companies such as Schneider Electric to move from being mere advisers to data centre developers to being designers.

Frizziero highlighted the importance of sustainability in cooling strategies, noting that liquid cooling could play a role in reducing the carbon footprint of data centres.

He said there was a need for cooperation across the industry, involving specifiers, consultants, server manufacturers and cooling solution providers, to achieve more sustainable cooling technology adoption.

“This is not a single-player game. The entire industry ecosystem must cooperate because it’s not just a matter of replacing the air conditioning unit and adding the liquid-cooled server. It’s more of a design or architectural guideline,” Frizziero said.

He said liquid cooling was not a standalone product but would require a comprehensive approach to data centre design as it involved cooling the server chips directly or immersing the entire server in a cooling fluid.

"There are different ways to cool a server, either by cooling the chip only, directly, or by immersing the entire server in a tank, using either water or different fluids. The outcome is that, despite all the players in this game claiming their solution is the best, there are no clear winners here. Technically, all these methods have pros and cons, and at Schneider, we support all of them,” he said.

Frizziero explained that one of the main advantages of direct chip liquid cooling was its ability to handle high densities while being available in the same form and function as current servers.

"Direct chip single-phase liquid cooling is the technology that is now happening, and it’s happening for the simple reason that it manages high density, is available in the same form and function as current servers, so the server can be put in the same rack, and can be located in a white space where you have a cooled server," he explained.

Frizziero also discussed the regulatory and regional differences that complicate the adoption of liquid cooling solutions.

“While global players are pushing for unified standards, different regions have unique requirements that must be addressed. Europe is moving in a different direction than North America, and Asia has its own approach to refrigerants and efficiency standards. This diversity complicates things, but it also presents an opportunity for innovation and collaboration,” he noted.

However, Frizziero said there was evidence that the data centre industry was moving towards a more unified set of technologies that comply with liquid cooling standards.

"In the past, we used a variety of cooling technologies, but we are now converging towards solutions primarily based on chilled water. Large companies are moving towards this because of the limitations on wastewater usage and refrigerant regulations in various regions,” he said.

Despite the complexities, Frizziero emphasised that a holistic, end-to-end approach would be crucial for the future of data centre cooling.

"We need to look at the lifecycle of the entire data centre, including production, energy use, and water use, to ensure sustainability. Without this, we cannot sustain the evolution to AI and other advanced technologies,” he noted.

*Darren Parker was a guest of Schneider Electric at an international ‘Transitioning to AI-ready Data Centres’ media event, in Barcelona, Spain, from July 10 to 12.