IT-Zauber
Digital Twin: Energy efficiency in data centers
There are close interactions between supercomputing systems and their supply infrastructure: In computing nodes, electrical energy is converted into thermal energy, which must be dissipated - at an energy cost. For classical design and automation concepts of data centers, the interactions between system technology, energy efficiency and requirements of the IT components as well as supply security are too complex. The holistic consideration of these dynamics is therefore the subject of the IT-Zauber project for the operational optimization of energy-efficient data centers. With the help of a digital twin as a virtual model representation of the data center, the energy supply concept and the status description of the IT infrastructure are to be linked in order to map the overall system behavior with the diverse interrelationships. This will be used to develop operating strategies for the physical system, i.e. for IT components as well as for the supply infrastructure.
The aim of the project is to develop a holistic control system for computing and cooling resources in data centers. Since the cooling capacity is responsible for a considerable part of the total energy demand, efficiency improvements have a great leverage effect at this point. The digital twin approach processes real-time, model-based data from the data center. This enables precise and dynamic forecasts to be made and adjustments to be made. Central to this is the complex integration of data, both on HPC operations and on energy and plant technology, into a new type of overall model. The digital twin will be tested in the productive operation of two data centers and the efficiency increases achieved will be quantified using key figures.
In principle, the sophisticated control system can be transferred to any data centers and therefore enables efficiency increases that extend far beyond the project horizon. The sustainable reach of the project is additionally favored by open-source components.
Partners
- RWTH Aachen University (IT Center, Institute for Energy-Efficient Buildings and Indoor Climate, Institute for Automation of Complex Power Systems)
- TU Dresden (ZIH & Professorship for Building Energy Technology and Heat Supply)
- ROM-Technik GmbH & Co. KG
- SachsenEnergie AG
- ICT Facilities Stuttgart
Duration
09/2022–08/2025
ZIH-Contact
Funding
FKZ: 16ME0615 (Subproject TU Dresden)