Simulation and Optimization of Data-Center Cooling System with Naturally Cooled Reservoir Water

Owing to the transformation of data centers toward intelligent computing， the power density per cabinet has increased， with cooling-energy consumption constituting a significant proportion. Reducing the power-usage effectiveness （PUE） of data centers is crucial. This study proposes a cooling system that combines natural water sources with liquid-cooling technology. Considering a data center in Laibin， Guangxi as the research object， a system model is constructed to analyze the system performance under different control methods and operating conditions； subsequently， it is compared with conventional water-cooled chiller cooling systems. The result shows that controlling the supply-air temperature through the chilled-water pump reduces energy consumption by approximately 10% energy as well as facilitates waste-heat utilization. Additionally， controlling the chilled water-supply temperature through the cooling water pump is more energy efficient， although the energy-saving rate decreases as the reservoir water temperature increases. The natural water-source cooling system achieves an annual energy-saving rate of 73.5% with a cooling load factor of 0.05， which is lower than that of the conventional system. When the supply-air temperature setpoint is higher， the system energy consumption fluctuates less. Based on a comprehensive consideration， 28 ℃ is a suitable temperature. This study provides a reference for the design of green and energy-efficient data-center cooling systems.