High-Performance Computing Data Center

NLR's High-Performance Computing (HPC) Data Center uses best-in-class technologies and is a showcase facility for data-center energy efficiency. 

Located in the Energy Systems Integration Facility (ESIF), the data center has achieved a world-leading annualized average power usage effectiveness (PUE) rating of 1.036. In 2018, Data Center Dynamics recognized NLR with an award for its pioneering approach to data center efficiency.

The data center uses warm-water liquid cooling to achieve its very low PUE and then captures and reuses waste heat as the primary heating source throughout ESIF offices and laboratory space. These technologies substantially reduce the energy used by the building, saving energy and money in new and effective ways.

There are no mechanical or compressor-based cooling systems for NLR's HPC Data Center. Cooling liquid is supplied indirectly from evaporative cooling towers, and the thermosyphon—an advanced dry cooler that uses refrigerant in a passive cycle to dissipate heat—reduces on-site water consumption in the cooling towers without negative impacts on the data center's efficiency.