Data Center Efficiency: From Air to Liquid Cooling
- Course Number: M2016
- Credits: 6 hours
- Instructor: Ellen Huang, PE
- Price: $60
Course Outline
This course connects policy-grade best practices with real-world liquid-cooling deployments to help you design, retrofit, and operate energy-efficient, AI-ready data centers. You’ll compare air management fundamentals (ASHRAE A-class envelopes, hot/cold-aisle containment, centralized air handlers, economizers) with liquid-cooling architectures—direct-to-chip (single/dual-phase) and immersion—including selection, integration, materials compatibility, and maintenance. We translate DOE/NREL guidance on IT efficiency, chilled-water plants, and controls into actionable steps, and show how to benchmark with PUE, WUE, ERE, and CUE while raising supply temperatures safely.
At the end of this course, there will be a multiple-choice, open-book quiz designed to enhance your understanding of the course material.
Learning Objectives
At the conclusion of this course, the student will:
- Be able to identify key factors in planning and designing data centers, including physical space, power, cooling, and security requirements;
- Be able to explain the interrelationship between business needs, design drivers, and technical implementation decisions;
- Be able to evaluate data center energy consumption patterns and apply strategies for efficiency and sustainability; and
- Be able to recognize regulatory, operational, and environmental considerations that influence data center management.