Dutch data centre will be Europe's first with hydrogen backup power
Converting to green hydrogen will save up to 78 tons of CO2 from entering the atmosphere every year
Dutch data centre firm NorthC is replacing its backup power generators with new equipment running on green hydrogen: allegedly a European first.
NorthC's facility in Groningen will be the first location to use the new 500KW hydrogen cell module, replacing a diesel-powered emergency generator: a common backup solution in the data centre business.
Although the diesel generators are rarely used, simply testing them every month releases pollution into the environment: a large amount when you consider the number of data centres worldwide.
Instead of pollutants, the green hydrogen module NorthC has chosen will only release water when burning its fuel source.
Here's a quick video about the switch:
NorthC estimates that switching this single facility away from a diesel backup generator will save 'tens of thousands' of litres of fuel every year, and avoid as much as 78,000kg (78 tons) of CO2 production. As the company says, 'That is equal to 24 cars driving the average number of kilometers for Dutch people (32km per day) for a year, or 20,000 smartphones being charged every day for a year.'
The hydrogen cells are more expensive than diesel-powered equipment, but costs are expected to fall sharply in the coming years as production continues to develop - and fossil fuel prices rise. Additionally, each cell has an expected service life of 20+ years.
NorthC is now investigating whether it can convert other diesel generators to run on hydrogen. While this is less efficient than hydrogen fuel cells, it would still lower emissions by as much as 80 per cent.
"The data centre industry has a responsibility to ensure that we operate as sustainably as possible," said Jarno Bloem, COO at NorthC Datacenters.
"We are now going to investigate if we can also apply this technology in our other data centers, initially mainly in new branches or expansions of existing branches. The ultimate goal, of course, is to use green hydrogen as a primary power supply, but that is still something to address in the future. An important condition is a drop in the costs of hydrogen. This requires subsidies and an increase in scale. But given the enormous advantages that this form of energy offers, I am convinced that it is just a matter of time."
The Groningen facility's hydrogen fuel cell equipment is expected to be in operation by mid-June.
Computing says:
The use of green hydrogen instead of the cheaper blue type is to be welcomed. The production process for green hydrogen is much more environmentally friendly than that of diesel or blue hydrogen: it only produces hydrogen and oxygen, which can be safely vented into the atmosphere, and all the power comes from renewables. By contrast, blue hydrogen is more of a byproduct of natural gas production and still relies on fossil fuels.
The data centre industry consumes huge amounts of power - as much as one per cent of global energy use - and outputs a tremendous amount of heat and e-waste byproducts, so anything that can be done to lower its environmental impact is a step in the right direction.
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