#3 How much of the world’s global greenhouse gases are the result of computing? Google says that approximately 2% of the world’s global greenhouse gases are the from the ITC field. The ITC sector is comprised of information and communications technology. This includes technology for computing and mobile phones.
List several factors that will tend to retard or accelerate data center power consumption both globally and in the United States. * Energy is a growing concern for data centers. * Advances in server equipment technologies and increased demand for computing power have increased load densities in the computer room, which in turn has caused corresponding increases in data center power consumption. The increased energy consumption in the data center is, simply put, an increased demand for computing power. * An increased need for network storage is also a factor. The trend toward increasing load density in the computer room is an exacerbating factor for the increase in data center energy consumption. This is a result of advances in semiconductor technologies that yield smaller chips and advances in server technologies. These together allow more computer technology to be packed into smaller physical spaces. * Heat generated by computer equipment must be removed from the area in order to prevent overheating, in order to avoid over-heating, increased computer load density results in increased heat density, which becomes the challenge for the HVAC equipment design.
The design choices that Google says will lower data center power consumption are: * Measuring PUE * PUE = Total Facility Energy/IT Equipment Energy * It is how effectively they delivery cooling power to their equipment * The more often it is measured the more meaningful the measurement is * Incorporate PUE measurements into statements for building