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A.I. tools fueled a 34% spike in Microsoft’s water consumption, and one city with its data centers is concerned about the effect on residential supply (fortune.com)

submitted 1 year ago by floofloof@lemmy.ca to c/technology@lemmy.world

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[–] bdonvr@thelemmy.club 11 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I gotta wonder though, water used for server cooling is basically just run through metal fixtures and returned right? Couldn't it be possible to force some kind of maintenance and cleanliness standards onto the equipment and just have the water return to the supply? Is there any reason that water wouldn't be just as drinkable after?

[–] Namahanna@lemm.ee 9 points 1 year ago

They use evaporative cooling on days where it is over 85f

Microsoft’s data centers currently use adiabatic cooling, which relies on outside air to cool down temperatures inside. It’s a system that uses less electricity than air conditioning and less water than cooling towers. But when temperatures rise above 85 degrees Fahrenheit, outside air isn’t very helpful. At that point, an evaporative cooling system kicks in, which uses water. It works like a “swamp cooler” — cooling the air by pushing it over or through water-soaked screens.

https://local.microsoft.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/Datacenter-water-consumption-fact-sheet.pdf