Presented By Aaron P. Wemhoff, Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Director, Villanova University Site of the Center for Energy-Smart Electronic Systems
Co-presenter: Rehan Khalid, Graduate Research Assistant, Villanova University

Control strategies for airflow management have a significant impact on data center energy efficiency and reliability. Here, a flow network modeling tool is developed to rapidly provide a rough comparison of the impact of different control strategies on these two metrics. The first portion of the talk focuses on development and validation of the flow network modeling tool, and how it can be used as a first step in analyzing control schemes. The second part of the talk examines specific control strategies for a representative data center. Two self-developed control schemes, ON/OFF and Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) were applied on a hybrid evaporative and direct expansion-based cooling system to mimic real data centers. These control schemes can be applied independently or collectively, thereby saving the energy spent on mechanical refrigeration by using airside economization and/or evaporative cooling.