If you invested one dollar and it returned 10 dollars, you'd think that was an excellent return wouldn't you? So what if you could get this same 10X return on energy? An industrial heat pump system called Heat Recovery where an additional 100 kW of power used returns 1 megawatt of heat energy.
This return or ratio of energy in vs energy out is called Coefficient Of Performance (COP). A resistance heater uses 1kW of power to produce 1kW of heat, providing a COP of 1. Residential Heat Pumps are efficient but very dependent on ambient weather conditions and produce less usable heat when outside conditions are colder. So how about a system that works at a COP of 10 regardless of weather conditions outside?
I hope you have seen our discussion on whether the data center is green or efficient Greening Data Centers or Make 'em Efficient? but either way you slice it the data center consumes energy. How can we reuse that energy for other purposes? Check out Part 1 of a two-part podcast (look for this next week) that describes how we have designed a system to capture the heat coming off all the equipment in the data center and recycle it to heat offices and warm water for cafeterias and other domestic water purposes.
Check out the brief for more details Data Center Heat Recovery Helps Intel Create Green Facility.
Update: Part II of the podcast series is now available Part II: What if you invested a dollar and it returned 10? This is where I get into discussing the numbers and the total cost of ownership.
IT@Intel
Excellent very-worthwhile mode to get into. There are many very worthwhile but presently unusual methods to have better quality of life for while also reducing energy use. Foresight at the design stage of a building for instance allow near-free cooling by installation of concrete pipes or other air duct materials below the surface beneath the the planned foundation for a new building, thus allowing air to be brought through the underground pipes or ducts to bring it to an ideal temperatur or to a near-ideal temperature. Also, by building a very strong lip or extension of the foundation at the southern and western sides of a building, an extra facia or an extra brick or block wall can be added providing a no maintenace and no-operating cost insulating wall of packed dirt or rammed earth, to better regulate the internal temperature of the building where a less thoughtfully designed similar size building will be more dependent on common heating and cooling systems with the higher maintenance and higher operating costs. From designing barn-loft windows for a quick and basically free mass cooling by flushing out the hot upper air, to providing good lighting by designing for natural light, there are many excellent steps that should become mainstream.